{"id":200,"date":"2013-11-21T08:00:59","date_gmt":"2013-11-21T16:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.officefinder.com\/officeblog\/?p=200"},"modified":"2016-04-13T11:44:11","modified_gmt":"2016-04-13T18:44:11","slug":"office-workplace-changing-dont-get-left-behind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.officefinder.com\/officeblog\/office-workplace-changing-dont-get-left-behind\/","title":{"rendered":"The Office Workplace is Changing. Don’t Get Left Behind"},"content":{"rendered":"

Changes in the work patterns that today\u2019s workforce<\/em> employs to excel are evolving at an amazing pace and leading to the creation of agile workplaces. It is an employee driven phenomenon, courtesy of the new generation of knowledge workers, that can benefit all generations in the workforce.<\/p>\n

It seems that there is one article or another telling us how this company or that company cut the amount of office space they need by 50% and became more productive and profitable. However, many office workplaces are adjusting at a slow pace or not at all. Unless employers realize and adapt to these changes, their businesses will fall behind the curve, losing the cream of the crop employees; resulting in lower profits.<\/p>\n

Focusing on reducing square footage in leased office space is one tactic, but should not be the primary goal of adapting to the new workforce work patterns. Increasing productivity and profit should be primary goal. With the changes in work patterns, the result is usually a reduction in office space. It is a byproduct of the improving productivity and profit and also in attracting and retaining the best and the brightest of the new generation of knowledge workers.<\/p>\n

Changing Work Environments<\/strong><\/p>\n

Much work is performed today in places such as airports, home, coffee shops, in vehicles stopped along the way to the next meeting, and a plethora of other third-party workspaces.<\/p>\n

Businesses are adjusting by implementing agile workplace technologies such as office hoteling to reserve office space, conference rooms, equipment and services as needed for employees, rather than maintaining a desk space for each employee. This is one step toward adapting to the changing work patterns of today, but alone, it is not enough. Flexibility is critical because today\u2019s empowered teams form and evolve as needed, often without the outdated management direction.<\/p>\n

Work Pattern Changes Reduce Costs<\/strong><\/p>\n

Management empowering employees in how and where they accomplish productive tasks is critical. The acceptance of mobility can lead to reduced costs, not just in office space square footage, but in reduction of reduced other occupancy costs such as furniture, communications, tenant improvements and the like.\u00a0 Near-shoring, meaning choosing the least costly means to accomplish tasks, can save by adding contract employees or freelance subject matter experts to be employed as needed. This can cover work without the overhead of increased permanent staff. This doesn\u2019t mean that you have to go offshore and reduce jobs in a specific country, you can find near-shore staff locally or across the US — or even by moving a task to a lower cost position in your own organization.<\/p>\n

Work Pattern Adjustments Increase Productivity<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a study by TomorrowLab, four factors were identified that\u00a0 can\u00a0 significantly improve workforce productivity and create a more effective virtual team. These factors are:<\/p>\n