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Why Build a Satellite Office in a Coworking Space?

Setting up a satellite office is a major decision; there are many aspects to consider. With the rise of coworking spaces, these buildings may be the perfect location for you. Read on.

 

Not only is it often a costly one, but creating a satellite office can require:

 

  • A rigorous hiring process
  • The creation and transportation of a crew of employees to the new location
  • The legwork of scouting for a good location
  • Beginning negotiations on a lease, and getting started on stocking up on all the necessities of a basic office

 

Sometimes, the need to be present in a specific state or area is transient rather than permanent, making new offices far too expensive to justify (while still requiring a physical presence, often through frequent back-and-forth transport across state lines).

 

What is a Satellite Office?

A satellite office is an office located in a different location than the company’s main corporate location. They are used for many different reasons including:

 

  • Expanding into new markets
  • Opening a new branch
  • To increase sales across many locations
  • To benefit employees in terms of locations offered, commute, etc
  • Create more local presence

 

While we live in a time of telecommunication and an increased reliance on outsourcing and cooperation between large companies and freelance contractors, it’s important not to understate the value of physical presence.

 

Satellite offices are necessary for expanding companies, especially when they choose to double or triple their operation by expanding to a new and underserved market. Yet for most startups and SMEs, the cost of doing so is simply prohibitive. This cuts into the potential of many companies, who feel constantly outdone by the better-funded competition.

 

But the ability to move into pre-made and managed flexible office spaces eliminates many of these problems. Coworking spaces have grown rapidly in the past few years, expanding across major cities all over the globe, giving smaller companies the chance to set up a physical presence across state lines and national borders in ways previously unimaginable, at a far lower cost.

 

There are a variety of reasons to start a building satellite office in coworking spaces:

 

1. It’s Much More Cost-Effective

Setting up a satellite office can be prohibitively expensive and time-consuming, yet necessary for many growing businesses wishing to take advantage of potential markets, partnerships, and opportunities only afforded to those physically present within certain locations across the country – or across the world.

 

Satellite offices are still easier than planning a mass migration – which is often a logistic nightmare – but they require the acquisition of an office, and the obligatory setup that follows.

 

Shared office buildings for a satellite office are far less expensive, and allow companies to not only reduce costs, but cut entire items off their list of potential costs, from cleaning services to utility costs, the acquisition and installation of new gear, and the upfront cost of a year-long lease.

 

2. Better Productivity for Satellite Office Workers

Studies and polls show that coworking spaces are boons for productivity, in comparison to traditional office spaces.

 

The lax environment, melded work culture, availability of amenities, and focus on providing a welcoming atmosphere. This is combined with the perks of interacting with workers from different industries focused on different projects. In turn, this helps in providing a further benefit to worker creativity, leading to better results.

 

Shared spaces allow companies (and satellite workers) to approach work in a new way – instead of enforcing their own office culture, the workers set the pace among themselves.

 

They become comfortable with their environment, which in turn helps them perform better.

 

 

3. A Chance at Cooperation

Having workers from different companies working under one roof might, in the eyes of some, further a more competitive and hostile environment – but the opposite has been true.

 

Regardless of what they’re working on or who they’re working for – and plenty happen to work for themselves – many who choose to come to coworking spaces to work tend to be more open to cooperation and socializing.

 

They enjoy broadening their horizons and sharing ideas in a way that is productive for everybody involved.

 

Fostering connections between people is something companies have learned not only to appreciate, but to take advantage of. All companies in these spaces enable the cooperation of workers through:

 

  • Scheduled social events
  • Networking events
  • Training programs, and more

 

And all this has born fruit in the form of better results for the companies involved.

 

4. Coworking is a Growing Phenomenon

The numbers speak for themselves. Previously centralized in developed countries – particularly the US – coworking is becoming a global phenomenon.

 

By 2022, up to five million estimated workers will be working in coworking offices.

 

As the lines between life and work further blur, and as workers seek ways to minimize burnout, our idea of the workspace is constantly in flux.

 

It is undergoing rapid shifts as companies scramble to find ways to address the pressing questions brought about by:

 

  • Digitalization
  • Continuous urban sprawl
  • High real estate costs
  • Automation

 

With all that in mind, a fleeting look into a potential future grant us a vision of the world with a new way of thinking surrounding how and why we work, especially when it comes to the smaller, locally-based satellite office.

 

As more and more industries and jobs are using automation, companies, and ventures will go out of their way to either find:

 

  1. Workers who are willing to put their health and safety on the line for meager pay,
  2. Or, workers who put the time and effort into honing their individual abilities to come up with smarter and more efficient ways to contribute to their respective employers and partners.

 

It’s not just a matter of putting in the hours or devoting yourself to the leg work. You can’t clock in and expect to do well. There will be days when you’re feeling unproductive, and the need to recharge your ideas becomes critical.

 

Conclusion

Coworking offices are a prototype of this new working environment, where professionals gather to share ideas, inspire one another, create a welcoming and personable environment that remains conducive to productivity and creativity. Take advantage of this trend for your satellite office, it is not just a smart business move, but an eventuality.

 

The work culture of tomorrow has to emphasize creativity and adaptability, and flexible office spaces maximize both by bringing people together from various backgrounds to work on a variety of projects and potentially meld ideas in ways previously unexplored. There’s no way to know what exactly the future has in store for us, but coworking is a definite part of it.

 


Read More:

What to Consider When Choosing Your New Office Space

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Office Space

6 Benefits of Utilizing a Flexible Workspace This Year

Maybe you’ve heard how popular utilizing a flexible workspace is getting. That said, this could be a solution or an enhancement for your business this new year! Read below.

 

While the pandemic is entering its final stages, its impact is sure to be felt for years. This includes the changes it has forced in the workplace. More workers than ever are looking to continue working from home. But others would like to blend the benefits of remote work with the productive and social environments of the office.

 

Meanwhile, diversification and a growing commercial real estate market, as well as a looming recession, mean cheaper and more flexible office spaces. In addition, a generation of businesses that aren’t keen on long-term leases and crowded headquarters.

 

Regardless of whether you’re a freelancer, a solopreneur, or the team manager for a larger corporation, there are multiple reasons to invest in flexible workspaces this year and consider a coworking space over the more traditional satellite office or office space.

 

Let’s cover some of the more significant benefits of flexible workspaces this year.

 

1. More Availability and Diversity Than Ever

 

Despite a rough year for everyone involved, 2020 still provided plenty of opportunities for the flexible workspace, coworking, and commercial real estate market. Companies looked for ways to keep their remote employees in productive spaces without violating social distancing rules and putting their employees at risk.

 

For businesses employing multiple employees with a long commute, flexible workspaces provided a safe alternative to working from home.

 

Others opted to implement a “work from anywhere” strategy, either making flexible workspaces a key part of a larger hub-and-scope system or giving employees the freedom to choose where they wanted to work from whenever the main office had reached maximum allowed capacity.

 

When supply outstrips demand, prices drop. And with greater availability comes a more diversified selection of flexible workspaces. In addition, a lower share of workspaces owned by larger, more dominating companies (meaning greater competition).

 

These are all good things for companies looking for workspaces that provide greater benefits or cater more specifically to their needs, or individuals seeking a particular workspace to suit their preferences and help keep them productive in the new year.

 

2. A Premium on Niche and Flexible Usage

 

Flexible workspaces can cater to businesses looking for specific benefits, including industry-specific offerings (catering to law firms, or businesses in the healthcare branch, or cannabis startups, or new music producers, etc.) or location-specific benefits – such as access to a large outdoor space for thinking and collaborating in the fresh air.

 

By leaning heavily into niches this year, individual flexible workspaces can set themselves apart from one another. In turn, entrepreneurs and businesses won’t need to struggle to find a space that caters to them.

 

3. The Role of Flexible Workspaces for Remote Employees

 

Working from home isn’t a viable solution for everyone. Some employees struggle to concentrate on work due to at-home distractions, while others struggle with the isolation that comes from working alone at home.

 

Some report feeling distanced from the company culture, as a lot of the day-to-day between workers is lost in the transition towards a remote workstyle.

 

Then there are the other issues that come from working from home, from the potentially unreliable internet access to the lack of usable workspace, or the inevitable blending of family and work lives. This leading to an increased risk of burnout as the necessary separation between the private and the professional slowly ceases to exist.

 

Flexible workspaces offer an alternative for these workers to continue to be productive and work in an environment with others, without causing the main office to exceed its capacity. Especially if these shared, flexible workspaces are relatively close to home.

 

4. Flexible Workspaces Prioritize Safety and Hygiene

 

With the onset of the pandemic, businesses were urged to massively reduce customer-facing contact and maintain a safe distance between employee workstations, as well as employ more rigorous hygiene protocols to minimize the risk of transmitting the virus at work, from mask-wearing to roving cleaning crews and more.

 

Flexible workspaces can further serve as safe working environments by offering isolated spaces and private offices rather than an open floor plan, enabling remote collaboration within the office itself, while keeping individuals or small groups safe from one another.

 

5. Flexible Workspaces Facilitate Face-to-Face Onboarding

 

A sense of community is critical for recovery – whether for an individual, a company, or a country. While we can come together remotely, it’s especially important for a business to show a more human side when welcoming a new person into its ranks.

 

To this extent, flexible workspaces provide the perfect opportunity to onboard new hires, by providing a short-term space to integrate a new hire into the company and ease them into the remote working process, without necessarily expanding office space.

 

This way, brand new hires feel a greater connection to the company and experience the sense of being wholeheartedly welcomed, and can continue to work from home (or from the same flexible workspace) after the onboarding process is complete.

 

6. Flexible Workspaces Provide a Risk-Averse Office Space for Larger Companies

 

Flexible workspaces remain a great option for businesses who need a low-commitment option they can lease for the foreseeable future. They won’t need to worry about the considerable financial obligation a traditional office space would bring.

 

As a recession looms before us, many companies are looking at tightening the belt and figuring out how they might be able to cut costs and continue operating at full capacity.

 

Opting for more flexible leases would give them the ability to lean out when necessary and seek out more space for a growing company workforce when the opportunity presents itself.

 

Businesses who are doing well can look at flexible workspaces as a better option for safe and simple expansion when their main offices aren’t enough. They can be especially useful for companies looking to expand into other cities or regions.

 

Instead of retrofitting older office space to adhere to COVID-19 measures, companies can leverage safe and secure flexible workspaces to act as satellite offices for their new operations away from headquarters, at little to no risk.

 

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