What is a Flexible Office or Workspace?
The idea of flexible working has changed many companies over the past decade. Flexible working means anything that falls outside of traditional office spaces and hours. Sometimes that means working remotely or staggering hours.
It also means recreating the traditional office, though, and now more than ever, flexible office space is becoming the new norm.
Understanding Flexible Office Space
Most companies today are quite different than they were just a few decades ago. They recognize that employees need spaces that aren’t the traditional desk to desk option or even the cubicle.
Instead, they’re unique and constantly changing. Flexible office spaces tend to incorporate a few main features.
They tend to be open places with lots of large spaces for employees to collaborate. Amenities like printers, snacks, and common areas are quite typical in settings like this.
They also usually have non-traditional workstations like standing desks and comfortable chairs. Additionally, they offer plenty of quiet corners for people to find so they can work without the ambient noise.
Usually, they can be arranged in a different layout fairly quickly to help companies scale up or down as needed.
The Benefits of Flexible Workspaces
There are many reasons a company might want to consider a flexible workspace. Initially, it could better help the flow of any project in a company.
For example, as it moves from meetings to small group work to work at the individual level, a flexible workspace could accommodate every aspect of that timeline.
More than that, though, employees get exactly what they need to work best. While sometimes being in a much larger group is a great way to work, occasionally you just need a quiet space, and flexible offices tend to provide both of those for employees, helping to better accommodate them.
Business owners tend to love these flexible layouts too because they’re easy to change as the needs of the company do.
If you’re a seasonal business that must scale up and scale down on a regular basis, flexible workspaces are the only way to go. Many businesses really fell in love with them as social distancing had to become the norm during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Flexible workspaces may also help reduce your overall costs. You may need less total space if you provide a flexible environment, and that may add to your bottom line.
More than that, though, it makes your model fairly easy to replicate should you need to add a second location to increase your overall market penetration.
It also means that existing co-working locations could fit the needs of your company, allowing you to quickly add a workspace for your employees.
Is Flexible Workspace Right For Your Company?
Understanding whether the more flexible model is right for your team has to be an internal decision. Take the time to think carefully about your business goals. Are you planning to grow in the next few years?
If so, moving forward with a flexible office may be the ideal choice. You may also want to consider what the culture of your company looks like.
If you tend to share and collaborate well together and if you value that among your team members, flexible office space is the ideal way to move forward.
Flexible offices aren’t right for every company, but for many, it means a real boost in productivity for employees and some great benefits for employers as well.