INTERVIEW: FLEXIBLE WORKSPACES
Flexibility to drive a doubling in leasing activity: Colliers These are necessary to understand the changes needed in the workplace.
T
he past year saw many landlords left with an oversupply of available space, with COVID-19 in full swing and many businesses switching to remote work to continue operations. It was only in the latter half of 2020 that companies adopted the idea of hybrid workplaces to accommodate employees who prefer working from the office and those that are unable to, or prefer not to, for various reasons. This trend of having flexible working arrangements and hybrid workspaces is seen to continue from 2021 onwards, with many employees seeing the benefits of having flexibility of their own time. On the other end of the sphere, however, are employers who are seeking ways to maintain high productivity without forcing their entire workforce to return to the workplace as though COVID-19 had not happened. Sam Harvey-Jones, Managing Director of Occupiers Services Asia at Colliers, said that this year is looking to be more promising as many employers are shifting to flexible workspaces, which includes offering employees the option of working back in a physical office. “In Q2 and the rest of this year, we see a 96% uptick in leasing activity. That 96% increase would take us back to 2018 or 2019 levels, so there is definitely some light at the end of the tunnel,” he said. “In 2020 leasing was down 50% across the region and supply outstripped demand by about 2.2 times. We saw the majority of people adapt to a work- from- home set-up. But there were also a series of continual breakouts throughout the year due to COVID-19, which meant the year was very stop start” he added. Whilst this may be the case for many markets, it will not be the case for all of Asia. “Some of those countries have dealt with the uncertainty caused by COVID-19 quite well. But as we saw with India in the last couple of weeks, some countries are still experiencing lockdowns. It is a very uncertain situation in general in terms of what we’re seeing, but there is definitely some positivity as we come out of Q1,” he said. Office of the future Colliers released a study called “The Next Work Experience” earlier this year, which showed that the majority of employees from different age groups and industries in APAC prefer to go back into the office. For employees aged 20 to 30 years old, 65% said that they prefer to have flexible workspaces. Meanwhile, 50% of those aged 40 and above said that they do not prefer this option. Harvey-Jones said that it is important for senior management to understand the needs of their staff and the 36
REAL ESTATE ASIA | Q1 2021
Many employers are shifting to flexible workspaces -Sam Harvey-Jones, Managing Director of Occupiers Services Asia, Colliers
Technology is the biggest driver of demand in flexible workspaces. As employees stay in workfrom-home set-ups, cloud technology is needed more than ever
younger workforce to know how to navigate and plan their flexible working arrangements. This shift to the “office of the future” will need a more open mindset to keep the company’s performance in top shape. “Traditionally managers like to see their staff in front of them. So, there’s a real mind shift here, around staff not being in the office day to day and how to manage this new remote working environment,” he said. “Rather than having to check in with the team every day and have daily meetings, how do we get to a place whereby we trust people and really empower our staff to thrive in this new environment and help change the way of working in the future?” he added. Tech driving demand The movements in the technology sector are playing an important role in ramping up the demand in these office spaces. It was projected to have contributed about 25% of the increase in demand, as more businesses open data centres and offices. “Technology is trending as the biggest driver of demand. In most of the major markets in this region in India, Singapore, and China, we’re seeing that upwards of 20% to 25% of all demand is coming from the technology sector,” he said. As employees stay in work-from-home set-ups, cloud
