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— Office Properties Quarterly — October 2015
Offer your clients
office space
that grows
with them.
Final Thoughts
M
oving is one of life’s most
stressful events. There may
be many upsides to your
client’s new space, but the
moving process itself will
disrupt employees’ established rou-
tines, and this disruption inevitably
leads to stress and a loss of produc-
tivity. Humans are wired to resist the
unknown but, at the same time, com-
panies must continuously adapt and
change in order to thrive.
One method office brokers can
suggest their clients use to help
everyone get on board more quickly
is change management. The chances
for successful workplace change
are improved when an organiza-
tion identifies and communicates to
employees why the change is needed
and has an intelligent answer when
asked, “What’s in it for me?”
Many workplace change initiatives
fall short due a lack of a clear vision,
strategy or commitment. Change
communication is critical during any
transition period because employ-
ees desire continuity. A thoughtful
change commu-
nication plan and
team can help pro-
vide just that.
During a change,
people usually lose
something. Urge
your client to be
upfront about the
losses and, when
possible, find ways
to make up for
those losses. People
who have a clear
expectation of
what’s coming and
who are allowed
to participate are more likely to trust
the process.
Encourage your client to outline
what employees stand to gain – this
might include a new office, furniture
that offers better ergonomic support,
new synergies created by working
near a different group, the chance
to telecommute or work in different
spaces in the building, or the pride
that comes from a sharper image in
the marketplace and community.
Establishing a change management
core team also helps build internal
support and trust – another element
crucial to a stress-free move. This
team can convey information to all
employees and bring in vital feed-
back. The team should spell out the
changes that will be made, the rea-
sons for making the changes and the
ways in which the changes are linked
to the company’s overall business
strategy and goals. Employees also
need to understand the individual
benefits. Employ face-to-face com-
munication early in the process. Use
as many and as varied communica-
tion methods as possible, including
email, newsletters, an intranet site,
social media, lunch-and-learns or
happy hours.
Even a well-designed, carefully
laid out, state-of-the-art new facility
doesn’t guarantee that people will
use the space in the way intended,
so education and modeling new
behaviors is important. Resist the
urge to start making things happen
and instead take time to plan and get
leadership support.
You can help by outlining the intent
of the new space and how to use it.
Suggest that your clients create a list
of workplace protocols. You also can
design a welcome kit to offer to your
clients that employees will find wait-
ing for them on their first day in the
new space with a guide to local cof-
fee shops and restaurants, instruc-
tions on how to use their new work
chairs, information about amenities
in the space and more.
After nearly 30 years in Lower
Downtown, Workplace Resource
moved its office, showroom and
warehouse space to a new facility
in Stapleton this year. Having had a
highly successful relocation experi-
ence over the course of the past
year helps us empathize with our
clients and more thoroughly under-
stand their needs. The new Central
Park space in Stapleton allows us
to work together in a collabora-
tive, modern and forward-thinking
environment.
s
Lauren Redlich
New business
developer,
Workplace
Resources of
Colorado, Denver
and retain the best talent. In the
right office environments, employ-
ers’ cost-per-employee benchmarks
can be thought of as an investment
as opposed to an expense.
Culture is increasingly important
to employers, so much so that it
has created a truly defined differ-
ence in an office building’s abil-
ity to attract and retain tenants.
Forward-thinking building owners
understand this concept of tenant
investment and continue to capital-
ize on their buildings’ tenancy with
culture improvements, such as com-
mon area upgrades, above-market
tenant improvement packages, well-
ness initiatives and ongoing tenant
appreciation events. At the core of
this strategy’s success is having the
right owner for the task and the
right property management firm to
execute on these goals and initia-
tives.
Navigating the Colorado Springs
market requires a thorough under-
standing of its fundamentals and
its opportunities to create arbitrage
situations with the correct tools at
hand. Value continues to be realized
by both owners and tenants that
can creatively execute their strat-
egy to leverage their real estate. We
remain optimistic and bullish on the
future of Colorado Springs and pre-
dict that 2015 will come to comple-
tion with lower vacancy rates and
slightly higher rental rates.
s
Springs
