November 15, 2019

Migration of flexible offices to contribute £12 billion to local economies

The increasing migration of flexible offices to the outskirts of major UK cities is creating a ‘flex economy’ that could contribute more than £12 billion to local economies in the next decade. That’s according to the first comprehensive socio-economic study of second-city and suburban workspaces. The analysis, conducted by economists on behalf of Regus, claims that as Brexit uncertainty continues to impact the economic landscape, individual flexible workspaces in suburban areas could be a welcome lifeline for local economies.

November 11, 2019

Largest commercial property firm in UK to be carbon neutral by 2030

by Neil Franklin • Environment, Facilities management, News, Property

The UK’s largest commercial property company, Landsec, has announced that it plans for its 24 million square feet portfolio to achieve net zero emissions by 2030 in line with the Paris Agreement on climate change. Landsec, which has a £13.8 billion portfolio of office, retail and leisure property in the UK, including its flexible office arm Myo (pictured), has had its updated greenhouse gas reduction target approved by the Science-Based Target Initiative (SBTI). More →

November 6, 2019

Open plan offices might improve performance of high status workers

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Workplace design

Managers may believe their star performers don’t need monitoring when working on a team and may reason that leaving the most high status workers alone in their efforts frees up more time to work closely with other team members. But research coauthored by Sebastien Brion of IESE Business School and published in Management Science Journal claims that this may be a mistake and so counterproductive and that the performance of high status workers might improve with greater visibility including that offered by open plan offices. More →

October 22, 2019

Many flexible office users would prefer to work in conventional space

by Mark Eltringham • Coworking, News, Property

Joint-research from Gensler and the British Council of Offices (BCO) on the rise of flexible workspace in the UK corporate sector claims that 40 percent of flexible office users would rather work from a conventional office. According to the report, while the future of coworking is increasingly being explored as part of academic and industry research, there has been limited focus on what it means for large corporate occupiers. The 2019 Rise of Flexible Workspace in the Corporate Sector Report (choir members only) aims to identify the drivers of and the barriers to – the use of flexible space and coworking by large corporate occupiers. More →

October 8, 2019

WeWork, false narratives and the superstate of office design

by Mark Eltringham • Features

So, WeWork then. As the dust settles on whatever has happened, some lessons may be emerging. Many of them are presented in this comment in The Economist and this piece in The Intelligencer in which Scott Galloway of NYU Business School claims that the problems have been evident for a long time. He doesn’t hold back. More →

September 30, 2019

Flexible workspace makes up a third of London property deals

by Neil Franklin • News, Property

Over the past year, flexible workspace made up over a third of of commercial property transactions in London despite only making up around 6 percent of the total office supply in the UK capital, according to a new report by The Instant Group. More →

September 26, 2019

Workplaces should change to entice people back into them

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace design

A new report published jointly by Instant Group and Area addresses the issue of how ensure workplaces address the physical, technological and personal needs of the growing number of people who have a choice about where they work. The report explores what employers can do to ensure that the workplace is still a place where people want to be.

September 16, 2019

Working mums call for more flexible work options

by John Williams • Comment, Flexible working, Workplace design

Women are a key part of a growing contingent workforce of freelancers, consultants and part-timers. Despite numerous government policies to attract more mothers back into the workplace, retention is still a significant struggle. Several data collected indicates working mums who return part-time, combining professional careers with raising a family, are increasingly frustrated. The research shows that the modern workplace often fails to cater for the needs of mothers and carers as they face the pressures of combining busy working lives with lifestyle and family obligations.

September 16, 2019

Offices iQ launches flexible corporate space solution Enterprise iQ

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Promotion

Offices iQ, the broker of flexible office and coworking space, has announced the launch of Enterprise iQ, a global end-to-end service that includes ongoing customer support. With flexible working spaces set to grow by up to 30 percent annually for the next five years across Europe, Enterprise iQ will service the growing number of corporate companies looking for flexible office space. More →

September 3, 2019

Work-life integration is the new goal for workers

by Nicole Bello • Comment, Flexible working, Technology

The modern world of work is a stressful one, and the goal to progress in our careers brings on even more pressure. Tight deadlines and demanding workloads are the typical order of the day, but just as important is to have the time to wind down and recharge the batteries. Historically, this has been known as work-life balance.

August 30, 2019

Shaping the workplace of tomorrow

by Richard Glückman • Comment, Technology, Workplace design

The workplace, as we know it, is rapidly evolving and the role of the traditional office is changing. In fact, what current trends are pointing towards is that the whole work culture is shifting, with the employee experience becoming equally important as consumer needs. The new norm of the workplace is being flexible, dynamic, and versatile – yet, more often than not, companies lag behind in providing the right tools to support these trends. We can often see a significant gap between what the workforce needs and what the workplace offers. More →

August 30, 2019

Back to workplace basics, the joy and pain of work, squeezing people in and some other stuff

by Mark Eltringham • Features, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Let’s get the inevitable WeWork story out of the way first. A supposed news item in Crain’s New York Business has claimed that WeWork is ‘squeezing’ people into half the space recommended in the BCO’s Specification Guide; “roughly the size of two standard doors laying side by side”. You can see the editorial cogs at work here, combining a story about WeWork with one about how people are crammed into the workplace like cattle these days.