It’s More Than Just Office Space

 

Precinct amenity, reimagining traditional office space and building conversion and smarter building technologies, were the key talking points to come out of this year’s Property Council Commercial Property Conference in Perth.   

“The conference presented an opportunity to hear how businesses can embrace change and build on emerging confidence in the challenging WA market that is looking to a revival”, said WA Property Council Executive Director Lino Iacomella.  

Nicki Hutley, Chief Economist at Urbis, spoke of the challenges and opportunities for the WA market.  

She said “The current global climate – when you consider Brexit, the fragmentation of Europe and the uncertainty in the Chinese economy, is leading to an extremely challenging and volatile time for businesses.”  

“Coupled with these grey areas, businesses are having to contend with the emergence of new technologies and new platforms of doing business such as the sharing economy. This uncertainty may seem scary to businesses but it is an ideal opportunity for them to change their story arc and embrace change.”  

“In a Perth context, the strongest prospects for commercial property owners lie in the services industry such as health, education, tourism and the tech industry. We need to stop looking at office space as just that and start looking at way of adapting it to attract these new and different tenants.” 

With different tenants comes different demands. In today’s digital world, the role of the workplace is to be engagement and people focused not task focused.  

Natalie Slessor, Head of Workplace Strategy and Performance at Lendlease said trends such as hot desking and stand up meetings will become the new norm, and those leasing office space must adapt to the new needs of tenants.  

“Demand for activity-based and flexible co-working spaces is growing and this will continue as the mix of industries increases within Perth CBD. There must be a push towards combining engagement-based workplace strategies and technology,” she said.  

Her advice for commercial property agents and owners: “Create a world where people make a life, not just a living, it’s all about growth.”