Millennials in the Workplace: How the New Majority of Workers Will Change Your Culture

What Millennials in the Workplace Want

A new Gallup report reveals that most workers, many of whom are millennials, want their work to have meaning and purpose. This is especially true for gen Y. Despite their student loan debt, millennials are motivated by meaning as much as they are by money.

This means that to attract and retain millennials, it will become increasingly important for companies to show they care through community involvement and sponsorship of charitable causes.

Be a Company That Cares

Involve employees in charitable causes and ask them to volunteer for outreach programs. Partner with a cause that reflects your corporate values and let employees make charitable contributions through payroll deductions.

You can also find local opportunities for community service such as soup kitchens. Consider offering Volunteer Time Off (VTO) to employees who volunteer during work hours. Even if you only allow several hours a month, millennials will respond enthusiastically, engendering loyalty.

As you hire more millennials, you will find that their fresh perspective elevates the conversation inside your office culture, causing older workers and managers to rethink their own sense of meaning.

If you would like to find office space that can prepare your company for the new wave of Millennials in the Workplace, or if you have thoughts to share, contact us. We would love to hear from you.

Coworking office space: best solution for independent people

By 2020, if things continue as they are, 40 percent of the workforce in the U.S. will be freelancers, temporary workers, independent contractors and solo-entrepreneurs. Almost all of them will be working in coworking office space. Coworking office space refers to shared space where people who work there are most often working for different organizations, or for themselves, but creating synergy between each other.

Benefits of Coworking Office Space:

A recent survey found:

Among these independent workers,

70 percent feel healthier than they did when working in a conventional office.
68 percent said they were able to focus better.
64 percent are better able to complete tasks on time.
60 percent are more relaxed at home since coworking.
92 percent were satisfied with their coworking space.
91 percent enjoyed better interactions with others.
50 percent report higher incomes.

Harvard Business Review reports that people who work this way, in coworking environments thrive more in their work than those in conventional office environments. What makes coworking spaces work so well? The answers may have important implications for conventional office philosophy and design.

The factors that go into success for the coworking environment may provide important metrics for the assessment of a successful office environment. The HBR survey of several hundred workers in coworking spaces around the U.S. revealed important factors that predict “thriving.”

Key Metrics:

The key business metrics for coworking office space are measures that predict “thriving” and positive impacts of coworking spaces on productivity and satisfaction.

People who use coworking office space see their work as meaningful. Those who work in coworking environments are free to choose the projects they care about. They can “bring their whole selves to work.”
Coworking spaces are filled with members who work for a range of companies, ventures, or projects. There is no direct competition or internal politics. There is no need for a false work persona.
Coworking has become something of a culture that has been developing a social mission. An online document called the “Coworking Manifesto” is signed by members from 1,700 working spaces. An annual “Global Coworking Unconference” (GCU) (pronounced “juicy,” held in 5 location around the world) brings a sense of identity, participation and mission to the coworker.
Coworking spaces are normally available on demand 24/7. People have nearly absolute power to decide when they work and how long. They can choose to work in collaborative spaces or private spaces. They can even work from home. However, the coworking environment provides a community and a specific location for work, that provides a sense of structure and discipline hat motivates the workers.
Feeling part of a community is a chief reason why people pay to work in a community space rather than in isolation or at home.

If you were to measure the power of coworking space, use measures that assess:

Workers’ attitudes toward the meaningfulness of their work.
Feelings of competitiveness among co-workers.
Involvement in the “culture of coworking.
Use of office space in off hours and irregular ways.
Feeling that the office space provides a motivating sense of community, structure and discipline.

Increasing numbers of employees of larger companies are choosing to work in coworker environment, rather than telecommuting from home or working in the corporate offices. Employees of Visa, large financial institutions, and journalists from newspapers like the Chicago Tribune are among them. The innovation team from Richo worked out of coworking space for several months to explore some new products, including their “Smart Presenter,” paperless meeting solution. Some companies, like Menlo Innovations in Ann Arbor, Michigan have actually enlarged their offices so that start-up companies and early-stage entrepreneurs can work alongside their staff.

Coworking Methods Applied to Corporate Environments:

The lessons of coworking spaces can be applied to corporate offices.

Encouraging flexibility and support for a mobile workforce.
Creating the right kind of social work environment inside corporate office walls.
Enable people to craft their own work environment in ways that give them purpose and meaning.
Establish a balance of desk seats and shared settings for collaborative work and quiet work.
Enable people to make connections and build working communities beyond formal meetings.

Please contact us to learn more about coworking office space.

Here is a look at a coworking office space in Seattle Washington:

Click Here to view in full screen (recommended)

See More OfficeFinder Virtual Tours in Seattle

Rethinking Preconceived Notions About Millennials in the Workplace

The Reality of Generational Issues in the Workplace

The issues associated with Millennials in the workplace can no longer be ignored. It’s true that Millennials now dominate the workforce. However, in an era where Baby Boomers are very reluctant to retire and where the neglected members of Generation X are still well within their prime years of employment, generational conflict is something that all employers have to consider. Employers will be more effective at resolving these issues if they are able to confront existing stereotypes about Millennials in particular.

Millennials in the Workplace and Career Advancement

It’s widely believed that Millennials are largely uninterested in putting in the time and effort that it takes to excel in a career. Some people attribute this to the idea that Millennials prioritize their family members over their jobs, in spite of the fact that Millennials are less likely to get married and have children than members of previous generations. Other people attribute this to generational differences in work ethic. Some people believe that Millennials have overly high expectations for their workplace environments.

In reality, Millennials have often been unable to start career paths of any kind. The entry-level job of old has been replaced by the unpaid internship. Millennials crushed under student loan debt have been forced to work for free. Unpaid internships have frequently not led to real jobs, and they have sometimes made Millennials less employable down the line. The Great Recession is over, but it was largely older workers that benefited from the subsequent improvements to the economy. The research has also failed to produce evidence that Millennials are different from anyone else in terms of work ethic.

Meeting the Expectations of Millennial Employees

If anything, the employers who are able to provide Millennials with benefits and consistent and adequate salaries will usually get workers who are extremely motivated. Millennials do not take any of this for granted, since they typically started their working lives without benefits of any kind or even modest salaries. Employers often don’t have to go out of their way to accommodate Millennial employees. They just have to make sure that Millennials get what previous generations took for granted.

In addition to coping with record-breaking levels of student loan debt, Millennials are dealing with higher living costs than previous generations. A salary that might have stretched far when the Baby Boomers or Generation X members were in their twenties and thirties might be insufficient in a world where even the cost of food is higher. Underemployment is a crisis for the Millennial generation, and employers who go against this trend will get eager Millennial candidates right away.

Generational Conflict and Sensitivity

Millennials are very aware of how they are perceived by some members of the Baby Boom and Generation X cohorts. Some employees from these cohorts are happy to share these views publicly in workplaces. Employers need to recognize that this is a source of workplace conflict. In some workplaces, sensitivity training regarding ageism might be necessary. Getting an office environment set up for Millennial workers in a world where they are the majority partly means understanding the realities of this generation’s struggles. It also means finding ways to avoiding escalating the generational conflicts that have been going on for years.

If you are looking for an office to accommodate all generations including Millennials in the Workplace, Contact us. We can Help!

What is so Great About Office Space Virtual Tours?

Leasing a new office is a big step. Yet, this means you are moving up in your career and ready to for a new place. Finding just the right office is a challenging goal. However, with the help of office space virtual tours, the task is made simpler. Here are 3 reasons why office space virtual tours are beneficial when you are looking to find office space.

Saves you time

Time is precious and no one seems to have enough to spare. Searching for offices to lease takes time. Driving to each and every one could prove tiresome. Taking a virtual tour of your prospective new office gives you a realistic view of everything you need to see. You can save all the time you would have spent driving to the location by simply touring the office at home on your computer.

Helps you narrow down your prospects

There may be several office spaces for lease. After reading the description of each one you may have a difficult time deciding which one are worth pursuing. When you take virtual tours of the places, you can quickly determine which ones are satisfactory to you.

Works with your schedule

Everyone is on a tight schedule. The times you are available to see an office space for lease may be the times the owner is not available. You may want to preview a place during your lunch hour, late at night, or on a holiday. Taking a virtual tour means you can take a tour anytime your schedule allows.

In today’s world, finding an office space for lease is more convenient than ever. For more information about virtual tours for offices, contact OfficeFinder today!

Here is a good example of and office space virtual tour of Safeco Plaza office space in Downtown Seattle:

How Did The Concept Of Coworking Office Space Begin?

If you have heard of coworking space, you might be somewhat skeptical about them. Where did it begin and how did it become so popular? We’ll explain the surprising success of this concept and why you should try it out for your startup company.

Coworking Concept Briefly Explained

Anyone who has never heard of coworking space should first understand this simple concept. It is basically the idea of bringing together workers from other industries and companies and allowing them to share a working space and hopefully create synergy between companies and or people. For example, two companies in the same industry may end up sitting in the same working area and sharing the same tools.

Why Has This Coworking Idea Blossomed?

The implementation of coworking spaces began almost by accident during the Global Financial Crisis that started in 2008. Thousands of people were suddenly without jobs and were forced to find non-traditional or freelance work. In many instances, companies had to band together to share working areas. The result was that the success of these businesses grew significantly.

What Causes This Success?

Success with coworking spaces is generated by creative minds getting together and sharing information. The whole atmosphere focuses on supporting a caring environment, one that propels people to hire levels of creativity. As a result, a large number of companies are turning to this type of working environment.

So if you are a business looking for the kind of high-quality coworking space that you deserve, please don’t hesitate to contact us today. We can provide you with an interesting and diverse workplace at a fair and reasonable price.

Not a Big Fan of the Open Office Space Design? Collaboration is Still Possible!

There is a clear move toward the open office space design. Facebook has done it; so have other heavy hitters in the high-tech environment. Although the idea of collaboration has been the driving force behind this movement, some business owners have a difficult time giving up privacy to achieve teamwork. Now, they can have their cake and eat it, too.

When Needs for Community and Privacy Collide

There is no doubt that an open office environment encourages collaboration not just between pre-defined work groups but also between different teams. But for the employee who does her or his best work in the confines of an office without the loud din of the communal work space, this environment can be a detriment. This problem becomes particularly evident when you have employees of various age groups on staff. Millennials inevitably do better with the open office concept than Baby Boomers.

Enabling Impromptu Community Work in the Privacy of an Office

Is it possible to find a happy medium between a worker’s need for privacy and the contemporary trend toward a collaborative environment? Yes, it is.

Doors. Keep the office concept intact but ensure that doors remain open. In fact, some companies have begun removing doors altogether.
Snack lounge. An unused office becomes a snack parlor with beanbag chairs, sofas, a water cooler and plenty of healthy snacks. Not the employee lunchroom, it is a place where folks can come for impromptu meetings.
Goal setting. The weekly or monthly team meeting is not an optional exercise. Use it to define the goals that your workers should strive to meet. How they do so is up to them.

When you need to find your next office space that allows for the mixed collaborative and private work space design, contact our experts to help you find just what you are looking for.

How a Virtual Office Tour Can Attract Great Employees

Are you having a hard time finding employees who are worth your time? Then consider investing in a virtual office tour. These tours provide you with a great recruitment tool that will attract a wide range of potential employees. Here are just a few ways they will impress your potential workers quickly and efficiently.

Provides An Inside Look At Your Business

Without a good look at your workplace, many employees may be a little wary about joining up with your team. An accurate and interactive 3D tour lets them see exactly what you have to offer and provides them with a useful insight. In this way, they can be comfortable coming to your business knowing that they fit in with the environment.

Creates An Engaging Website Tool

When potential employees are searching out your company, a virtual tour is likely to grab their eyes and pull them into your site. After taking the tour, they are more likely to look through the rest of your website. This will give them a better feel for your services and whether or not they will contribute in a positive and constructive way.

Makes You Look More Professional

Another great positive of virtual office tours is that they create a more professional look for your website. When your website is well-designed and interactive, you are more likely to not only impress potential employees, but customers as well. A poorly updated or out-of-date website is more likely to draw derision from them, decreasing your chance of obtaining great employees.

So if you think a virtual office tour is a great idea for your business, you can find out more as our sister site TrueView360s or contact us today to learn more about how you can implement one on your website. We will walk you through the design process, showcase a working model, and give you an estimate on a fully usable tour. Best of all, tehy are affordable. Virtual Office Tours start at only $399.00.

An example of virtual office tour.

To see in full screen, Click Here

Coworking office spaces: Passing fancy or growing phenom?

Are coworking office spaces just a trend or are they here to stay? That was a question posed by editorialist Robert Trigaux in a recent piece published by The Tampa Bay Times. Tampa Bay is, like many places across the nation and the world, seeing a growing number of coworking offices, pushed by the last economic downturn and what he described as a “gig economy” — that is, people less interested in being part of a large corporation and more interested in being an entrepreneur.

The coworking office spaces are on the rise thanks to millennial workers thinking out of the box, baby boomers wanting to engage in a new kind of work, and startups looking to share their space with people who have a similar entrepreneurial vision. The environments of these spaces may vary widely, Trigaux writes, but good ones feature 24/7 access, month-to-month commitments, amenities, and the opportunity and culture that comes with people sharing a space. It also offers mobility for those who need an office some of the time, but not so much other times. The typical coworker spends less than twenty hours a week in his or her space, he states.

While some feel that coworking office spaces will never replace the traditional 9-5 office setting, Trigaux sees coworking arrangements — which feature less turnover rate than gyms — as a place that is inspiring workers to move toward more innovation. And innovation is always a good thing.

Are you looking for an ideal coworking space, or are you interested in providing one to others? Let us lend you our knowledge and expertise in the matter at no cost to you! Contact us today for more information.

The Benefits a Coworking Office Space Has on Your Personal Life

As a freelancer or entrepreneur of some kind, you are by now acutely aware of the benefits of a creative work space that is neither your home nor a sterile, cubicle office environment. These types of spaces offer you the chance to work flexibly, network, and have a place to “go to work” without infringing on your work process or creativity. However, coworking office space goes beyond professional benefits. They also benefit your personal life in a number of ways and in this post will look at two powerful ways they do that.

A Better Work/Life Balance: The lines of professional and personal hours are blurred when you work for yourself and set up a home office. It becomes very difficult to pull yourself away from your work when you could easily just slink onto the sofa and plug in a couple more hours. But this starts to leak into your personal life very quickly to the point where you might find yourself not having a personal life anymore. Having a coworking office space is a way for you to set parameters for yourself that allow you to go to work at a set hour and leave your office by a specific time.
Human Connection: Talk to any freelancer and they’ll tell you all about the isolation they often experience when they lock themselves up at home to work or frequent a new coffee shop every few days. It’s hard to network and make connections as a freelancer, but a coworking office space makes it exponentially easier to do so. You’ll find yourself enjoying a higher quality, more rewarding work life when you are working around other people.

Looking for more reasons to rent a coworking office space? We can help find just the right one for you. Contact us today!

Have a look around our virtual tour of Level Office Coworking space in Pioneer Square, Seattle, WA.

To see it full screen, Click Here

Always Check Out Online Virtual Tours of Office Space

Virtual tours are very popular with those looking for an apartment, home or want to check out a restaurant’s ambiance. They are also beginning to show up for those who are seeking office space. Because of this, Online Virtual Tours of Office Space are being offered more often than ever before, especially on OfficeFinder. What makes them such big hits? Here are a few of the key reasons:

Online Virtual Tours of Office Space Are Convenient

Live tours of office space require appointments, and it can be hard to get something scheduled at a time you find beneficial. Even when this isn’t the case, you still have to spend hours commuting to and from prospective locations and then spend quite a bit of time taking the live tour itself. If you don’t want to spend all of that time just seeing if you’re interested in a specific office, you’ll love virtual tours.

With virtual tours, there is no travel time and no need for any appointments. All you need to do is go to our site and navigate to the tour page. From there, you’ll be able to pull up a tour that makes you feel like you’re standing right in your prospective new office. You’ll be able to move in all directions, look all around, and even look up and down to get the full effect. Even better, you’ll be able to stop and check out the areas you personally find interesting instead of being quickly rushed to whichever area an agent thinks would be most compelling.

There’s No Sales Pitch During an Online Virtual Tour of Office Space

Thanks to this aspect, you’ll be able to fully consider all of the office’s benefits and drawbacks. While it may take longer for the company to get you to sign, it also means that you’re more likely to be satisfied when you do decide on a space.

You Can Still Get a Live Tour

Most people take live tours of their chosen space before they actually sign on. This ensures that nothing has been missed. Online Virtual Tours are a great way to shortlist potential properties. Visiting in person will allow you to talk to an agent and have all of your questions answered when you’re fully ready to ask them.

Take An Online Virtual Tour of Office Space

This one is of the Regus Business Center in Columbia Center in Downtown Seattle: