Succession planning is not a single event. It's a cycle that ebbs and flows. I believe that women in facilities management understand that intuitively because we are constantly living it.
Maternity leave, medical emergencies, sabbaticals, career pivots, retirements, sudden resignations and caregiving responsibilities are not disruptions to plan around, they are natural transitions that impact our work throughout our careers.
Organizations that only plan for retirement are unprepared, in my opinion, for the transitions happening right now.
I have realized that many times throughout my lived experience, and subject matter knowledge in facilities, women are uniquely positioned to lead succession planning because we are always navigating transitions ourselves while managing complex, multidisciplinary operations.
Facilities management does not exist in isolation. It dynamically intersects with technology, operations, relationships, finance, mission and people. The complexities require constant adaptability, awareness and that magical ability to anticipate needs which I firmly believe is exactly what women bring to this field.
We operate in spaces that require constant adjustment. We are coordinating HVAC systems while managing vendor relationships, developing team members while advocating for budgets, solving emergencies all the while supporting colleagues managing their own life transitions. That daily orchestration of moving parts teaches us that resilience comes from distributed knowledge, not concentrated expertise.
Women in facilities management gravitate toward documentation. We teach, we coach, we detail the why behind decisions. We share information freely because we understand that hoarding knowledge creates organizational fragility. We solve problems creatively under constraints because we have learned that resourcefulness matters more than perfect conditions at times.
What surprises me is how often these strengths translate directly to succession planning. When I document my decision making framework, I'm not just creating a manual. I am distributing knowledge so my team is not dependent on me. When I work with a technician through a complex repair, I'm ensuring that capability survives my absence. When I implement systems requiring cross training, I'm building organizational resilience.
Women in facilities tend to think long term and look ahead while anticipating needs. We consider how today's decisions affect team sustainability tomorrow. We notice when colleagues are overwhelmed and we step in because we understand that people matter. We ensure teams have the right tools, the right training, the right support not just for today, but for the transitions coming.
A significant and deep realization for me has been that organizations that treat transitions as normal operational cycles are far more resilient than those treating them as disruptions.
Treating transitions in facilities as disruptions leads to a deep seeded habit to react instead of being proactive. I believe that transitions like maternity leave should not trigger a crisis because you planned for it. Medical leaves are managed smoothly because systems exist independent of one person. Resignations don't create knowledge gaps because documentation and process review already exists to ensure a proper handoff. Retirements are celebrated transitions, not organizational emergencies.
This requires weaving succession planning into onboarding and offboarding from the start. Building standard operational procedures, with all these transitions in mind, and reviewing them quarterly, semi-annually or annually, as needed and not an afterthought. Succession planning should be a core operational practice. Documenting processes, cross training teams, paying attention to morale levels and including teams in planning, sets the organization to survive transitions.
I think of succession planning like managing buildings during the entire life cycle. We commission them and bring them online with intention. We operate and maintain them running day to day. We upgrade and retrofit them and continue to improve them over time and some day may have to decommission them, responsibly, to transition them out of service.
Succession planning is the same. We onboard with intention, bringing clear knowledge and systems. Development is built through day to day operations. Skills are improved through continuous learning. Then as cycles come and go, offboarding is thoughtfully and proactively capturing knowledge and celebrating transitions.
Women can lead this transformation. We understand that people have full lives with legitimate transitions. We know that distributed knowledge builds stronger organizations. We believe that caring for people and building resilient systems aren't competing priorities but exist cohesively.
That's not just good succession planning. That's strategic leadership our profession desperately needs.
Maria Ruiz is a Facilities Operations Manager at UNICEF USA with 15+ years of cross-sector expertise. Overseeing multiple national offices, she applies Lean Six Sigma methodologies to create sustainable, efficient workspaces supporting humanitarian missions. Her writing champions women in facilities management by blending technical knowledge with practical insights that empower professionals in this traditionally male-dominated field.
