Founded in 2008, Agile OAK is a boutique advisory firm specializing in Facility Management and Workplace Services. Because we hold no service-provider, software, or brokerage relationships, the advice we give is shaped entirely by what best serves the client.
Our independence is structural. We don't sell facility services, software, or resell vendor products. We are hired to advise, and only to advise, which means every recommendation we make is in our client's interest.
Every engagement is led by an advisor with decades of practitioner, service-provider, or academic experience. No analyst pyramids, no learning on your time.
We have no commercial relationships with service providers, software vendors, or outsourcing firms. Our only commitment is to the client buying our advice.
Engagements completed across North America, Europe, the Middle East, China, and South America. We adapt frameworks to regional realities rather than imposing one-size-fits-all approaches.
Our work is judged by tangible results: cost savings, service quality improvements, organizational alignment. Not by deck volume or hours billed.
Independence is easy to claim and harder to structure.
Many firms describe themselves as advisors while drawing revenue from the parties they advise on. The list below is what makes our independence real, and what shapes every recommendation we make.
Every engagement follows a thoughtful, transparent path that aligns expectations, delivers measurable results, and builds a working relationship that lasts beyond a single project.
We start with a complimentary discussion to understand your portfolio, your current challenges, and what success would look like. No cost, no obligation.
We develop a proposal specific to your situation with clear deliverables, timelines, and pricing. You see exactly what we will do, who will do it, and how outcomes will be measured.
Senior advisors lead the work directly. You receive structured deliverables and regular check-ins, with no surprise invoices or scope drift.
We close with measurable results and a clear handoff to your team. Many clients return for the next initiative, when the first one has delivered.
Michael is Managing Director of Agile OAK LLC and a former Director of the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) Global Board, where he provided governance oversight to the 23,000-member global professional organization.
Before founding Agile OAK in 2008, Michael had 10 years of senior Real Estate and Facility Management advisory experience, developing methodologies for Workplace and FM Assessments, Organizational Design, Vendor Optimization, Outsourcing, Performance Management, and Best Practice Implementation.
Michael has authored numerous articles and white papers on topics of interest to senior-level Facilities Management and Real Estate executives. He has been published in IFMA's Real Estate & Facility Management Journal and numerous other domestic and international publications, and is co-author of the BOMI online training course "Talking with the C-Suite."
His advisory experience reflects the industry's globalization, with engagements completed in North America, Europe, the Middle East, China, and Brazil.
Diane is a recognized expert in Real Estate, Facilities Management, and Workplace Services, with over 30 years of experience across practitioner, service-provider, and educator roles. Her practice areas include organizational assessment, RE/FM/WPS outsourcing, strategic and tactical facility planning, administrative services, leadership coaching, operational analysis, and process improvement.
Diane offers a unique perspective gained from serving as practicing facility manager at Freddie Mac, VP of Facilities for Gannett/USA Today, and SVP of Corporate Services for Trammell Crow Company. She formed MacKnight Associates in 2003.
An instructor with the George Mason University Facility Management Certificate Program since 1995, Diane served as editor and principal author of IFMA's four-day course "The Business of FM" and as an instructor in IFMA's continuing education programs. She is a frequent speaker on facility management topics.
Peter brings over two decades of experience in Strategic Management, Facility Management, and Asset Optimization. As a visionary leader and founder of multiple ventures, he has directed over 500 projects and collaborated with more than 150 organizations across 40 countries.
Peter played a significant role in shaping industry standards, contributing to the development of ISO 41000, the global benchmark for Facility Management. He has served as Visiting Professor at Kufstein University of Applied Sciences and lecturer at IREBS International Real Estate Business School of Regensburg University, and actively participated in ISO TC 267 "Facility Management" from 2012 to 2021.
His expertise spans Internationalization, Restructuring, M&A, Organization Development, Facility Management, Asset Lifecycle Optimization, and Investment Strategies, with multinational engagements across telecommunications, financial services, automotive, pharmaceuticals, and industrial sectors.
Gabrielle supports Agile OAK advisory engagements through market research, quantitative analysis, and development of client-ready deliverables. Her work has included financial modeling to evaluate an outsourced facilities management solution for a portfolio of biotechnology properties in the San Diego market, as well as support for market scanning and synthesis of findings into decision-oriented materials.
Gabrielle is an architectural designer with a master's in Design Studies from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, with a concentration in Risk and Resilience, and a Bachelor of Architecture from the New York Institute of Technology. Her academic work has focused on the intersection of design, policy, and risk, including research addressing how the built environment can better support safety and resilience outcomes.
Outside of client work, Gabrielle is a painter with gallery exhibition experience and a history of private commissions. She also contributes to The Groovement as a live music reviewer.
If your portfolio has the complexity to warrant boutique advisory, we would welcome the conversation.
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