Technology
For many years, the work of facility managers was closely tied to their ability to respond quickly to day-to-day operational demands. Experience and firsthand observation were the primary tools for setting maintenance priorities, organizing spaces, and managing services. As operations become increasingly digital, that approach is changing. Platforms that collect information on space occupancy, workplace usage, service requests, maintenance, and operational performance now provide an objective foundation for decisions that extend beyond building operations into areas such as human resources, finance, and real estate.
At the same time, technologies focused on cleaning services and asset preservation are generating new performance indicators related to indoor environmental quality, asset lifecycle management, and sustainability. Although they operate in different areas of Facilities Management, Deskbee and MilliCare Brasil share the same vision: technology is no longer simply a tool for automation. It has become a source of intelligence that supports strategic decision-making.
This article features Mario Verdi, CEO of Deskbee, a company specializing in Workplace Management solutions, and Paulo Jubilut, CEO of MilliCare Brasil, a company specializing in cleaning services and the maintenance of carpets, flooring, and textile surfaces.
From Experience to Data-Driven Decisions
According to Mario Verdi, the biggest change brought by digital platforms is not simply the amount of information available, but how that information is reshaping the role of the facility manager.
“The Facility Manager is no longer just the person who takes care of the building. They now provide Real Estate, HR, and Finance teams with concrete data to support decision-making.”
In practice, this means replacing decisions based solely on experience with analyses supported by occupancy rates, workspace utilization, user behavior, resource consumption, and asset performance.
Verdi says that when a Chief Financial Officer questions whether a particular office floor is still needed, the answer is no longer based on operational perception.
“They present the actual occupancy rate over the last 90 days, peak usage by day of the week, the ratio of collaborative to individual workspaces, and the real cost per square meter in use. The decision is no longer an opinion. It becomes a business case.”
Paulo Jubilut believes a similar shift is taking place in cleaning and maintenance services, where quality has traditionally been evaluated almost entirely through visual inspections.
“When technology enters the process, it changes the conversation. Managers stop making decisions based only on perception and start working with evidence.”
That evidence includes indoor air quality indicators, maintenance records, microbiological analyses, resource consumption, team response times, and asset lifecycle data.
Even so, Jubilut emphasizes that technology only delivers results when professionals have the knowledge needed to interpret the information.
“Between the problem and the technology, there is one decisive factor: the person who interprets the information, applies it, and turns it into action.”
Artificial Intelligence Depends on Reliable Data
The rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence has expanded the analytical capabilities available to Facilities Management, but both executives stress that results depend directly on the quality of the data being used.
According to Mario Verdi, simply collecting large amounts of information is not enough.
“AI is powerful, but it is an inference engine. Its quality depends entirely on the quality of the data it receives.”
He explains that the most valuable Workplace Management information falls into three categories: occupancy data, user behavior patterns, and financial indicators related to real estate assets.
The challenge, he says, is avoiding decisions based on isolated metrics.
“If I see that a floor has a 35% occupancy rate, I might conclude that it’s underused. But when I combine that information with user behavior data, I may discover that the same space serves very specific needs, completely changing the decision.”
Beyond integrating different data sources, Verdi highlights the importance of automatically capturing information to reduce errors and ensure reliable analysis.
At MilliCare Brasil, the same principle applies. Consolidated information allows managers to move from reacting to problems to anticipating maintenance needs and allocating resources more effectively.
According to Paulo Jubilut, digital platforms bring together indicators such as CO₂ levels, humidity, temperature, volatile organic compounds, team response times, recurring issues, and environmental performance.
“When managers have consolidated data, they move from ‘I think’ to ‘I know.'”
Hybrid Work Requires a New Approach to Space Planning
The widespread adoption of hybrid work has made office occupancy more dynamic and increased the need to understand how workplaces are actually being used. According to Mario Verdi, this shift has made it impossible to manage corporate space based solely on assumptions.
He explains that digital platforms collect information from workstation reservations, automatic check-ins, access control systems, and occupancy sensors to identify usage patterns, peak attendance days, and how different areas of the office are used.
“With historical occupancy data and growth projections, Real Estate managers can negotiate lease agreements based on facts. You don’t renew a lease out of habit when the data shows a smaller footprint is enough.”
Verdi points out that these insights are not only about reducing costs but also about improving the employee experience.
“With digital platforms, employees can reserve their workspace, know who else will be in the office, and the workplace can be organized to bring the right people together at the right time.”
MilliCare Brasil believes this same level of intelligence also makes maintenance operations more efficient. By identifying usage patterns, organizations can adjust service schedules based on actual occupancy, focusing resources where they are needed most while reducing waste.
According to Paulo Jubilut, sensors, mobile applications, and digital platforms reveal information that was previously invisible to facility managers.
“Instead of waiting for a complaint, Facility Managers can anticipate needs. Instead of following the same schedule for every area, they can adjust service frequency based on actual use, criticality, and historical data.”
Despite these technological advances, he emphasizes that human judgment remains at the center of the profession.
“Technology measures, organizes, and suggests solutions. People are the ones who understand the context, set priorities, negotiate budgets, train teams, work with suppliers, and make decisions.”
Brazil Is Advancing While the U.S. Has Built a Stronger Data Culture
Because both companies operate internationally, they have a unique perspective on the different stages of technology adoption in Facilities Management.
Mario Verdi believes the United States is more advanced in integrating building management systems, Workplace platforms, and Artificial Intelligence, particularly in predictive maintenance initiatives. In his view, the biggest difference is no longer the availability of technology but how organizations use it to guide decision-making.
“The key difference isn’t the technology itself. It’s the culture of using data.”
At the same time, he notes that Brazil has moved quickly since the pandemic in adopting workplace management solutions for hybrid work and has shown a high level of adaptability.
“Brazil doesn’t need to import technology. It needs to mature the way it reads, interprets, and acts on the data it already has.”
MilliCare Brasil’s international experience also highlights differences in how maintenance is viewed. According to Paulo Jubilut, more mature markets see asset preservation as part of a long-term strategy, while many Brazilian companies still treat maintenance primarily as an operating expense.
“Our job has been to show that preserving carpets, upholstery, and textile surfaces isn’t just about appearance. It’s about reducing waste, preventing premature replacement, improving indoor environmental quality, and giving Facility Managers the technical evidence they need to justify budgets based on health, sustainability, and performance.”
Technology Expands Decision-Making but Doesn’t Replace the Manager
Both executives believe the next stage of digital transformation in Facilities Management will be driven by greater integration across data sources and broader use of Artificial Intelligence to support preventive decision-making.
Paulo Jubilut believes there is still significant untapped potential in combining information about space utilization, asset performance, indoor air quality, maintenance, resource consumption, and occupant experience.
“When these data sets are analyzed together, Facility Managers gain a much more strategic view. They can plan services based on risk, usage, and performance.”
He believes predictive analytics will make it possible to plan maintenance more accurately, reduce waste, and extend asset life while keeping people responsible for interpreting the results and setting priorities.
Mario Verdi shares the same perspective, arguing that the value of Artificial Intelligence lies in expanding managers’ analytical capabilities rather than replacing their experience.
“Technology doesn’t replace judgment. It strengthens it. Professionals who understand operations and know how to interpret data are the ones who create real value.”
Although they serve different areas of Facilities Management, Deskbee and MilliCare Brasil point in the same direction. As digital platforms continue to bring together increasingly comprehensive information about people, spaces, assets, and services, the competitive advantage will no longer come simply from collecting data. It will come from turning that information into decisions that create more efficient, sustainable, and adaptable workplaces.