Does converting to a decentralised workspace model still sound daunting? Try our industry-approved step-by-step guide

The commercial property industry is adapting to a major shift in how businesses are thinking about their property requirements due to COVID-19. Many businesses are exploring new working models after many of their teams successfully worked from home during lockdown. Businesses now realise there are alternative ways to work – and in turn, there are alternative workspace models to go with it. 

The whole business world is a-buzz with talks of hub and spoke offices, decentralised satellites and helping the environment. If you don’t know about these on trend workspace models already, you can learn more about them and their benefits by clicking on the links provided. 

If you do know about these models, chances are you might appreciate some thoughts on actually implementing the right alternative office model for you. Here’s a suggested step by step guide from BizSpace.

Step one: Research and make a plan

To begin looking into more regional workspace models, you should create a plan. There are multiple models you can look into, from ‘hub and spoke’ offices to decentralised satellites. By no means do you need to dissolve your head office in order to reap the above benefits, but once your workforce is not completely based there, you can significantly reduce the size of your head office, saving your business money. 

Step two: Create an employee heatmap

Here at BizSpace we specialise in flexible and regional workspace, and we recommend you create a heatmap of where all of your employees’ live, identifying the hotspots that will allow the majority to work close to where they live. 

Step three: Find a flexible workspace provider

Once you create your plan and have identified potential locations for new offices, begin researching commercial workspace providers. To make things simpler, you can even opt for a single provider with multiple regional spaces and locations – established providers should have locations close to where the heatmap identified your employees can utilise workspace. 

Step four: Optimise your organisation

Organisation can get complicated once a business opens more than one office, so in this situation, flexibility is key. To prepare for this, try looking into a provider’s licencing or renting agreements, their minimum and maximum terms and what is included in their billing. For example, BizSpace offers fully flexible, 3-month rolling licence agreements with straightforward  billing. Licencing like this will allow you to effectively organise and keep track of dispersed locations around the UK.

Step five: Put your plan into action

From here, all you need to do is take action. It may take time, but like our CEO, Gareth Evans, recently said to Property Week “as we start to come out of the pandemic, the sense we’re getting is that people don’t just want to go back to how things were before.”

He also said that “the big opportunity will be rethinking the way we work. Many companies that wouldn’t previously have introduced flexible or remote working now understand that businesses can run effectively without everyone being together in a central hub every day.”

While it currently might seem like a daunting task to change the way your business works, a change in the short-term could reap major business benefits in the long-term. Flexible space providers are here to make the transition much easier for you, so if you want even more confidence when moving forward with your workspace shift, drop us a line at hello@bizspace.co.uk – we are happy to provide tailored guidance on regional office models and the flex-space industry.

With 105 BizSpace regional business centres nationwide, flexible terms and dedicated on-site management, you can find your team a new strategic regional office today.