Key Takeaways:
I just participated in an exclusive conference for facilities professionals called Elevate, an executive gathering for facilities leaders to come together, be forward thinking and make genuine connections.
This conference had me thinking about something facilities professionals may have never thought about. Exclusive conferences, like Elevate, help you identify vendors aligned with your organization's future, not just current operations.
As a new executive director of facilities management and planning for a university, managing operations across New York, St. Lucia, and online modalities, I'm discovering that vendor selection is not only about today's needs. It's about partners who can scale with you.
At Elevate, there are no random vendor booths or aggressive sales pitches from companies. Instead, organizers intentionally invite specific sponsors they have already vetted. Because this is my second year in attendance, that intimate curation is invaluable when you are building infrastructure for organizational transformation.
As a higher education institution, expanding internationally, supporting online learning and evolving means facilities management cannot stay static. We need vendors who understand transformation. Who get multi-location coordination. Who can grow with us.
I am also a fan of traditional industry conferences that are designed to be vendor marketplaces. These are valuable in their own capacity and approach, but at times it can be overwhelming with so many options. Formal vendor selection processes follow RFPs, proposals and sometimes reference checks. Necessary, but very time consuming for facilities professionals always on.
Elevate operates differently. Conference organizers have already done significant vetting. They're inviting specific sponsors based on alignment with facilities management's future. That prescreening means you are accessing vendors that will matter to our field's evolution and organizational scaling.
When you're networking with sponsors at Elevate, you're already one step ahead. These vendors are here because organizers believe they have something valuable to offer. You're not wondering whether they're credible because organizers have already made that determination. More importantly, these are vendors thinking about where facilities management is heading, not just where it's been.
The intimate nature of Elevate changes everything. You are able to have genuine conversations with decision makers about challenges facing facilities professionals managing complex operations. Also, vendors get to know you and your organization intimately after spending two days of quality time problem solving and sharing their unique tools structured for our facilities.
I spent time with several vendors discussing my university’s specific challenges. I took a moment to ask myself which vendors asked thoughtful questions about these challenges? Which ones had experience with similar transformations? That intelligence is invaluable when you are building vendor partnerships.
The sponsorship model also reveals priorities. Companies investing in Elevate sponsorship aren't just chasing quick sales. I believe they are making strategic commitments to the facilities management profession. At an organizational growth stage, I need vendors equally committed to partnership, not transactions.
What I am learning is that when you are managing facilities during organizational transformation, vendor selection becomes a strategic infrastructure decision. You are not just choosing who fixes today's problems. You're choosing partners who will grow with you as the university expands internationally and scales operations.
For facilities managers navigating organizational change, my insight is to use exclusive conferences strategically. Let organizers do initial vetting. Have genuine conversations about your transformation challenges. Identify vendors who get what you are building, not just what you are managing today.
That is how you build partnerships supporting scaling. That is how you ensure facilities infrastructure grows alongside organizational vision.
Maria Ruiz, CFM is the executive director of facilities management and planning at Monroe University, overseeing operations across the Bronx, New Rochelle, St. Lucia and online programs. With 20 years of cross-sector experience in nonprofits, international development and higher education, she brings disciplined methodology and strategic thinking to complex facilities challenges. Maria is an advocate for repositioning facilities management as a strategic partner rather than a cost center, advising on people, process, technology and the built environment.
