Mohammed Alsharaf currently serves as the Divisional CEO of iFM Holdings, which is part of the Eltizam Group. In this role, he oversees the Group’s FM division and its business entities, Inspire Integrated and 800TEK. Inspire Integrated offers Total FM solutions across a range of sectors including infrastructure, industrial, nuclear and tourism, while 800TEK is a tech-driven company that provides specialised single services to both B2B and B2C clients.
Since joining Eltizam in 2016, Alsharaf’s enterprising strategies triggered a fundamental transformation of the division, leading to significant changes across different areas of the business including technology and innovation, team structure, training, client relations and intangible services.
In terms of technology, Alsharaf implemented a complete revamp of the CAFM system, employing paperless operations across the whole FM division within a single year, resulting in increased productivity and better management of resources. He also implemented the NESTROM system, a software that captures live details of operations, giving the team flexibility and productivity in managing operations. A cleaning robot was also introduced, enabling the company to increase productivity levels without the need for additional headcount, showcasing proper utilisation of advanced technological solutions & automation.
Tackling one of the first tasks he was assigned with following his appointment, Alsharaf reviewed and assessed the structure of the operations team, prompting core changes to its formation, which enabled the company to mobilise new projects immediately.
The new structure gave the FM division the flexibility to offer single-service-lines to new clients interested in a specific service, rather than total facilities management (TFM) contracts; hence, the creation of 800TEK. With that expansion, the team grew exponentially, from a few hundred employees to a few thousand, transitioning from a company that operates solely in Abu Dhabi, to one fully-fledged across the seven Emirates and Egypt.
Considering the significant growth of the team, the safety and wellbeing of staff has become a critical element of managing the company. That is why, Alsharaf ensures that blue-collar staff acquire the required qualifications under international standards such as BICs, to perform specialised jobs required of them. Similarly, on the MEP side of the business, the business has invested in a training academy for employees, providing adequate training for both soft and hard services.
Building and maintaining client relationships is a key priority for Alsharaf. By instilling a culture within the broader team that emphasises a synergistic bond with clients, Alsharaf has created a team that is capable of understanding a client’s vision and executing it in a most efficient manner to attain the intended outcome. Building such a relationship enables the team to understand the client’s evolving needs and respond promptly to changing requirements and ultimately deliver better results.
Alsharaf introduced an innovative solution to measure the intangible aspects of the business, including cleaning services, waste and pest control, and landscaping, among others. The goal was to preserve internal quality assurance techniques, given the difficulty of justifying the results of these services to clients or demonstrating compliance with service agreements. To achieve this, Alsharaf and his team developed the Customer Eye Inspection method, which converts intangible results into tangible and quantifiable ones. This innovative approach involves comparing the final job done with set, pre-defined criteria to determine whether it meets established standards. Designated inspectors conduct on-site evaluations and grade each element according to predetermined criteria. The recorded results are then presented in a quantifiable format, allowing for easy review by the client. This technique enables the team to verify whether or not tasks have been executed in compliance with established standards, while also providing a clear and tangible way to communicate this information to clients.
The Customer Eye Inspection technique is utilised across all projects, with inspection frequency determined on a case-by-case basis, occurring weekly or monthly. This technique provides FM managers with valuable insights into areas where services may be inadequate or teams may be underperforming, allowing appropriate action plans to be created to address these shortcomings and improve overall performance. To ensure that the highest level of quality is delivered to clients, the technique sets internal quality assurance benchmarks above contractual KPIs. The data collected from these inspections is compiled and presented on a unified Power BI dashboard, providing FM managers with greater visibility and accessibility to identify underperforming areas or services. This feature is critical to the success of the company, as it enables informed decision-making and the delivery of the highest level of quality to clients.