(Entrepreneurs get an uninterrupted, focused environment to do their work.)
Gone are the days when the word ‘office’ concocted a picture of piles of work folders, bright light, grey walls, and boring cubicles. Now, with modern layouts and great ergonomics, the imagery of offices of today is that of a jazzy lounge sans any cubicles. And, that is what the enterprises and entrepreneurs of today mostly prefer.
With the rise of the startups, there has been a constant debate about whether or not they require a office space. This is because they have alternatives like virtual offices, work-from-home, free Wi-Fi zones in coffee shops, and even a couch at a friend’s place.
For entrepreneurs lucky enough to have a growing business and adding employees to their teams, the concept of an organized workspace featuring dependable infrastructure is a great idea.
Here are some of the top reasons why entrepreneurs starting fresh need a private office space to set up their team and align their work:
For attracting talent: The office rooms of your business reflect its stature from its financial health to its work philosophy. Little wonder that the best companies in the world are recognized for operating also in fine locations. Office space is one way in which the essence of a brand is easily communicated.
The most crucial targets for this communication are the top talent or employees which the start-ups are trying to attract. After all, the brightest and best candidates want to work with a company of high repute and with a prominent presence in the industry.
They will desire to know whether the office where they will be working has a comfortable and appealing ambience. This is so because they will be spending most of their daily work hours here. Thus, having no workspace or office will simply not do.
(Team building becomes easy when all your people are under one roof.)
Building up of teams: Building teams are not just lofty exercises, this can help fashion supportive work environment, vital to the success of your team. It is good to build team dynamics where employees socialize and support each other.
Encouraging social life: Team building leads to enhancing social life. In case of some people, co-workers wind up being close friends, even outside the workspace. Whenever you help employees enhance their social lives, you are providing a holistic advantage, which makes them happier and as a result, more productive at work.
Accountability: Are your employees, especially work at home persons or virtual employees, devoting much of their time to their leisure interest and activities? But if they need to report to a physical office, such no-show problems will not occur. Ultimately, your company has to deal with issues of accountability and productivity. Attending an office makes the employees accountable for their time and work.
Punctuality: If you like meetings which begin on time and proceed smoothly, you must consider in serious terms to use organized office space for your start-up. One major myth about office space and start-ups is that virtual tools like Skype and Google Hangout have eliminated the need for meeting team members directly. But this new technology is fraught with technical problems like poor network connectivity, which can delay meetings by much time.
The advice of investors: One good reason to consider office space is the advice of your investors. Advice coming from such stakeholders will help you take a decision on whether to move operations into a physical office space.
Professional development: With physical office space, you can enable more opportunities for professional development like hosting guest lectures, participate in workshops or mentorship programs. When you prove to employees that you are concerned about investing in their growth as professionals, you keep employees motivated and satisfied to build their careers with you.
Experience of diversity: In case of all industries, employees stand to benefit from experiencing diversity like various skill sets, viewpoints and personal backgrounds (races, gender, and ethnicity). An office space enables employees to experience such exposure.
Health improvement: As per research, a healthy employee is a productive employee. One way in which you can contribute to employee health is by stocking office pantry with healthy food.
Another way is that by requiring them to commute to the office, you are encouraging them to exert themselves physically. Office life has its health benefits from climbing stairs to walking to the office and walking about in the office.
Considerations –
Before you opt for hiring or buying office space, you must weigh the following considerations:
The cost of the office: When you are opting to hire office space, the one factor that stands apart is the monthly cost per square foot. Also, you will have to bear expenses like utilities, furniture, maintenance, etc. You must factor in all overheads before you make your decision.
Your growth projection: Length of lease for private office space can change dramatically from short-term (a few months) to long-term (a few years). Before hiring, consider the growth prospects of your company.
Scope for revenue generation: Do not undertake expenses which will not yield revenue. Consider whether your business model will benefit from private space.
Thus, you have a great deal to consider while weighing the option of hiring or buying office space for your start-up.
Private offices provide a great deal of benefits for the business and for the employees as well. I strongly agree on the relevance of office space set up to the overall brand image that job seekers and hired employees will eventually notice, which affects their mood and decision making on whether to accept the job and or continue providing their service for your business.