The Evolution of Office Space over the Pandemic - part 4

Over a series of interviews we will look at the evolution of office space during this pandemic.

Over the last year, companies in all industries have had to change the way they work. Workng from home has become the new normal, leaving many companies asking the question, do we need an office?

Today we speak to Niki Fuchs, Managing Director of Office Space in Town...

How has office space been affected by the pandemic?

Lockdown has obviously forced offices to close due to the governments edict to work from home if you can. The impact can be seen most dramatically in London where there are rows and rows of office desks empty as you look up into the skies. 

The pandemic has understandably created challenges for landlords and tenants alike, rent and mortgage payments have continued to fall due, so where possible compromises have been found for both parties. This cannot continue for ever and the repercusions will be felt in our pensions, in our ability to borrow from banks, business closures, councils with no money as rates haven’t been paid, these are just the tip of the iceberg.

Are people using their offices?

All that said when the time comes, people will be keen to leave their homes, to separate their work and home lives again by returning to a differently located working environment for some of the week.  

We believe that this will be good for companies like OSiT in the flexible workspace market as we can enable companies and individuals to test the water slowly upon their return in space that is beautifully designed, with support services and excellent technology solutions. 

Business will undoubtedly continue to use offices, although for many the relationship to the office will change noticeably, with flexible workspace replacing traditional HQs as businesses prefer more modern spaces.

 How will office space look post-Covid?

Tenants will continue to demand cutting-edge technology from their offices, as well as flexibility in all aspects of their tenancy. This will contribute to the continued growth of flexible leases at the expense of more traditional, more rigid alternatives. In the longer term, the sector will also see a shift towards an all-encompassing office space which can cater to as broad a range of needs as tenants demand.

 What will the inside of offices look like? 

It is too soon to call. There are pundits everywhere who have the gift of forsight apparently. We believe that how space for businesses was being used had already begun to change and that Covid has just accelerated this. 

However, having spoken to all of our clients continuously over this period they do not have a vision of how their office will change, they do know that they have the tools and the ability to work flexibly in time and location but how that looks as a strategy not many other than the large corporates have “got there yet”. They are still focused on getting through Covid, getting their businesses back on track and possibly a holiday!

 Do you think we will ever go back to the traditional ‘work from office’ routine?

There will always be a place for the office, mainly because people value the sense of community derived from working alongside colleagues. In particular, post-pandemic workers will place a premium on face-to-face contact with others, as we attempt to bounce back from the mental health crisis caused by repeated lockdowns. In addition, emerging SMEs will want to take the next step in their development by operating from offices (rather than their founders’ homes) as soon as possible.

Gary Brown, Founder of Debt Register, has worked with a number of clients in the office space over the pandemic to accelerate their unpaid invoices, something common in this industry since many businesses have not been using their office space. Gary wanted to highlight the changes to this industry casued by COVID by commissioning this series of articles with Women of FinTech.

You can read the first article here