Facilities Management Services

Vice President of Commercial Facilities Services Chris Bunch shares how PRIDE Industries helps private and public organizations achieve their operational goals while simultaneously providing career employment for people with disabilities. The following interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

(This interview has been edited and condensed)

Griffin Hamilton (GH): Welcome to another episode of the Modern Facilities Management Podcast. I’m your host, Griffin Hamilton. This is the show where I interview industry experts who share their stories, strategies, and insights in modern-day facilities management—from hospitality to commercial real estate and everything in between.

Today, I’ve got Chris Bunch with PRIDE Industries. Why don’t you give the audience a background on who you are.

Chris Bunch (CB): I’m the Vice President for our Commercial Facilities Services line for PRIDE Industries. For us, that’s anything outside of the federal sphere for our facilities work.

I’ve been with PRIDE Industries for ten years. I have a background in the construction trades from the military. Actually, that’s what first introduced me to PRIDE Industries in the first place.

When I first got stationed in California, the first meal brought to me was served by PRIDE Industries employee with a disability. PRIDE Industries also had a paint shop right next door to me at Travis Air Force Base. I then became familiar on how the company would find the right facilities solutions for their customers while creating a social impact.

GH: What is PRIDE Industries? What is your mission?

CB: Our mission is to create employment for people with disabilities. Through our business lines, we provide services in multiple fields, including facilities management.

GH: Can you give me the history of PRIDE Industries?

CB: We started in the basement of the church at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Auburn, California. Our founders were a group of parents with children with developmental disabilities that wanted to create job opportunities for them.

We were a small nonprofit until our late CEO Michael Ziegler transformed us into one of the first social enterprises in the United States. We now provide commercially viable solutions and compete in an open market against companies with no social mission. We operate with the intent to provide high business value propositions while expanding employment for people with disabilities.

Today, we are the largest employer of people with disabilities; 60% of our 6,000 employees have a disclosed disability. No matter which field we operate in, we help our customer’s goals come true. And we’re just getting started.

GH: What industries do you specialize in?

CB: Our facilities services are divided into federal and commercial sectors. We provide landscaping, custodial, ONM services, and capital project services for both. And we also have an emerging line in critical and renewable energies, including a focus on generators, battery backup, and solar energies. PRIDE Industries aims to be a solution provider for 80% of operating expenses that happen in the life cycle of a building after it’s built.

GH: What are your latest goals and initiatives?

CB: Growth, especially in custodial, landscaping, project services, and critical and renewable services. We’re currently in 15 states and Washington, D.C., but for our commercial facilities line, we are concentrated in California (as our organization is licensed here). We’re focusing on leveraging our federal footprint to provide commercial solutions to customers nationwide—bringing not only a social good, but exemplary business services.

GH: What what’s different about hiring PRIDE Industries?

CB: We’re excellent at providing operational excellence in the buildings and services that are timely and on budget. We guide our customers on how to create long-term investments that will drive their maintenance costs down, including cost-effective landscaping, identifying the best cleaning technologies, and improving building air quality. Ultimately, we excel at connecting our services to help our customers’ missions. It’s about providing a good solution, a great value, and high-quality service delivery.

Our inclusive workforce of employees with disabilities also sets us apart—creating higher retention and employee engagement. For example, most custodial employers experience as much as 300% turnover in a year, and our most demanding account experiences a 67% turnover rate.

GH: So are your teams out there full-time, 40 hours a week?

CB: That’s correct. Creating a successful inclusive environment includes a consistent and predictable work schedule. PRIDE Industries completes special, one-time projects, usually with partnerships from outside contractors.

There is also a positive secondary effect that carries over to our customers. For example, at the Sacramento International Airport, we have an employee named Eric McCullough, who has received over a hundred customer feedback messages. Many of our customers report stories like this.

GH: Over 50% of current facilities management employees will be at retirement age within the next five to seven years. What are your plans to keep up your staffing levels?

CB: Partnering with other organizations, including agreements with multiple unions and introducing more people with disabilities to skilled trades and formal apprenticeships. Also, a focus on recruiting from the veteran community and placing them into facilities asset management roles. It’s about filling the pipeline and creating a pathway to those roles.

Currently one in four people in the United States has a disability, and most are unemployed. It’s important for companies to rethink their hiring strategies. Rarely does an accommodation for a disability cost more than $500. And that’s much less than the cost of turnover.

GH: If I want to get involved, what are the next steps to work with PRIDE Industries?

CB: If you’re listening to this and are looking for a solution, we can offer comprehensive services from your curb to the rooftop with quality and excellence. And by doing so, you make your culture better and increase your social standing for your investors.

GH: Chris, before I let you go, who or what has had the biggest impact on your career?

CB: I’d have to throw a shout-out to Don Nelson. He is the Vice President of our Federal Facilities Services and brought me out of the construction world to PRIDE Industries ten years ago.

GH: Chris, I certainly appreciate you appearing on the podcast. What your organization is doing is amazing.

CB: Thanks so much, Griffin.

Need help with your facility operations?

PRIDE Industries can help you with facility operations, custodial and maintenance services, job assistance, and other services.

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“PRIDE Industries aims to be a solution provider for 80% of operating expenses that happen in the life cycle of a building after it’s built.”

– Chris Bunch, VP of Commercial Facilities Services for PRIDE Industries

According to Google Trends, searches related to “facilities management companies” increased by 180 percent over the last 12 months.

What does this uptick suggest?

We believe it indicates that more organizations are looking to outsource their facilities management needs. In light of the pandemic, facilities management has gone beyond being a business topic reserved for directors to one searched by concerned members throughout an organization (www.honeywell.com). Also, due to changes in the hybrid workplace and greater awareness about carbon-footprint impact, some aspects of facilities management are now openly discussed matters of public concern (www.honeywell.com).While these widening considerations are necessary, they can also be costly.

Yes, some new business protocols for cleaning and disinfecting are under scrutiny, and small businesses to large facilities have been passing along the added financial cost to their customers. A hotel guest poll by Ecolab underscores these new standards, finding several cleanliness criteria that are front-of-mind for consumers in the aftermath of COVID.

Not only do mounting costs factor, but the current worker shortage in the U.S. makes fulfilling these requirements challenging and financially unpalatable for some facilities (www.WashingtonPost.com).

However, even with cost increases, new cleanliness standards are here to stay and have become a heightened consideration when it comes to consumer decision-making. This helps explain the strong interest in facilities management companies, many of which are known for their professionalism and consistent standards of hygiene (www.McKinsey.com).

“Facilities managers understand the importance of facility hygiene and carbon footprint. They want a consistent service delivery, and we have a long-proven track record in business for over 55 years,” said Tim Vanover, Director of Business Development at PRIDE Industries.

Staff shortages may also help explain increased search volumes related to facilities management. As organizations compete to attract and retain labor, searches for “assistant facilities manager jobs” are up by 190 percent, according to Google Trends. In addition, searches for “facility manager jobs” are up by 40 percent.

As a facilities manager, it’s important to protect both workers and customers. Hiring a reputable facilities management company that follows OSHA and CDC guidance—while pursuing a consistent standard of excellence—is key to growing your business post-pandemic.

Need help with your facility operations?

PRIDE Industries can help you with facility operations, custodial and maintenance services, job assistance, and other services.

Learn More

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 and 2021 created a dramatic shift in how employees perform their work. In March 2020, only one in 67 paid U.S. jobs on LinkedIn offered remote work. Today, that number has exploded to nearly 1 in 6 (LinkedIn). 

Not only has the number of open jobs for remote workers grown rapidly, but 44% of applications are for remote roles—making up 40% of all job listing views by applicants on LinkedIn. The desire of applicants to work from home has been shifting fast.

The arrival of the Omicron COVID-19 variant in 2022 caused many companies to delay their return-to-office plans and, instead, opt for a hybrid working model. Data from the recent workforce confidence survey by LinkedIn shows that while 50% of workers are primarily on-site right now, 34% are still working remotely full time, and 15% are working a hybrid schedule (LinkedIn).

“… when you look at the surveys … people are going to want to come in the office maybe 2-3 days a week. That’s going to be the norm.” (Workplace strategist and change manager at a workplace consultancy company) (NCIB)

Overall, the goals of the American worker have changed in several other ways which have shifted the traditional workplace for U.S. companies and their commercial facilities managers. From our research, we found that:

87% of employees want to work from home at least one day per week (ApolloTechnical.com).
9% of employees relocated to a different city during the pandemic, making returning to the office impossible.
92% of employees do not want to return to the office full time after the pandemic.

Here are some of our insights into the future of hybrid workplaces for facilities managers:

Energy and Carbon Footprint can be Reduced

Driving to work every day creates a large amount of CO2 emissions. Preliminary research shows that if all companies had employees work from home one day per week, global oil consumption would be reduced by 1% per year—leading to an overall decline of 24 million tons of CO2 emissions (NCBI). 

Poorly controlled lighting also affects your electricity and cooling bills, as do outdated systems, appliances, and machines. In terms of facilities management, any improvements to energy efficiency can yield both cost savings and environmental gains. Such measures include installing LED lighting; upgrading data centers, vending machines, and kitchen appliances; real-time monitoring of water and waste; and upgrading inefficient components—all leading to lower energy consumption and a smaller carbon footprint.

Social Distancing has Shifted the Use of Office Space

Companies will shift the way they use their commercial office space. In terms of function, most pre-COVID offices were set up for 70% individual space (workstations and offices) and 30% collaborative space (conference rooms and shared space). Offices utilized 85% of their employee office space, designing workstations to use 10 square meters of space (NCIB). 

Post-COVID, many companies have reconfigured workspaces to utilize 40% individual space and 60% collaborative space—utilizing 60% of total office space. In terms of social distancing, workstation spaces have shifted from 10m squared to 16m squared (NCIB).

For facilities managers, this reconfiguration means, in many cases, reductions in water and waste usage and a lighter load on data centers, vending machines, kitchen appliances, and electronics energy consumption—making the real-time monitoring and optimization of facilities ever-so-important.

FM Tools for Managing a Hybrid Model

For facilities managers, AI and machine learning, IoT, and SaaS tools—via apps at the palms of their hands—have made reducing energy costs and carbon footprint (at scale) as easy as the tap of a finger.

Choosing a solution that merges data, IoT, and AI will give your facility the upper hand when optimizing the space in your building(s), maximizing operations and maintenance efficiency, creating the right workplace experience, managing and extending capital projects, right-sizing your real-estate portfolio, and reducing overall carbon footprint as a cost center (www.IBM.com).

Recognition and Morale Building is Now Virtual

Employee morale and recognition of high-performers have always been important to promote a successful work culture in-office. With the shift to a hybrid model, where workers work remotely 2-3 days per week, leadership teams have used several tactics to improve employee morale and recognition. 

Many distributed teams have used tools like Kudoboards to sign birthday cards and recognize employee achievement virtually. Managers have scheduled regular “virtual happy hours” where employees have a casual social hour chatting and drinking their favorite beverage or even enjoy pizza together—delivered simultaneously to each co-worker (Forbes.com). 

As an informal “thank you,” HR and operations teams have regularly sent care packages with snacks, swag, and goodies to each employee’s doorsteps. Leadership has made a point to formally recognize coworkers on group video calls to show everyone how appreciative they are for their hard work. This recognition includes facilities managers—who literally keep the lights on. 

Workers are Moving to Smaller Metros

The overall theme of the past two years sees people moving. Much of the reason is not related to where the jobs are. People appear to be moving based on financial (cost of living and taxes) and lifestyle reasons. 

Many on the west coast have moved to Boise, ID; Las Vegas, NV; Phoenix, AZ; and Texas. Others in the Northeast have moved to the beaches in Florida (www.pods.com). 

Numerous workers—those who have stayed near their employers to work in a hybrid environment—have moved outward to the surrounding suburbs. This has led to a corporate shift from having one prominent commercial location in the heart of downtown to having a cluster of smaller offices around the city. 

For facilities managers, this has somewhat fragmented responsibility—shifting energy and carbon footprint management from one facility to several. Each smaller facility may have different metrics and core functions. 

Beyond 2022

While the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a dramatic shift in the way we work, it has also yielded a surprising benefit of work-life balance. For facilities managers, innovations in automation and a hybrid workplace model will significantly reduce energy usage and carbon footprint—on a large scale—this year and beyond. 

Need help with your facility operations?

PRIDE Industries can help you with facility operations, custodial and maintenance services, job assistance, and other services.

Learn More

How Four New Orleans Monuments Went from Zero to 90% Recycling in Less than Three Years

Established in 1949, the General Services Administration (GSA) provides centralized procurement for the federal government, offering the products, services, and facilities that federal agencies need to serve the public. Among the GSA’s numerous responsibilities, it manages a portfolio of buildings and grounds valued at more than $500 billion. It also oversees the preservation of historic properties. A key goal of the GSA is to save taxpayer money through the sustainable management of real estate and other assets.

Situation

Among the many buildings maintained by the GSA are four historic properties in New Orleans: the Hale Boggs Federal Building, the U.S. Custom House, the John Minor Wisdom U.S. Court of Appeals Building, and the F. Edward Hebert Federal Building. Together, these four buildings comprise more than 1.5 million square feet of office space, and are among the highest valued government buildings in the country. Some of the unique features in these buildings include Greek revival marble floors, 20-foot ceilings with bronze design elements, ornate courtrooms with walnut paneling, intricately carved judges’ benches, porcelain and glass architectural features, and intricate brass and wood décor—all of which require specialized cleaning.

This already complex maintenance situation was made more complicated in 2016 when an executive order was issued requiring all federal buildings to recycle at least 50% of their waste. At that time, none of the GSA’s New Orleans properties were recycling in any capacity.

Now they had just three years to comply with the executive order.

Solution

PRIDE Industries has provided maintenance services to the GSA since 2007. In New Orleans, these services include carpet and floor care, trash removal, polishing porcelain and metal surfaces, cleaning interior and exterior glass doors and surrounding glass areas, window washing, policing inside areas, and wiping atrium plants.

To make sure the GSA met its recycling goals in New Orleans, PRIDE Industries devised a user-friendly recycling program and implemented it in phases. First, new cleaning and recycling protocols were developed, based on sustainability best practices. Then, the nearly 50 PRIDE Industries employees who clean the historic buildings were trained in the new procedures.

But simply adding recycling options and working with the cleaning staff would not be enough. In order to achieve the 50% benchmark required by the executive order, the tenants in each building would have to recycle too. In order to bring them on board, PRIDE Industries developed an education and communication program that included face-to-face visits with each tenant.

Services Provided

45+ employees—90% of whom have a disability—conduct specialized cleaning daily
Comprehensive cleaning protocols developed and implemented
Environmentally friendly maintenance—active and ongoing recycling
Sustainable cleaning tools sourced, used, and recycled
CIMS-Green Building custodial and grounds services for historic buildings

Results

The employee training, tenant communication, and easy-to-use recycling options were highly successful. By the end of three years, all four buildings had exceeded the requirements of the executive order—and achieved a waste recycling rate of 90%. Not long after this, the GSA renewed its contract with PRIDE Industries for an additional five years.

The protocols developed by PRIDE Industries were so successful that they were adopted by the GSA for use in other historic federal buildings. In Cincinnati, Ohio, these techniques were used to enable the Potter Federal Courthouse to become LEED-certified. Another building that gained LEED certification using these methods was the Richard Sheppard Arnold Courthouse in Little Rock, Arkansas. Both of these courthouses are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In summary, the recycling program developed by PRIDE Industries enabled the GSA to:

Decrease its environmental footprint with a 90% recycling rate.
Switch to cost-saving and environmentally friendly equipment.
Rely on a knowledgeable workforce trained in sustainability.
Gain a tenant communication model that can be used to increase recycling in other GSA buildings.
Use these new cleaning protocols to enable LEED certification of other GSA historic buildings.

Highlights

landmark historic government buildings

90%

recycling rate achieved in less than 3 years

“If we’re going to do it, we may as well go as high as we can.”

— David McNeese, Janitorial Manager, on exceeding the goal of 50% waste recycling

PRIDE Industries Gets a Sensitive Military Forensic Lab into Pristine Condition

Located in the Gillem Enclave in Forest Park, Georgia, Fort Gillem is home to the Defense Forensic Science Center (DFSC), the Department of Defense’s premier forensic center. At the DFSC, scientists and technicians examine and analyze crime scene evidence for the Army, DoD entities, and federal agencies. Center services include specialized forensic training, research and laboratory analyses, and management of the DoD Convicted Offender DNA Database Program. Since 2016, PRIDE Industries has provided facility operations and maintenance support to the DFSC, maintaining 150,000 square feet of building space. Over the last several years, we have improved the site mechanics through ongoing maintenance and added improvements.

Situation

In 2016, the Defense Forensics Science Center (DFSC) was seeking a contractor who could meet their unique needs and was up to the demanding task of keeping this vitally important lab in peak condition. Due to the exacting nature of the lab’s work, which includes handling delicate forensic evidence for the U.S. military, the DFSC must maintain a pristine environment at all times. After a thorough search, the DFSC chose PRIDE Industries to take on the crucial work of ensuring that key infrastructure elements, such as HVAC and video gate controls, were in working order. There were also important repairs to be made. In one mechanical room, for example, a series of leaks had caused water to pool on the floor.

Solution

PRIDE Industries systematically addressed each of the issues that were preventing the lab from operating at peak efficiency. Actions taken included:

Cleaning and repairing all broken systems
Documenting all center assets and implementing preventative maintenance protocols
Ensuring that HVAC temperature and humidity controls were functional and accurate
Optimizing the facility’s up-time

PRIDE Industries employed an inclusive team to make repairs and improvements. Today, this team ensures that critical systems are properly maintained. By working with PRIDE Industries, the DFSC is able to meet its diversity goals as it reaps the benefits of a proven workforce with statistically high retention rates and low turnover.

Services Provided

Repair and maintenance of HVAC systems
Repair and maintenance of gate and video gate controls
Repair of pipe leakage
Documentation of assets
Implementation of preventative maintenance protocols
Ongoing maintenance of laboratory’s critical mechanical systems
Pest control
PH monitoring
Sign making
Appliance maintenance
Grounds maintenance

Results

Assurance of laboratory-optimal environmental conditions
Maximization of up-time
Meeting of inclusivity goals
Consistent service provided by a proven, reliable workforce
Positive community impact resulting from the employment of nearly 50 local subcontractors

Highlights

150,000 sq. ft.

of building space maintained

“PRIDE Industries solved a long-term generator malfunction that had plagued the facility for years. Working side by side with the generator’s manufacturer, they were able to document and troubleshoot each failure—eventually discovering a minor manufacturing wiring assembly problem. In correcting this, PRIDE Industries relieved the DFSC of a chronic issue.”

— Fort Gillem Customer

Keeping an Important Army Installation in Top Shape

Since 2009, PRIDE Industries has provided Base Operating Support Services to Fort Johnson (formerly Fort Polk) and the Joint Readiness Training center (JRTC). We manage 2,243 buildings, over 1,000 miles of roads, and more than 238,000 acres of land at this Vernon Parish, Louisiana site. To deliver these crucial services, PRIDE Industries relies on an inclusive workforce that includes many people with disabilities—an employee group with proven high retention rates and low employee turnover.

Situation

Fort Johnson features modern barracks, comfortable on-post housing, bustling offices, and sophisticated service facilities—all of which require regular maintenance. In addition, Fort Johnson contains an entire mock town where soldiers practice fighting. As a result, the town’s features must be constantly rebuilt. Because of Fort Johnson’s location, it is also subject to occasional hurricane damage and freeze events—necessitating rapid recovery protocols. The fort also requires regular upgrades, like the stone path we built that leads from the barracks to the commissary. In addition to original construction projects like the path, PRIDE Industries provides repair, cleanup, and rebuilding services. These services keep the buildings and grounds of Fort Johnson in peak condition, ensuring the health and comfort of the 8,000 soldiers and 13,000 family members who call Fort Johnson home.

Solution

Starting in 2009, PRIDE Industries’ inclusive workforce has provided all of the following solutions in a timely, cost-effective manner:

Servicing of paved and unpaved surfaces
Implementation of facility improvement strategies and procedures
Ongoing reconstruction of all doors, windows, and plywood that get damaged during fighting practice
Rapid recovery from hurricanes and major freeze events
Building the morale-increasing Geronimo trail, linking barracks to commissary
Providing consistency with a workforce that boasts high retention rates and low turnover
Down-time minimization

Services Provided

Building management
Paved surfaced area maintenance
Grounds and landscaping
Servicing unpaved roads, bridges, ranges, and railroads
Range support maintenance and repair
Preventative maintenance
Facilities improvement
Minor construction
Hurricane and storm recovery
Freeze event recovery

Results

145 local residents employed
70 persons with disabilities employed
13 military veterans employed
PRIDE Industries is consistently highly praised in Contractor Performance Assessment Reports
Based on previous performance, PRIDE Industries was awarded a significant modification to the contract in 2016
8K troops and 13K family members supported

Highlights

2,243

buildings managed

>1,000

miles of roads maintained

>238,000

acres of land maintained

employees with disabilities

"PRIDE Industries’ unwavering support during all three storms was invaluable. Their ability to listen to and anticipate the Government’s requirements have allowed them to offer sound and timely solutions to several complex problems."