Are you prepared to manage vacant space?
Here’s what you need to know.
Landlords across the globe are being forced to face the potential scenario they have been witnessing play out in slow motion for years – what happens if space becomes unexpectedly available? What do you do with a fitted-out office, without a tenant? How do you then pivot to attract and retain an occupier with your newly available space… without disruption.
While the primary concern is losing the tenant or operator who was contracted to pay rent on a space that went through an expensive fit out, there are also top-of-mind concerns over how to retain tenants and avoid disruptions of services to the space.
Regardless of what phase an owner may be in with their tenant space, it pays to have a plan. For owners where (tenants want to remain in occupation) coworking represented a majority of the building, halted operations in the space proved to be ruinous to the asset. If properly prepared, building owners can find themselves well-positioned in repurposing this once sovereign space, now as an asset-wide amenity that is more in line with the expectations of today’s modern tenants.
So what options are available for a landlord? There are two primary scenarios at hand including taking on and managing the space themselves or potentially finding a flex operating partner.
Bringing a flex operating business in-house presents a unique opportunity for landlords to create new revenue streams and meet the rising demand for flexible working. Owners who are faced with a lease event, rent review or lease expiry, and plan to take on the space themselves must have an answer to many fundamental questions, such as, “How do I manage the space?”, “How do I bill the tenants?” and most importantly, “How do I ensure continuity of service?”
Running a tenant workspace comes with a variety of operational challenges, but with the right partners, it can be a frictionless transition.
Keeping the lights on
Being prepared for a space to be given back starts with making sure everything is in place to keep the services running. This primarily involves a secure internet offering for tenants and preventing any loss of connectivity within the space.
Day-to-day operations of the space
While there are limited options for a landlord when faced with vacant space, keeping the operations running is vital to avoid other tenants from leaving. Initially, there may be an increase in vacancy and if so preparation to operate on a day-to-day basis with barely any people coming to the space needs to be considered.
From how tenants are billed and onboarded to how they are accessing shared amenity spaces and conference rooms – keeping a seamless experience in place for tenants means that their ability to be productive and collaborative remains unphased. Taking on the technology that powers the workspace is a large piece in ensuring that operations are running smoothly and the tenant experience continues.
Shaping strategy around the asset
Landlords now have an opportunity to revitalize their whole building strategy. Delivering a flex space has proven to be a successful strategy to implement – especially as it applies to increased leasing deals and overall increased adoption from tenants across all industries..
How essensys can help
We’ve helped many landlords take on coworking spaces and create successful flexible workspaces of their own. See how we’ve helped The Mark launch their forward-looking flex brand from giveback spaces with speed and operational efficiency.
The essensys team is here to guide and support landlords when preparing to reposition their asset – with over 16 years in the flexible workspace market we can provide the tools landlords need to compete and win in today’s environment. Ultimately, becoming cash generative quicker.
essensys can re-position existing fibre provisions and install new network connectivity into the building to a variety of in-house capabilities and resources. This may include enterprise fibre relationships, project management, instant access to available hardware and a learning management software to quickly train employees. We can help landlords keep the day-to-day operations flowing smoothly and reimagine the way they do leasing.
Find out more about how the essensys Platform uses intelligent automation to remove the complexity of network, space and occupier management enabling landlord’s to provide exceptional customer experiences across their buildings and spaces.
