Stay Current, Stay Honest: Colby Fillippelli on the Art of Facilities Leadership - Episode #113

In this episode, Jay Culbert sits down with Colby Fillippelli, Senior Vice President of Facilities at JLL and incoming President of the Boston chapter of IFMA. Colby brings over 25 years of facilities management experience, having led operations for major organizations including Dunkin' Brands, Hasbro, and Novartis. Throughout the conversation, Colby shares how his career evolved from an HVAC technician responding to work orders to a seasoned executive overseeing national real estate portfolios, and what he learned along the way. At the heart of his philosophy is a simple but powerful belief: facilities is a people business that just happens to involve buildings.

From handling a middle-of-the-night fire at a client site while snowboarding at Loon Mountain to using metrics to shift his team from reactive to proactive, Colby offers hard-won insight into what it really takes to thrive in this industry. He emphasizes the power of consistent communication, the importance of staying current, and why paying it forward to the next generation of facilities professionals is one of his greatest priorities. His energy, honesty, and no-nonsense approach make for a conversation that is equal parts practical and inspiring.

Takeaways:

• Be honest and ask questions constantly. Admitting what you don't know and asking for help isn't weakness — it's how you grow. The most effective facilities professionals don't fake it; they ask, learn, and communicate openly at every stage of their career.
• Shift from reactive to proactive using metrics. Tracking patterns in your work orders and recurring issues isn't just good practice — it drives cost savings, reduces risk, and transforms how your team operates. If you're not measuring it, you can't improve it.
• Communicate early, even without all the answers. Don't wait until you have perfect information to update your team or clients. Timely, honest communication — especially during a crisis — builds credibility and keeps everyone moving in the right direction.
• Your vendor relationships are your lifeline. Know your vendors personally before you sign a contract. When something goes wrong at 10 PM, those relationships are what keep operations from falling apart. Invest in them the same way you invest in your team.
• Know when to defer maintenance — and when you absolutely can't. Deferring critical infrastructure like HVAC PMs, arc flash updates, or major MEP work is a risk not worth taking. A seasoned facilities leader knows how to make the case for doing it right the first time.
• Pay it forward to the next generation. The industry is losing decades of institutional knowledge as Baby Boomers retire. Those with experience have a responsibility to mentor, educate, and actively invest in emerging professionals — both inside their organizations and through groups like IFMA.
• Mindset and attitude are as important as technical skills. Showing up with energy, professionalism, and a team-first mentality isn't optional — it's what makes everything else work. As Colby puts it: you're not curing cancer, so bring some levity to the work.

Quote of the Show

• "Follow-through matters more than intent, and your reputation compounds over time."

Links

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colby-fillippelli-cfm-8591097/
• Company Website: https://www.jll.com/en-us/
• IFMA Boston Website: https://ifmaboston.org/

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