LREF 2016: Traditional corporate companies must adapt their attitudes towards property to attract and retain the best talent, industry leaders have warned.
At the “Workplace has changed” seminar in association with Colliers International at the London Real Estate Forum this afternoon, Neil Thompson, Great Portland Estates’ development director, said that although tech and creative industries were leading the way in terms of occupation, banks and lawyers are now being forced to adapt.
“Creative industries want to hire the best people and they want them to have a better place to work and give them a sense of wellbeing that means they produce good work. That utility value has been removed and they are occupying businesses in a way that suits the people,” he said.
“More traditional occupiers like lawyers and banks have to follow suit. They are competing for the same people and competing for the same talent and if they don’t move on they will move out on those people working for them.”
Emily Prideaux, associate at Derwent London, added: “We are hearing more and more unconventional requirements that we are looking to incorporate. We try to provide the most flexible blank canvas for them to stamp their mark on.”
The demand for flexibility is what is driving the serviced office and co-working sector, said Charlie Green, chief executive of the Office Group.
“These companies are very flexible and nimble and need to grow very quickly if possible but also downsize if things go wrong. We are much more attuned to sharing now than ever we have been before too, whether it is on the likes of Instagram but there is a desire to be more than just an individual or a small business and be part of a community,” he said.
