FAQs: What to look for in an office when moving to a mix of WFH

For many businesses, productivity wasn’t negatively impacted during Covid by working from home (WFH). Your team may have liked the increased flexibility of working from home, but you’ll likely need to have a space to spend time together, collaborate and get the much needed physical and social interaction.

We are seeing lots of businesses scoping out how a mix of WFH with a smaller office space could work for them and several consistent themes are coming through.

In short – shared workspaces are the most effective way to consolidate office space.
Not only do you get the office, you get the additional amenities that can be tricky to find in smaller offices i.e. frontage and location, end of trip, meeting rooms and large board rooms. Shared workspaces are also a great option for changing ways of working as short flexible terms mean your business isn’t stuck with something if it doesn’t work and you can often customise your needs perfectly to your working style.

How is it going to impact team culture?

Changing ways of working can, and likely will impact your team’s culture. Generator is known for culture and community so think of us as a helping hand in this transition. Early on we will work to understand your values and priorities and our team can support what you are trying to achieve for the culture of your business.

Businesses can take as much or as little of the Generator community as they want. We know that a perfect blend of community and culture are what makes an epic shared workspace tick - so smaller teams love the programme of events and community activations that we deliver and build strong relationships with fellow members. For larger businesses, we can work with your business to tailor specific events to take the hassle away from it being something you have to think about.

What if we want everyone to come in at once or we don’t have enough desks some days?

We will work with you to understand how many people in your business and how many people are likely to be in on which days and tailor a solution that works best, acknowledging that this is likely to evolve.

It might be you have a business of 20 people but only want 10 desks as you are rostering working from home. If on the odd occasion more than 10 people need to be in, we can look at a whole range of options, from corporate and hotdesk memberships to booking out meeting rooms or event spaces so you can all get together.

Will we have enough meeting rooms?

That’s a yes! A real benefit of joining Generator versus downsizing to a smaller office is you don’t need to compromise on the amenities, particularly meeting rooms.

We have plenty - all equipped with BYOD video conferencing, with onsite technical assistance. Alongside meeting rooms we have lots of breakout spaces, quiet nooks and lounge areas for informal chats or quiet work.

We also have plenty of board rooms and event spaces, so not only are your team catch-ups covered but so are your larger, more formal meetings without having to leave your office or deal with booking a venue.

What if we find this mix of WFH/ some days in the office doesn’t work?

Any change is daunting – but it's more daunting if you are committing to the unknown for a long time! Fortunately, our terms are generally 12 months and within that time our community team will be engaged with you, to ensure that the space and the membership you have is working for you. We are flexible and will work with businesses to scale up or down if they need.

Generator is owned by Precinct Properties, the largest owner of premium inner-city business space in Auckland and Wellington, so if we can’t find the right space for you at Generator, chances are we can with Precinct.

How will our office showcase our brand?

We get this question a lot, and it can be a big change if you are coming from a stand-alone building. The Generator brand really takes a back seat when you are at any of our sites, so it feels like a blank canvas for businesses that come into them. Within many of the private offices there is opportunity to showcase your brand but for the most part we are brand agnostic.

I’m concerned about access and security for our business?

We have a robust security system and will work with your business, regardless of the size of team and membership, to provide you confidence in the system. All doors on access control and we can monitor who has access to private offices and co-working areas.

Does Generator have the IT infrastructure we need?

Generator provides New Zealand’s best in class co-working internet experience. Our spaces come equipped with the fastest, most diverse, most cloud connected network available, included with every desk at no additional cost – sure to support even the most grunty user and way better than standard home internet that some small businesses operator off! We’ve also engineered-in best practice security for your peace of mind.

Will this save our business money?

We understand that many businesses that are looking to reduce their physical footprint are doing it as a cost saving measure - but there are a number of elements to consider:

• There are no-fit out costs, so you avoid the capital outlay and additional liability - the furniture is all provided as is the cabling and internet infrastructure.
• Generator take care of most things - reception and basic admin services, tech quality and support, cleaning and consumables, printer leasing and power – and its all wrapped up in one invoice.
• You get lots of amenities in the space that don’t always come with a smaller office – meeting rooms and boardrooms, end of trip facilities, access to lounge space, a high level of tech.
• You are paying for the flexibility of not being tied into a long-term lease in the best locations in the CBD and with a world class fitout to boot.
• When all these factors are considered it makes the cost of shared space comparable and in lots of cases, cheaper, to that of a traditional lease. On top of this are the softer measures such as networking opportunities, increased ability to attract and retain talent and collaborations with like-minded businesses.

Get in touch with the Generator team if you are keen to see some of our spaces and how they could work for your business.