Why that shift?

It’s A More Cost-Effective Real Estate Solution

The ongoing pandemic unveiled new real estate challenges – the need for more workspaces to house office employees amid social distancing measures. Split team arrangements and the equivalent forced many to work at home from time to time. Employees are also gradually preferring to work elsewhere than in the office (more on this later).

What do all these mean for enterprises with large but emptier offices? There will be wasted space.

If this makes up one end of the spectrum, the other is insufficient space for growing teams – one of the biggest hurdles large organisations always face.

What both scenarios entail is a cost – enterprises with such traditional office spaces are tied down to long-term leases with additional fees when they downsize or upgrade, alongside substantial fit-out spend This prevents them from scaling when they need to.

The solution: a flexible and cost-effective real estate plan – also known as a ‘core and flex’ model.

The ‘core and flex’ refers to an idea where enterprises occupy a long-term office space (‘core’) and a flexible workspace somewhere else (‘flex’). A smaller traditional office or a serviced suite as ‘headquarters’ can serve as the ‘core’. Dedicated hot desks at coworking spaces or private cabins as satellite offices in shared work areas complement the former where employees can jump on immediately to work – the ‘flex’. And there’s no need to worry about amenities – from meeting rooms and day-to-day office equipment to a curated range of professional services, coworking spaces have them all covered.

With this, enterprises save on overhead expenses of large office spaces and have more agility in managing the size of their real estate vis-a-vis human resource needs.

There’s Opportunity For Networking Even With Privacy

For employees or those in the management level, networking is key to keeping up with the pulse of the market. A traditional office setting does not allow for seamless connections with the like-minded but a coworking space can. A conversation in the common area like the pantry can lead to meaningful business partnerships you’d never imagine.

Hot desking employees would have ample opportunities for networking in the shared office space. Yet, privacy can be of concern – a dedicated cabin within the shared area will make the cut.

Regardless of the coworking plan, enterprises have access to regular networking sessions with industry practitioners, making it easier to enhance brand exposure and source potential leads.

You Uplift Employee Morale And Productivity

While Singaporeans have shown resilience adapting to work from home arrangements during the pandemic, it brought about troubles for some. This revealed a shift in local preferences, with 85% of Singaporeans longing for some form of flexibility in choosing where they would like to work.

Having the option to work where employees want keeps them happy – an essential aspect of employee morale, which translates to productivity. If the office is too busy, having a flexible and secured workspace somewhere in the city or neighbourhood gives them a peace of mind to tick off tasks from a to-do list. Perhaps a parent needs to pick a child from school at an odd hour – a hot desk in a nearby location saves a good deal of commuting time. And on days when the walls close in on you while working from home, having a ready work desk in a coworking space solves the problem. All these with 24/7 access and security, so you’d never need to think twice where else to get your work done!

The coworking environment also offers a creative and collaborative workspace for employees who can break away from groupthink they unconsciously subject themselves to in the office. They can enhance the quality of their work with out-of-the-box ideas, ultimately benefiting the organisations they serve.

Coworking spaces have evolved over the years. It is no longer just a workspace arrangement for small businesses but also a practical solution for enterprise-level organisations to better manage the office and workforce. If you’re looking for the future of work, this is it.