FMS:Workplace Reviews

“Flexible setup and powerful tools

Pros

FMS:Workplace really changed how we handle workplace and real estate data management. The platform is flexible and the implementation process was simple enough that we could adapt it quickly. Our team needed very little training before getting started which made the rollout much easier.

Cons

The software is highly functional but some modules offer so many customization options that getting started can feel a little overwhelming at first. Once everything is configured though, it turns into a very valuable tool for everyday operations.

“fantastic tool for workplace management

Pros

This has been a huge help for our company. We rely on it to handle office move requests, plan preventative maintenance, keep up with assets and manage lease agreements. The platform is user-friendly and works really well for all of those needs.

Cons

Report creation can still be a little challenging at times but FM University provides useful guidance whenever I need help setting up a new one.

“Solid system with decent visuals

Pros

Overall the system works well and feels good to use and the graphics are decent too.

Cons

The part I don't like is the trouble we keep running into with the interface connected to our HR data system.

“excellent space planning tool

Pros

this tool has been an amazing tool for helping us plan our space more effectively. The system is also quite simple to use which made the whole process even better.

Cons

only real challenge we ran into was on our side, mainly getting everyone aligned and on board at the beginning. Aside from that the system itself has been excellent.

“Useful insights and space tracking

Pros

Right from the start, this software has been very simple to use and widely accepted across the company. It has helped reduce costs and improve productivity by providing real insights. The space reservation and tracking features have also been very helpful, giving our company more accurate results.

Cons

At this point as a new user I haven't come across anything I dislike about the software. It has supported me and my organization in every aspect so far and I would definitely recommend it to others.

“reliable and customizable

Pros

One thing that really stands out is how reliable FMS:Workplace has been and I also appreciate that several features can be tailored to match our specific requirements.

Cons

The interface could be more user-friendly in my view although I know some of my colleagues may feel differently about that.

“slow, outdated, frustrating

Pros

There really aren't any standout positives I can point to with this system. It does the bare minimum to function but everything moves so slowly that it's hard to feel good about using it. I probably wouldn't be this disappointed if the performance weren't such a constant issue.

Cons

Using it is frustrating because the system is extremely slow, even for basic tasks like assigning work. Changes take a long time to process and saving can take 15 to 20 seconds sometimes even more. The interface also feels very outdated. There are far too many unnecessary fields which makes the screen feel cluttered and causes the interface to take up the whole page. It also lacks customization. Administrators can't customize reports and while exporting is possible, it exports the entire page of data instead of letting you choose only what you need. The only real reason this product was selected was for the space planning component, along with the fact that it included maintenance features and had been used at a previous location. It was chosen by someone who had never actually worked with a maintenance-specific system and that same person had also been told the system could be customized by an administrator, including things like required fields which turned out not to be the case.

“Centralized data

Pros

Space Management and Move Management are the features we rely on most and they've been very simple to work with. The system was simple to understand from the start and didn't take long to learn. Its overall structure is built around a few core facilities management concepts, then lets you expand into other areas like space, maintenance, real estate and more. That setup makes it possible to tailor operations to our needs while still keeping all the data centralized which is probably the part I appreciate most.

Cons

The one area that has been challenging is linking the staff list from our HR software with FMS: Workplace. Other than that, everything else has been fine.

“Fast space insights

Pros

Having everything in a single dashboard with flexible configuration is what I appreciate most about this software. It makes it much quicker to answer space-related questions, like how much room a department has or which departments are located in a specific building. Compared with when we were using Aperture, getting data out of the system is much less of a struggle.

Cons

Creating and customizing reports was somewhat challenging for planners, facilities management leadership and data analysts so that work ended up being handled in MS SQL Server instead. We also had an initiative in progress that required completely rethinking how space was reported and analyzed and the product support team was not responsive enough when we asked for new reporting options and open office templates.

“Quick excel and essbase integration

Pros

Working with this software has been a really positive experience. Excel is simple to use, the add-on installation is simple and connecting to Oracle Essbase happens incredibly fast. Another big advantage is being able to handle the product's internal configuration without needing costly custom development and those configurations continue to carry over into future upgrades.

Cons

There really is not much I dislike about the software. The only downside from my perspective is that the pricing structure feels a bit expensive for me as an individual user.

“excellent digital workspace tools

Pros

Having everything in one digital workspace really helps with design analysis and setting up a proper workplace environment. It also makes managing and maintaining the company much more convenient.

Cons

The feature set still feels somewhat limited. Even though synchronization is available, it would be better if it included its own built-in chat feature.

“Helpful visuals for space planning

Pros

A lot of people don't realize they learn best visually and information tends to click much faster when they can actually see the data laid out clearly. After only later understanding that I'm a visual learner myself, I noticed how much more productive I became. Because of that, the data visualization in this interface has been especially useful for planning space implementation, distribution and overall management.

Cons

Not being particularly tech-savvy I can still say the interface is valuable and packed with capabilities but it definitely takes time to learn how to move through it comfortably. In our workplace, that creates a hurdle for people who aren't very confident with technology and how quickly someone understands the system really depends on their background and level of experience.

“Swift rollout and quick training

Pros

Rolling this out to a wider group has been pretty simple because the system is so simple. In most cases, users only need the 25-minute training video we recorded to get up to speed.

Cons

My only real complaint is the reporting module's speed. It has strong functionality but it's painfully slow.

“friendly interface with room to learn

Pros

Most of the time, the platform is fairly simple to use and doesn't take much effort to navigate.

Cons

Report writing is still challenging and it will probably take us some time before we get fully comfortable with it.

“Reliable campus work order hub

Pros

Across the university, FIMS lets us keep all facilities work orders in one central place. It has really improved how efficiently we receive and process work requests.

Cons

The admin and user interfaces are not especially modern or polished although that becomes less of an issue over time. In the end, the functionality matters more.

“Valuable space visibility

Pros

One of the biggest benefits for our organization is the space management tool. It's essential for us to track how much space we have, who owns it whether that's the university, foundations or leased properties which stewards are responsible for it such as a college, school or MBU and who is occupying that space, including employees, students and visitors. Having this data gives us a real-time view of the size and location of our full facility inventory.

Cons

A challenge we keep running into is the large number of Revit files we now receive instead of AutoCAD files as project deliverables. Getting those Revit files uploaded and published in FM:Interact is difficult and often doesn't work successfully. Since more and more projects are being developed in a Revit environment, I'd really like to see FM:Systems improve in this area.

“accurate maintenance tracking

Pros

Using FMS:Workplace has been simple and the system is reliable when it comes to accurately completing and tracking maintenance tasks.

Cons

The biggest downside is the overall cost especially when you compare it with other similar systems on the market.

“Pragmatic space management tools

Pros

Managing space with FMS:Workplace feels practical and reliable. The way it handles space definitions, usage, funding, drawings, photos and reports is accurate and genuinely useful day to day. Integration with existing systems really depends on what you mainly use the platform for. It usually takes some effort rather than being simple but it can be done.

Cons

Support has been hit or miss at times and the level of service can feel inconsistent.

“powerful floor plan access

Pros

One of the biggest advantages this software has brought to our department and really the university overall, is how quickly we can pull up floor plans for more than 250 buildings, apply color coding based on different data points and export them when needed.

Cons

My ongoing frustration as the administrator and the person who built our system setup on my own, has been the lack of documentation for the data fields included out of the box. I've spent hours creating fields across different tables and linking them to others, only to discover later that those same fields already existed. Without clear documentation of the built-in table fields and how the tables relate to each other, it often felt like I was working completely blind.

“Organized floor plan updates

Pros

Keeping our floor plans organized has been really helpful and making updates is very simple whenever changes come up.

Cons

It does run a little slowly at times. The system can lag a bit and some pages take longer than expected to load.

“simple tools for space moves

Pros

Our team mostly relies on Space Management and Move Management and the platform has been very simple to work with. Learning it didn't take long and the overall setup feels simple and user-friendly. Implementation also went pretty well, with barely any problems along the way.

Cons

One area that still feels challenging is report creation. A lot of people across the organization say it's very simple but I still find it fairly difficult, even after completing courses through FM: University. Some features also take more steps than I think they should although they become manageable once you're familiar with the process.

“Interactive floor plan BUT weak docs

Pros

A really valuable part of FMS:Workplace is the interactive floor plan view. You can click on a specific space and immediately see its attributes which makes navigating and checking details much more practical.

Cons

The admin and user documentation can be disappointing at times because it leaves out important details needed to complete tasks successfully so it is not always as helpful as it should be.

“Powerful reporting and exports

Pros

One of the biggest strengths for me is the reporting. Being able to filter data much like you would in Excel and then export only the exact information you need to Excel with just a few clicks is incredibly useful. It also makes creating ad hoc reports for specific requests or questions very simple and efficient.

Cons

Like with a lot of third-party software vendors, the sales pitch set expectations a bit too high making it sound like every feature already existed and was ready to use. Later, it turned out some of those capabilities were only planned for the future roadmap and had not been released yet. Another frustration is around what counts as customizable or configurable.. many of the things we wanted could technically be done but only with added implementation costs.

“clean interface and smart integration

Pros

The interface is clean and simple so getting around the system feels very natural. Its native AutoDesk integration is also a real plus making the connection with facility floor plans feel smart and smooth.

Cons

I'd still like to see the integration grow beyond facility floor plans and extend into site-level plans so the bigger picture can be displayed and visualized more clearly.

“Deep ERP with future-ready options

Pros

This software really gets into the details of ERP and includes options I wouldn't have even considered which makes it feel well prepared for future needs.

Cons

The challenge is not knowing all the available functions and when trying to learn them, the instructional flow isn't very good.

“flexible customization options

Pros

A big plus is how much customization it offers, along with the ability to set up different data formats based on each user's login or access level.

Cons

i'd still like to see some GIS functionality for visually locating building data in relation to one another, as well as GIS support for exterior utilities.

“Helpful floor plan visuals

Pros

One feature I really appreciate is the visual querying on floor plans. Being able to hatch by department or space type or quickly display vacancies, makes the information much more useful and easier to understand at a glance.

Cons

The reporting formats still fall short when it comes to exporting into something truly usable in Excel. Most of the time, I end up building an Excel file from a view instead. It's not as polished visually but it does make filtering a lot simpler.

“Dependable functionality overall

Pros

Compared with other similar software, the functionality here felt much more powerful and capable.

Cons

Pricing was a little on the high side. It would be better if there were more package options with just the basic features.

“Strong tools for many sites

Pros

A pretty powerful platform overall and it helps us manage all the details we need across our many sites and SF.

Cons

Some features can feel a little buggy when moving between different modules and the interface isn't always smooth.

“Amazing support

Pros

Getting around the system feels very simple and people usually learn how to move through the floor plans and different views without much trouble. The tech support team stays on top of issues and handles them quickly and efficiently.

Cons

Some of the program's features don't quite match the way our company operates so that can end up requiring a custom-built solution.