If a financial expert takes a look at the profit and loss account of service companies or agencies, the picture is always the same. The cost type “rent” is one of the largest, along with personnel costs. Why? Because premises are indispensable for the creation of virtual products. The more the company grows, the more employees need to be accommodated. But there are a few good ways to make real savings in this area. We show you how to drastically reduce your rent and office costs per employee.
Open space concept
Provide workstations for employees. But make sure that the desks are used flexibly and that no one chooses regular seats. Give them a notebook which they can lock in their locker in the evening. This way they remain spatially flexible and will do their job from any table.
The advantage of this solution is that you can fit many more people on fewer desks. Research shows that an office with 100 seats is usually only used to 75%-80% capacity. The reason for this is that employees are always ill, on a business trip, on holiday or on parental leave. An open-plan concept can therefore save about 20%-25% of the space. This should be reflected in the rental costs.
In principle, the secret is: open-plan offices. Any wall that can be ripped out without jeopardising stability should go. With every free square metre, you create space that can be used productively later. With such cost reduction, you massively advance competitiveness.
The right networking
Lay the cables in such a way that you always remain flexible. The best way to do this is to lay a floor that does not consist of poured concrete, but still contains a layer within which cables can be laid. You can then attach floor boxes in the necessary places. Such floor boxses make it possible to rearrange the furniture afterwards and still supply all the tables with power at all times. In addition, connections for the LAN network can also be accommodated. With this approach, all your employees will have fast internet at every desk. In addition, you can reposition the desks again and again. Because who knows what the future will bring. Sometimes offices need to be rearranged more or less radically.
Ergonomics
The important thing to remember with such a concept is to think about the health of your people. Desks must always be placed at a 90° angle to the window. This is important for the eyes. No one should look into a window or have one directly in their back – if it can be avoided.