Knowledge and information sharing will also be a priority during the Facility & Building Management trade fair, where we strive to present current topics with high-quality content. Therefore, the content committee will consider the following when selecting the submitted presentations:
- Is the lecture relevant to the sector?
- Does the topic relate to the theme of the field?
- Does the subject have a clear relationship to practice?
The methodology to be followed involves formulating an applied research question and following a step-by-step plan to provide the lecture with the necessary content. This may seem quite complex, but it will likely proceed smoothly. At most, you may need to reorganize an existing lecture.
The most important aspect of the step-by-step plan is that speakers formulate a practice-oriented research question, which not only forms the basis of the lecture, but also allows the organization to interest the target group of facility managers and building administrators in combining their visit to the trade fair with attending a lecture.
Step 1: The practice-oriented research question
Take the title of your presentation and rephrase it as a question, the answer to which will be the presentation's conclusion. Then test this question against the following criteria:
- Is the sentence formulated in the form of a question?
- Is the research question written in understandable language? (Do not use jargon that can only be understood after listening to the presentation.)
- Is the question formulated in such a way that it consists of only one question?
- Is the answer to the question broader than “yes” or “no”?
- Is the answer broader than a commercial product?
- Is there a false assumption in the question? (For example, a question like "Why does everyone think..." That everyone is a proposition to be proven)
- Is the question meaningful enough to present to an audience of specialists in facility management and building management?
- Isn't the question too general? (Perhaps it's better to narrow it down to a real-world situation, a sector like healthcare, or an object like a building.)
- Is there sufficient objective material available to answer the question posed later?
- Can this question be answered within the allotted time frame (25')?
STEP 2 Complete the reading in the format
All lectures must conform to the following format:
1. Situation of the subject
The speaker was asked to discuss his professional background, how and why this topic is close to his heart, and what challenges he has encountered.
2. Practice-oriented research question
The speaker then defines the specific problem, avoiding "accidental situationality." A hypothetical example might be: How can poorly tuned acoustics in the work environment be prevented from being stressful for employees?
In this way, the problem becomes generic, clear and also reproducible for the broader world of facility management and building management.
3. Examples that illustrate the situation in the research question
The speaker will discuss experiential situations: his personal experiences, the nice-to-know facts, anything that clarifies the problem, and how a solution was found (possibly through trial and error).
4. Possible solutions
The speaker indicates in two steps how he would solve the problem from the research question.
1) In an ideal world, therefore, productless and unhindered by "yet-to-be-discovered" real products, methods, and applications. That requires a lot of conceptual thinking, which ultimately serves as a good, neutral source of inspiration for everyone attending the lecture. Admittedly, this is a bit of a future.
2) The speaker's starting point is today's practice, using the best available technology/solutions. This allows the speaker to immediately provide practical advice that can be put into practice.
5. Decision
The speaker will explain their thoughts on a proposed solution for the practice-oriented research question. They may also draw connections to other potential problems and/or future developments.
While guaranteeing that only high-quality presentations will be offered at the Facility & Building Management trade fair, both in terms of structure and content, the content committee has sought to establish a foothold in the facilities sector with this quality label. Ultimately, the knowledge available in the facilities management and building management sector deserves to be accessed in a high-quality manner.