1. Role in Circular Economy Transition
Enable the organization’s vision and mission through circular strategies: Multiple comments emphasized the C-suite’s responsibility for “enabling the organisational strategy” and aligning with the “overall vision/mission.” One participant explicitly noted that the C-suite should “approve and allocate resources to CE plan,” underscoring their central role in greenlighting and driving circular transformation.
Act as drivers and enablers of circular economy leadership: Participants described the C-suite as the “driver for CE strategies” and referred to the “Board enabler” supporting FM. This highlights the expectation that executives do more than authorize budgets, they must actively champion and model leadership behaviours around CE.
Align internal functions to support circular goals: One note pointed to the C-suite’s role in “lining up the internal functions” and fostering “cross-board intelligence,” reinforcing their unique position to connect strategy, departments, and implementation.
2. How FM Can Inspire Collaboration
Frame CE as a sound business proposition aligned to executive priorities: Participants highlighted the importance of “presenting sound business proposals highlighting value proposition that resonates with bottom-line.” FM was seen as a partner that can package CE initiatives in ways that make sense to executive logic, grounded in ROI, efficiency, and strategic alignment.
Foster servant leadership between FM and C-suite: The note “FM <> C-suite servant leadership” suggests a reciprocal relationship where FM supports executive vision, while the C-suite empowers FM with the mandate and resources needed to implement circular strategies effectively.
Support the transition from strategy development to deployment: One comment listed “overall vision/mission → development → deployment,” pointing to FM’s operational role in making CE strategies tangible and actionable once set by executive leadership.
3. Tools, Training and Capabilities Needed
Ensure accurate, concise, and decision-ready information: C-suite participants emphasized the need for “accurate, concise, easy to consume data/information” to support timely executive decision-making. This was linked to a call for “good communication – research first!” indicating that data should be backed by credible evidence before being presented to leadership.
Supporting tools included “simple dashboards,” “real-time data,” and insights from “field labs” and “collab uni’s” (collaborations with universities), reinforcing the value of research-based input and external validation. FM and IT teams were seen as key enablers in delivering this level of insight.
Leverage proven solutions and credible evidence to build confidence: Executives requested “proven solutions for adoption” and noted the importance of encouraging “more investment in existing real estate/focus on renovation.” FM can help by identifying and scaling existing circular wins that demonstrate feasibility.
4. KPIs and Metrics
Track ROI and broader co-benefits to demonstrate impact: Participants stressed the need to “track the effectiveness of the investments/resources” by measuring “positive impact co-benefits,” including “CO2 reduction,” “ROI & ROE,” and “stakeholder engagement.” Metrics must move “beyond # growth/margins/profitability,” indicating a shift toward integrated performance indicators.
5. Challenges and Barriers
Overcoming financial conservatism and stakeholder pushback: The need for a “change in mindset” was linked to barriers such as “availability of financial support,” “pushback,” “missed out on opportunity,” and “shareholders pushback.” These comments suggest executives are aware of institutional resistance to long-term investment and the complexity of shifting established financial logic.
International Facility Management Association (IFMA) supports over 25,000 members in 140 countries. Since 1980, IFMA has worked to advance the FM profession through education, events, credentialing, research, networking and knowledge-sharing.