Jake Smithwick
Associate Professor, Researcher
University of North Carolina at Charlotte | Simplar
BIO
Combining academic expertise with a strong connection to the FM profession, DR. JAKE SMITHWICK advances facility performance, workforce development and emerging technologies through applied research and industry collaboration. As an Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director in the Albert School of Construction at University of North Carolina - Charlotte, he focuses on translating research into practical insights that help organizations better understand and improve facility performance. He leads IFMA’s global operations and maintenance benchmarking research, drawing on data from more than 200,000 buildings across North America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Jake’s research portfolio spans some of the industry’s most pressing challenges, including facility performance, workforce development, succession planning, FM business value and the future of facilities in rapidly growing cities. His work with IFMA includes Making the Case at the C-Suite for Facility Management, Managing Facilities in the World’s Mega-Cities and Global Trends in Facility Management, as well as global and regional benchmarking reports. He has also contributed his expertise to a National Academies study examining facility engineering staffing for the Veterans Health Administration.
As AI continues to reshape the built environment, Jake has become an active voice in helping FM professionals understand and apply the technology. He served as Education Lead for IFMA’s AI in FM Working Group, developed a graduate course on AI in construction and facilities management, and has delivered AI training to facility, construction and procurement professionals across North America. His broader body of work includes 46 refereed journal papers, 35 industry reports and more than 280 invited industry presentations reaching more than 20,000 professionals.
Jake brings both academic and industry experience to his work, including supporting more than $15 billion in procured services and serving six years in the U.S. Air Force Reserve. He holds IFMA’s FMP credential and advises the IFMA Charlotte Student Chapter. Across his research, teaching and industry engagement, Jake remains focused on connecting data, emerging technology and practical FM knowledge to help organizations make better decisions and build a stronger future for the profession.
MEDIA LINKS
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PUBLICATIONS
A practical, data-driven guide helping facility managers build stronger business cases by connecting FM initiatives to ROI, risk and enterprise value. The report introduces the 5Ps framework and financial modeling tools to position FM as a strategic driver of business performance.
Global benchmarking insights across nine major cities, covering maintenance costs, janitorial operations, space utilization and compensation to help FM leaders identify performance gaps and make more informed strategic decisions.
Contributing to IFMA’s global salary and compensation research, providing data on FM salaries, bonuses, benefits, workforce trends and regional differences to support career planning, talent strategies and compensation decisions.
Contributing to IFMA’s ongoing global FM market research, tracking workload, budgets, staffing, capital projects, supply chains and operational risk through insights from FM professionals around the world.
Explores the traits, behaviors and leadership skills associated with high-performing facility managers, offering insights into how credentialed FMs lead, collaborate and drive innovation.
Contributor to IFMA’s research on AI in facility management, examining the knowledge and training considerations FMs need as artificial intelligence becomes increasingly relevant to the profession.
Examines the need for a more proactive approach to operations, maintenance and repair safety, highlighting opportunities to strengthen safety practices within facility management.
Research examining how benchmarking is used across the FM profession and the role of benchmarking networks in supporting performance measurement, knowledge sharing and continuous improvement.
This research explores potential roadblocks to FM succession related to demographics, backgrounds, and perceptions in supporting future research prioritization for healthcare facility executive leadership development.
This research helps better understand and evaluate the impact and value of FM credentials in the industry and for its members.
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