While Covid has been the driving force in larger companies looking at ways to ease the complexities of the former days of rigid 9-5 office hours, flexible work spaces now,  just makes more sense – they reduce company overheads, increase team productivity, serve geographically dispersed teams, improve talent acquisition and retention, and enhance the lifestyle of their employees.

Beautiful and flexible work spaces that are close to residential and transport nodes, tick all the boxes that staff are looking for, close to home, schools, entertainment and medical centres. With quick access to their everyday lives, employees have shorter commutes, spend less time in frustrating traffic and end up being more productive and happier in their jobs.

Paul Keursten, co-founder and CEO of Workshop17, says “the upward trend of larger companies moving into flexible coworking spaces, depends on a number of criteria,  location being a big one. Workshop17 West Street in Sandton attracts larger companies with entry to multiple valuable access points. It’s conveniently located to a major transport junction, only one minute walk from the Gautrain, (a direct 15 minute ride to OR Tambo), walking distance to Sandton Convention centre, Nelson Mandela square and Sandton city, offering a vibrant conference and exhibition centre, retail therapy and buzzing eateries all in 350 metres of one another.”

“The fact that we now have a growing network of locations, 7 in SA and 2 in Mauritius, creates an opportunity for companies to engage with one workspace provider across locations. Our flexible models cater for flexible use of larger teams across locations, keeping costs low, with complete transparency,”  adds Paul.

Office as a service

In the current unstable economic situation, it is difficult to predict the future. And, in combination with shifting work patterns, it’s not easy to predict future office needs. Nowadays, long-term, fixed contracts, with high upfront fit out costs, are more of a burden than a security. Flexibility and scalability, up and down, are key factors for companies when choosing work space solutions. Workspaces that allow easy business growth with minimal inconvenience and limited costs are now more attractive than ever. By offering local workspace hubs in coworking facilities across the country, allow companies to quickly accommodate a decentralised workforce and make seamless quick-to-market changes.

“Many companies,” says Paul, “are renting larger spaces and offering their staff more agility with a rotational system, where employees come in only on certain days allowing them to spend time working both at home and in the office. This type of flexibility not only caters to the individual employee needs but also works towards both acquiring and retaining their talent.” 

Cost effectiveness

Coworking spaces are profitable for big business, cutting down unnecessary costs and overheads. With access to shared amenities, no maintenance or furniture costs, plug and play infrastructure, operational costs can be reduced significantly. “Power supply in South Africa is unpredictable and can be devastating to a company’s bottom line,” continues Paul, “the cost of maintaining and running a generator is prohibitive to a company’s balance sheet. Workshop17 mitigates this risk to larger companies with our full load shedding and alternative power solutions that keep individuals, teams and companies connected always.”

Attracting and keeping talent and getting them to the office 

Employees no longer want to work within the confines of the old style office space, but want to engage and be part of a community and culture. Coworking spaces allow for authentic connections, with collaborative environments that naturally spark innovation and growth.

The multipurpose spaces at Workshop17 West Street, from the; all day cafe with indoor and outdoor seating, idea lounges, meeting and seminar rooms and large auditorium that seats 120 people all create opportunities for members to connect naturally with diverse sectors of industries allowing ample networking and collaborative opportunities.”

Looking for the flexible workspace for your company? Contact michelle@workshop17.com