SPOTLIGHT ONPROFESSIONALSERVICES

CBRE Workplace, 2018

INTRODUCTION

In the recent ‘Flexible Revolution’ and ‘European Occupier Survey’ research reports, CBRE looked at the increase in the use of flexible co-working spaces, key factors driving decision making, and how the trend might affect, and be adopted by, corporate occupiers. CBRE Workplace’s ‘Rise of the Workplace Consumer’ research puts the spotlight on professional services, gathering insights from professional, middle management and executive survey responders and interviewees.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

A key consideration in embracing co-working space is ensuring employees are on board and both employees and business objectives will benefit. Do staff want to work away from the office? In the case of our professional services responders, some of the key themes were the desire to have attractive, conveniently located and well-designed spaces in which to conduct a range of work tasks.

Responders were open to working in these spaces regularly – as a back up to their main office, or for occasional meetings and collaboration, but identified reduced visibility of work output as a concern.

Where the goal of co-working space is to cater to the exact requirements of a business and its end users, could professional services firms ever truly take advantage of this new way of working?

Figure 1: End user expectations

Source: ‘Rise of the Workplace Consumer’ UK survey. CBRE Workplace

Expect access to on-demand workspace in the future

59%

Say they would use it 1-5 days per week

70%

See it as a back-up to the main office

29%

Think it will be commonplace in next 10 years, with half

saying 0-5 years

59%

Would use it as a place to meet clients and colleagues

36%

© CBRE Limited, 2018

2The Rise of the Workplace Consumer – Spotlight on Professional Services

PERSPECTIVES

Source: ‘Rise of the Workplace Consumer’ UK survey. CBRE Workplace

MIDDLE MANAGERS

The middle managers surveyed currently spend 73% of their time in the main office. Over half (56%) expect to be using co-working space in the next 10 years, with a further 29% expecting the timeframe to be up to 15 years.

Reflecting the views of the professional responders, they feel strongly that location, choice (91%) and well-designed attractive spaces are the most important factors for both themselves and the wider business. They also cite tech support, upkeep of facilities and mobile apps to simplify engagement and access in the office space as the paramount services required to support co-working.

34% see reduced career prospects from lack of exposure in the business as a key risk factor, with 37% seeing significant risk to fewer interactions with other employees. Their main concern about risk to the wider business is reduced employee engagement – with 9% considering it to be very significant. Both executives and middle managers see financial gains and attracting talent as big benefits for the business.

91%Feel that choice of

space for different work activities is beneficial

EXECUTIVES

75% of executives expect to use co-working space in the future. They currently spend 58% of their time at the main office and the remainder predominantly working at client sites or from home. 84% expect to use co-working space 1 to 5 days per week as a back up office, to meet clients and for meetings and collaboration.

94% of responders see choosing a space based on the work activity as beneficial or very beneficial and 88% see strategic benefit in locating on-demand space near to clients and competition. They also see clear financial gains for the business. 77% say flexible workspace would be beneficial for working with partner organisations.

They cite enabling effective remote working and employee engagement as the main challenges to the business and agree with middle management that employee engagement and lack of interaction between employees poses significant risk 18% consider the risk of reduced employee engagement to be very significant. They are also very concerned about leaks of intellectual property (53% see significant risk).

KEY CONCERNS

Enabling effective remote working and lack of interaction between employees

PROFESSIONALS

60% of professional responders expect to be using co-working space within the next 10 years and 78% say they would use it at least once a week. Over half would see it purely as a back-up to the main office or for collaboration and occasional meetings, but 19% see it as a potential main place of work. 82% of 18-35 year old responders see it as a differentiator for attracting new talent to the business.

Location and attractive workspace were identified as the most important features, closely followed by the range of facilities to do either focussed work or formal meetings. Choice and convenience of the co-working space are high on the list of perceived benefits, consequently the tech support available and upkeep of facilities is important. They see environmental benefits to sharing resources, significant financial gains for the wider business and the benefit of increased chances for external collaborations.

Their main concerns are around reduced visibility of work output and fewer interactions with other employees. They see enabling remote working as the biggest challenge to the business, followed by maintaining employee engagement.

68% Of professional responders time currently spent in main office

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3The Rise of the Workplace Consumer – Spotlight on Professional Services

DRIVERS AND BLOCKERS

Source: ‘Rise of the Workplace Consumer’ UK research. CBRE Workplace

Ability to choose a space suitable for the work

activity

Loss of corporate belonging/identity and employee engagement

Attractive, well-designed workplaces in more

locations

Potential leaks in intellectual property

Increased opportunity for external collaboration

Fewer interactions with employees of same

business and reduced career prospects

DRIVERS

BLOCKERS

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4The Rise of the Workplace Consumer – Spotlight on Professional Services

KEY CONSIDERATIONS

Aligning workplace strategy and culture with business and personal goals to reassure employees.

A range of activity based working environments in key locations that appeal to all levels will encourage use of co-working space.

Use of mobile apps and tech could enable greater connectivity for employees and wayfinding in co-working spaces.

Reduced career prospects due to lower visibility of work output and exposure in the business

Choice and convenience is key

Loss of employee engagement and fewer interactions with other employees is a big concern

Source: ‘Rise of the Workplace Consumer’ UK survey. CBRE Workplace

© CBRE Limited, 2018

5The Rise of the Workplace Consumer – Spotlight on Professional Services

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the professional services sector is very open to adopting co-working space as part of business as usual. All levels of employees see benefits of this way of working and expect it to be a continuing trend in coming years.

Factors affecting the speed and spread of adoption include navigating the impact on corporate identity and employee engagement, the level of support and tech needed for facilities and due to the nature of the business, protecting data and intellectual property.

CBRE DISCLAIMER 2018

CBRE Limited confirms that information contained herein, including projections, has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. While we do not doubt their accuracy, we have not verified them and make no guarantee, warranty or representation about them. It is your responsibility to confirm independently their accuracy and completeness. This information is presented exclusively for use by CBRE clients and professionals and all rights to the material are reserved and cannot be reproduced without prior written permission of the CBRE Global Chief Economist.

To learn more about CBRE Research, or to access additional research reports, please visit the Global Research Gateway at: cbre.com/researchgateway

ABOUT CBRE GROUP, INC.

CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Los Angeles, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm (based on 2016 revenue). The company has more than 75,000 employees (excluding affiliates), and serves real estate investors and occupiers through approximately 450 offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide. CBRE offers a broad range of integrated services, including facilities, transaction and project management; property management; investment management; appraisal and valuation; property leasing; strategic consulting; property sales; mortgage services and development services. Please visit our website at cbre.com.

“ Flex just looks better, feels better, provides a hub and sense of community. The product is just better. The brand is better.”

Source: Flexible Revolution, CBRE Research. Click here for more

Short term space solutions and more flexible leasing terms are seen as the main reasons for using shared space, rather than being at the forefront of embracing wider cultural/innovation drivers.

Brand image (42%) is a more important building selection factor for this sector than for any of the others surveyed.

Enhance wellness offerings (54%) are highly sought in this sector.

Organisational flexibility and agility are seen as the main drivers of Workplace Strategy (perhaps recognising that there is some catching-up to do).

WHAT OUR CLIENTS ARE SAYING

Source: European Occupier Survey 2018. CBRE Research. Click here for more

© CBRE Limited, 2018