When I tour buildings, many have some great amenities. Covered parking, on-site café, daycare nearby, free gym, conference center, car wash to name a few. But when is it hype and when does it actually matter? Only you can determine that because one person’s necessity is another’s luxury.
Every company has a distinct culture so an on-site café may not actually be such a big deal for an office where everyone eats in (or goes out for client lunches). While everyone pictures themselves working out at the on-site gym, when I tour office space, I never see them being used. The near-by daycare is meaningless for an office of empty nesters.
This is why it’s important to really think about what matters to you and your employees. Understanding people’s commute, their lunchtime habits and work hours should impact the decision about office space. If everyone lives in Kendall but the clients are in Doral, does it make sense to locate the office close to the employees’ homes or the clients? That depends on how frequently clients visit you face-to-face in your office. For example, I am seeing accountants forego the fancy office (and long commute) because they are going to see the clients rather than the clients visiting them.
Sometimes it’s like a new car – the salesman gets you all excited about the seat warmers, but let’s face it, we’re in Florida, do we really need them or is it just a sales tool?
Analyzing your office requirement includes taking into account amenities that are important to you and your employees. It’s just one of the things I discuss with my clients when we develop the criteria for your office search. If you are curious about alternatives to your current office location, give me a call because I help companies every day analyze the alternatives and make informed decisions.
