Click on the link to see the full article: 6 reasons to go for a flexible workspace
Like everything else, workspaces are evolving over time. During this evolving process, it is when flexible workspaces were born. Although this concept is nothing new, the current situation is contributing to the increased number of companies using this way to organise themselves.
Indeed, if we refer to the increase in the number of people teleworking in general, but especially following the lockdown situation experienced at the beginning of 2020, we can only understand the desire of some companies to change their work organisation. Therefore, this evolution is developing in parallel with the needs of current workers, who do not necessarily have the same expectations as their predecessors.
There are several ways to consider a flexible workspace for your employees, each with its advantages:
The benefits of rearranging your company’s offices
What do we mean by rearrangement? We mean redesigning the workspace to be more open and allow employees to move around as they wish. That is to say; there will no longer be allocated desks as there was before. Therefore, there will be a reduction in the number of separate desks, which is quite understandable following the increase in teleworking. The reduced surface area will definitely generate new free spaces for workers, so the primary goal of doing this is to create places where employees can feel comfortable and exchange ideas with others. It goes without saying that calm areas are essentials for tasks that require silence and extreme attention.
The advantages of this solution are multiple:
1. Increasing in employee’s interaction and productivity
The creation of shared space and having more open offices will allow employees to meet more often, this is believed to increase the exchanges of ideas as long as there are interactions occurring. As Yahoo’s human resources director put it so well: “Some of the best decisions and thoughts come from conversations that take place in the hallways or cafeteria”. By being able to discuss at a chair located in the middle of the workspace, you provide your employees with multiple opportunities to come up with innovative ideas, which is good for the company. This arrangement will also allow your staff to meet people they don’t usually meet.
Employee productivity can also benefit from this reorganization of space. According to a study conducted by Dr. van der Voordt of Delft University of Technology. Among workers of a company that changed the layout of its premises, the number of workers who felt that the working environment influenced their productivity increased from 14% before the redesign to 51% after the redesign. This means that 37% of clerks saw an increase in their productivity as a result of the change in environment made by the company. This variable is very noticeable, knowing that productivity rhymes with performance.
2. Savings
A rearrangement of space can often lead to a gain in surface area. From this observation, one can imagine all the results: lower rent, lower energy consumption, etc. But it also means that less office equipment is required because there will be fewer individual seats.
Thanks to teleworking, you can also consider savings on your employees’ transport costs.
3. Employee comfort
A flexible workspace gives workers a sense of satisfaction because they feel more independent. In fact, if one of your employees wants to change places to perform a task or another, he or she should have no problem doing so. This feeling of freedom provides employees with a certain satisfaction at the end of their work day.
With the rise of these flexible workspaces comes the emergence of flexible parkings. You can benefit from flexibility in terms of interior space, but also in terms of the parking spaces you have at your disposal. In this way, your employees will have a better chance of being allocated a parking spot within your company.
It is clear that the allocation of parking spaces can be a real headache, especially when working hours are not fixed. To make this task easier, there are parking management systems that will allow your employees to reserve a parking space whenever they want. This parking organization will provide comfort to your employees, who will no longer need to worry about how many spaces are left in your parking lot when they arrive at work.
The benefits of co-working
Coworking is a concept that has been around for quite some time now. However, it evolves over time to offer its occupants new options. Nowadays, coworkings are generally seen as fully equipped workspaces. In these spaces, there are various people who do not necessarily work for the same company.
This type of building operates on a reservation basis, so a person or company can decide to book a place in a coworking space for a specific period of time according to their needs.
When talking about coworking, reference is increasingly being made to the concept of space as a service (Saas). This includes a shift in the real estate model towards monetizing access to space for work at a given time for a given person.
The benefits of coworking are as follows:
1. Saves time and money
Using the shared office system helps to reduce fixed costs, as utilities and other common expenses are usually included in the rental price. In this way, it is easier to manage your budget by knowing in advance what costs will be involved. This type of rental is known to be more affordable than traditional ones.
You can also avoid expenses related to materials, as coworking areas are usually equipped with the necessary equipment for the workers.
The management of the infrastructure is taken care of by people inside the coworking area, so you will have more time to devote to other tasks that are all the more important. Most of the coworking areas are equipped with a person in charge of the reception. This also means one less person to hire for the smooth running of your company.
2. Business networking
Working with other companies provides the opportunity for a company’s employees to create networks that can lead to a variety of business opportunities. Indeed, according to a study conducted by Deskmag, a coworking magazine, out of 1,500 coworkers, 80% of them reported an increase in the size of their business network.
Being in contact with other people from other backgrounds leads to innovation, because your employees will be faced with other ideas and another corporate culture.
3. A flexible rental
The rental of shared workspaces is generally very flexible and therefore does not require a long-term commitment. The aim is for you to occupy these spaces according to your needs. For example, if you need to send some of your employees to another city for a fixed-term assignment, you can arrange for them to work there from a coworking space.
The way work is organized is changing at a rapid pace. It will continue to do so as today’s workers seek more and more interaction. One way to provide these interactions for your employees is through flexible workspaces.
Originally published at https://blog.bepark.eu.
