New report reveals how Nordic real estate is responding to threat
As the global threat landscape continues to challenge facilities and real estate teams, a new report by Coor and WORKTECH Academy explores what’s top of mind for them – and how their role is evolving
A new report by Coor, in partnership with WORKTECH Academy, reveals how facility management and real estate teams across the Nordics are adapting to an era defined by disruption and uncertainty. From cyberattacks and climate events to energy instability and social unrest, there is no shortage on threats to real estate across the region – but how are these threats prioritised? And how are Real Estate and Facilities Management (REFM) teams responding to risks?
The biggest threats
Based on a survey of 575 real estate and facilities management (REFM) leaders and 580 office workers across Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland, the report shows that resilience to external threats now ranks among the top organisational priorities, second only to health and safety compliance.
The research identifies seven key categories of risk shaping the sector: environmental and natural disasters, crime and vandalism, terrorism and civil unrest, cyber and technological threats, infrastructure and utility failures, regulatory and compliance risks, and health and biological threats. Cybersecurity tops the list, with 66% of REFM leaders ranking it their greatest concern, followed by infrastructure failures (58%) and crime (57%).
However, the findings also reveal a disconnect between leadership and employees. While resilience planning dominates boardroom agendas, only 11% of employees identified safety and access control as top workplace priorities, citing comfort, quiet and air quality as more important.
Evolving roles
As risks multiply, FM’s role is expanding from operational maintenance to strategic integration. Nearly half of leaders expect closer collaboration with IT and crisis management teams, yet many report under-resourced departments and unclear accountability.
The report proposes a framework for resilience spanning six domains from physical security and digital infrastructure to supply chain assurance and culture preparedness. This framework is designed to help organisations benchmark and coordinate their response to threats.
As facility management teams take a frontline position for organisational resilience, it has become essential to collaborate across different teams to keep businesses operational and people protected amid rising uncertainty.
Read the full report in our Innovation Zone.
