But do you know that in the chaos surrounding the kidnapping, the attackers are sometimes vulnerable? So we have decided to bring you some professional advice you can share with your colleagues, friends and close circle members – just in case. So, in a hostage situation, here are four things to consider. However, if you do not have a clear and safe means of escape, we strongly advise that you comply and not fight – it’s important to remember that people are working to get you released.

• Stay Alert: Once taken, you’ll usually be brought to one or more transitory spots before you arrive the long-term internment, usually the camp of your captors. Those intermediate locations may provide opportunities to escape as well – if you are not blind folded. Keep your eyes open for situations advantageous to you while you are being transited to your likely ‘base’. However, we advise you think of escape with a lot of caution!

• Seek convenience: In cases where escape is not an option, you’d need to stay well and alive. So you can suggest to your captors few things that will increase your health and improve your living circumstance. You can gently request for a pillow, blanket, or other essentials that will ensure your comfort. Remember: escape is not an option, the best you want to do is make yourself comfortable. Most times, your captors are interested in the ransom not your life. Things like a pillow or blanket, for example, can go a long way in making you comfortable in an otherwise difficult situation.

• Never Try to attack the captors: If there’s a rescue attempt, do not help your rescue force to attack your captors. Let the rescue team do their job; you’re not James Bond. Usually, when a rescue force comes into situations like this, they’re looking for violent or non-violent behaviors. They’re looking at hands, because hands carry weapons. If you make an aggressive movement, especially in the dark, you could be seen as being violent toward them or mistaken as one of the ‘bad guys’. Do exactly as you are told. Stay calm. Let the rescue force do their job.

• It’s not yet time for Pats on the Back: Rescuers don’t want you hugging or backslapping them during the raid. You can show your appreciation later. When they invade the kidnappers’ camp to rescue you, remember they don’t know you; all they have is your description, and they need to make sure you don’t have any weapons, and you haven’t become sympathetic with your captors. They can’t figure that immediately. So, stay calm, show your hands, and stay safe. It will be time for hugging and pats on the back after you’ve been rescued.

This Article is by Alpha Mead Security Systems and Technologies (AMST). Please Click Here to subscribe to our daily security update. To know more about us, visit our website Here.

Facilities Management is a very integral sub-sector of the Real Estate. In fact, it has been said that up to 80% of the Asset or Real Estate life-cycle is Facilities Management. In addition, besides things like location, infrastructure, design and construction; FM services also contribute significantly to the value of Real Estate assets.

In the face of these realities, Real Estate developers and promoters are pressed for value-driven FM service; and there is no hope that this demand will abate in 2017. If anything, FM will be one of the Real Estate sub-sectors to be especially tasked to add and retain value for Real Estate this year. And some of the skills that will be in high demand to help Real Estate promoters, owners and developers ride against the tide will include:

STRATEGIC PLANNING: Giving that Real Estate cost constitutes up to 40% of business overhead, the market’s pulse this year will requires a strategic alignment between organizational goals and Facilities Management objectives. This is because if well-structured, FM can play significantly in the goal of most businesses to reduce cost of overhead. So FM professionals with the requisite skills and know how in development and implementation of strategic processes, procedures and tactical plans will be highly sought-after.

For FMs willing to be in high demand in 2017, their strategic planning skill should also be developed to include ability to lead, manage and organize Man, Money and Machine to help organizations achieve their corporate goals.

EXCELLENT PROJECT MANAGEMENT SKILLS: Because of the wide range of project scopes, complexities and financial risks available in the Real Estate sector today, professional FM with no sound Project Management skill will always play second fiddle. Project owners, Real Estate developers and investors need to be assured that their FM Company or professional can run through the spectrum of their projects: beginning with the strategic planning, right scoping, scheduling and detailed reports scooped from structured evaluation mechanism. FMs who will dedicate time and resources to acquiring this skill will be in high demand this year.

OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE: Well, this is the core responsibility of the FM Company or manager. However, the 2017 FM market will require that FMs have a working knowledge of building systems – interior, exterior, structure, etc – to be able to make the building function efficiently, reliably, safely and securely in a manner consistent with existing regulations and set organizational goals.

FINANCE & BUSINESS Acumen: With the turn of event in today’s Real Estate market, the knowledge of financial technologies and fundamental accounting concepts are must-haves for the Facilities Managers. This is because from corporate Real Estate to residential, retail and commercial, the Real Estate asset is a key business asset. Moreover, in the current market setting the critical metric the FM customer understands is how much he has saved or how much FM has added to his bottom line, by ensuring process efficiency. Therefore, the FM must think like a business owner who sets out to declare profit to its stakeholders at the end of the day. To this end, demand will be high for FMs or companies with the right people process and procedures that support making business cases, analyzing financial reports, contracts and procurement management, among other capabilities.

The truth is that Nigeria’s current economic situation boasts of all the signs and more. This is expectedly compelling asset class holders, especially Real Estate investors, promoters and developers, to seek survival strategies that can help preserve the value of their assets, because Real Estate draws significant impetus from the condition of the economy.

It therefore gives to reason that for Real Estate investors and promoters to successfully build or invest in this current economic dispensation, they must employ time-tested strategies that can defend the value of their assets, reduce lifecycle cost on the assets and more importantly; maximize their return on the asset (ROA).

One strategic imperative for asset managers, owners or developers to achieve the aforementioned is to look beyond the phase of design and construction, and pay adequate attention to the total lifecycle of their assets, rather than just the cost of design construction. This is important because besides design and construction (which constitute about 20 percent of the total asset life cycle) unalloyed attention should equally be given to the other 80 percent of the lifecycle and strategic elements in the defense of value.

These strategic elements include: occupancy, repair, rehabilitation, maintenance, disposal, etc. So for those who are building or investing in Real Estate in this recession, here are some of the critical areas to rethink if you want to retain your asset value:

Design: This is the conceptualization phase of a project, but very important to the eventual life cycle cost of the asset because if given adequate attention, the total lifecycle cost of the asset can be kept at controllable level in the face of unfriendly economic climate. Therefore from design stage, promoters must pay attention to balance functionality, maintainability and operationability of the asset rather than aesthetics.

Procurement: One of the areas that has proven to heap huge cost on Real Estate asset classes is procurement. If you procure wrongly, you eventually pay the price in the long run. It is advisable to procure materials based on quality, cost, favourable payment terms, delivery condition, pedigree of the vendor and after-sales support. In spite of operating in a distressed economy, attempting cost saving through wrong procurement method will mean kicking the can down the road. The asset will still have to pay for it in some ways, either cost of repair, replacement or deferred maintenance.

Construction & Installation: Ensure you secure a very good contract with well spelt out scope, performance requirements and payment milestones with adequate incentives and penalty clauses to motivate good performance. Contracts should include retention fee to be held all through the defect-free period.

Commissioning & Handover: Perhaps the most exciting stage of a project but if not carefully done, could scuttle all preceding inputs. Here ensure you conduct a joint final inspection with the contractors, design engineers, facility managers and other relevant parties to certify completion state and agree on snag list with specific close out dates before final demobilization of the building contractor from site.

Operation & Maintenance: This part speaks critically to the most important 80 percent of the total asset lifecycle. For developers or Real Estate promoters, this is when you need a professional and competent Facilities Manager. First, agree on an annual maintenance and operations budget. This helps ensure that the asset retains its value in spite of the economic conditions. Second, ensure that the Facility Manager develops a good Asset Reference Plan comprising of the asset register, maintenance plan and condition and maintenance history of the various components of the asset in return. This can help address the issues of deferred maintenance that may come to hunt the project in the course of its lifecycle.