In Focus Collections


Why firms need to make sense of their space for flexible work


Flexible working is an important way to attract the best talent, but requires careful planning to avoid waste


Tony Booty Director, Abintra


UK employees now have a legal right to request flexible working, and, while employers do not always have to accept, the direction of travel is clear. More and more employers are choosing


to provide agile office environments. They are doing so not only because more


people are working from home, but also to enhance productivity by introducing different kinds of meeting spaces, fluid working groups, and quiet rooms.


Caring about the environment Another huge driver behind the changing face of office space is the need to recruit and retain employees. A flexible environment that is well set up for today’s agile working practices, can be a


significant factor in attracting and retaining those creative thinkers, visionaries and hard workers that drive businesses forward. Even at the most basic level, an office


that is well lit, ventilated, and heated makes a huge difference to wellbeing. Then, of course, there is also the bigger


environmental picture. With listed companies now required to


report on the BREEAM status of their real- estate portfolios, there is a clear need to manage the office environment to conserve energy and reduce emissions.


The problem with real estate Conventional office layouts are unsuitable for agile working, so adapting to something better suited to new ways of working is common sense. After all, real estate – whether it is owned


After all, real estate – whether it is owned or leased – is, for the majority of office-based businesses, their biggest overhead after their people. That is something that multi-national businesses will be acutely aware of as new international accounting standards put leased assets on company balance sheets


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or leased – is, for the majority of office-based businesses, their biggest overhead after their people. That is something that multi-national


businesses will be acutely aware of as new international accounting standards put leased assets on company balance sheets. The time-honoured one-person one-desk


layout is incredibly profligate with work- spaces standing empty because employees are working from home, in meetings, or on leave. Last year, we carried out a study into


the value of Grade A office space that is un-used in this way across England and Wales, which revealed that a staggering £10bn was wasted.


www.CCRMagazine.com Our study was based on a modest estimate


of 30% under-use based on our experience with hundreds of corporations worldwide. A recent report by CBRE put the figure at twice that amount. So the case for switching to some more


flexible working environments seems crystal clear. However, many businesses have yet to


adopt it, and, unfortunately, many that have tried have not done so successfully, failing to create spaces that work as well as they could or to exploit the full potential of space savings.


Space oddity Why? The simple answer is that corporations have a lack of understanding of how their real estate is used. Many make big investment decisions


based on little more than guesswork. Others employ outdated methods to try to get a handle on their space usage. They say that in the realm of the blind,


the one-eyed man is king, and it is fair to say that having consultants walk around your office with a clipboard will give you a snapshot of how the space is being used, which is better than nothing. However, that is not really good enough


when the technology exists to paint a much more accurate picture. The second reason is a lack of joined-up


thinking in big organisations. Decisions about these hefty assets are often left to real- estate managers or facilities-management companies.


September 2019


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