IFMA Foundation Announces New Executive Director

Diane Coles Levine

The IFMA Foundation announced the appointment of Diane Coles Levine as Executive Director. Her executive role began July 2.

“After years with IFMA and the IFMA Foundation as a volunteer, it’s a great honor to have been chosen to fill this role at this moment in time,” said Coles Levine. “Workplace strategy, smart building technology and the emergence of a truly global FM community mean that workforce development is more important than ever.  With the approaching facility management industry labor shortage, the work of the IFMA Foundation is critical in providing accredited degree programs in facility management, technology education for incumbent workers, and scholarships for students.”

Diane Coles Levine has been a driver of workplace strategy within the facility management (FM) community for more than 25 years. She is a cofounder of IFMA’s Workplace Evolutionaries community and the IFMA Foundation Workplace Strategy Research Summits. She is also an award-winning co-editor and author of the “Work on the Move” books and recently completed a three-year term on IFMA’s global board of directors. A sought-after speaker who has guest lectured at MIT and the Vienna University of Technology, Coles Levine has been actively involved in the IFMA Foundation and is one of the pioneers of the foundation’s Global Workforce Initiative. She joins IFMA staff as a remote employee, working from Long Beach, California, USA.

IFMA Foundation Past Chair Michael Schley expressed the foundation’s excitement about Diane’s appointment as Executive Director. “As a past chair of the IFMA Foundation, recent IFMA board member and experienced facility manager, Diane brings incomparable experience to the foundation. The foundation’s trustees and volunteers look forward to working with Diane to achieve our mission of making FM a career of choice.”

The IFMA Foundation’s 2018-19 Board of Trustees Executive Committee includes:

  • Chair – Nancy Johnson Sanquist, IFMA Fellow
  • First Vice Chair – Joseph Archie
  • Second Vice Chair  – Tony Piucci
  • Past Chair – Michael Schley, IFMA Fellow

For a complete list of foundation trustees, visit http://foundation.ifma.org/about-us/board-of-trustees-staff.

The IFMA Foundation expressed appreciation to Jeff Tafel, CAE, who served as foundation’s executive director of more than 15 years. Tafel’s departure came as he was named Chief Officer of the Home Builders Association of Western Michigan.

About the IFMA Foundation

Established in 1990 as a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation and separate entity from the International Facility Management Association (IFMA), the IFMA Foundation works for the public good to promote priority research and educational opportunities for the advancement of facility management. The IFMA Foundation is supported by the generosity of the FM community including IFMA members, chapters, councils, corporate sponsors and private contributors who share the belief that education and research improve the FM profession. To learn more about the IFMA Foundation, visit http://foundation.ifma.org.