LREF 2016: The age-old debate over the death of the office reared its head once again as experts clashed.
Futurist Paul Fletcher from workplace consultancy Through told delegates that the concept of the office building was dying, “if it hasn’t died already”.
He said: “The concept of co-working is misunderstood. It is not the elephant in the room. The reality is the office is the elephant. The industry is obsessed with product but co-working is an activity. I use it all the time.”
Alluding to the growing trend of using coffee shops and hotel lobbies as workspaces, he added: “I pay £2.50 to £5 per hour and I get a free coffee, fast wifi and a central London location.”
But Charlie Green, co-founder of The Office Group, said: “A coffee shop is one element. But at other end of the spectrum, humans need to be around other people. Coffee shops don’t really deal with that. They’ll support co-working but offices will lead the way. Offices are very much alive.”
A quick straw poll of the room revealed that most delegates agreed with Green, suggesting the future of the office is alive and well. But there were questions raised around how it needs to evolve in order to respond to changing occupier needs.
Jon Allgood, senior asset manager at the Crown Estate, emphasised the importance of service levels.
“We should be talking about service providers, not landlords,” he said.
“If you rent office space, you want flexibility. Connectivity is absolutely key. We need to listen and fully align with what our customers actually want.”
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