By Devin Sizemore
Commercial space in Reno is becoming very limited and recent reports don’t show signs of things getting better. This has started to push the commercial prices up making it harder for start-ups to afford office space, small businesses to keep office space and larger businesses to find additional space. Due to the limited space, many businesses are looking for alternative office spaces—in comes co-working and other flexible office space setups.
The following are six major reasons why a flexible office environment is beneficial.
- Flexibility
The first is the most transparent—you get flexibility. In a tiered office environment, you have the ability to start out with a drop-in space and scale up to a private office or multiple offices depending on your needs. This flexibility within one building allows you to grow without the troubles of having to change addresses. In addition, if you are a larger business you can use a flexible office space as overflow and/or a second address making your company look larger and providing the backend capacity to grow your team without having to pay to move locations.
- Business Address and Space
You get a professional business address and a space to meet with your team and/or current and potential clients. If you are a home-based business, this is a bonus. If you have a mailbox located somewhere that only provides mail services it can be misleading to your customers. In addition, if you have ever tried to play the coffee shop meeting game, you know you are rolling the dice every time you book a meeting. Is there going to be room to meet? Is it going to be too loud? Is there going to be parking?
- Community
A big benefit of flexible office space is the ability to be around other business owners and professionals. If you are working from home or a private office somewhere you are on an island. This can create loneliness and lack of motivation. By working around others, you are constantly surrounded by a supportive and creative community. When you get stuck there is nothing better than being able to tap into the people around you. You would be surprised how often someone working in the same environment has dealt with the same issue and can save you time and money.
- Collaboration
The goal of any business is to grow revenue, which means you need to be in front of more people. By being in an environment that is filled with a hundred plus business professionals from all industries and sizes of businesses you are constantly working in a customer-rich and partner-rich environment. This means that your sales activity for the day may consist of simply showing up to work. To maximize this, it is a great idea to find reasons to get up from your desk and say hi to a few people. You never know where your next lead might come from.
- Maximize Your Investment
Another great benefit of flexible office space are the amenities. For your monthly membership, you usually gain access to amenities that you wouldn’t otherwise have if you had your own office. These amenities may include conference rooms, event space, gym, better parking and the list goes on. This means that every dollar you spend will usually get you a better return.
- Simplicity
Lastly, a flexible office environment provides simplicity. Usually, structured on a membership basis you don’t have to worry about sorting through the complexities of a commercial lease, setting up utilities, internet, coffee and water service, insurance or anything else. Instead, you show up, signup and setup.
If you are not happy with your current office setup we recommend you consider flexible office space. With companies like Microsoft leveraging flexible office spaces across the nation, there is no company too small or too big to benefit from a flexible office environment.
