The modern office is more than just a workspace
When OSiT was first formed in 2009, it’s fair to say we completely disrupted the flexible office market. Managing the top three floors of Euston Tower we set out to provide our clients with a cutting edge experience, unlike any other serviced office on offer.
Breakout spaces, free meeting rooms, beanbag areas, ping-pong and pool tables, kitchens and the ability to work from anywhere in the building due to powerful internet connection. While this may not sound unusual these days, but 15 years ago it was ground breaking. First and foremost, our strategy has always been about service, not simply space.
Now in 2024 and particularly in a post-pandemic world, businesses and their employees’ thinking about what they need and want from an office is evolving. Our CEO, Niki Fuchs sums up this sea-change “People are questioning what the office is and what function does is serve”?
Historically the office was only a place of work. Although through the ages companies have made improvements in an effort to get more from their workforce, adding first canteens and lunchrooms, later gyms, and now tech companies in Silicon Valley boast video game rooms and sports facilities.
More than simply office space
The office, perhaps hastened by changes to working practices ushered in by the pandemic, is changing. The way we work has shifted as society has transformed, as has what we require from a place of work. At OSiT we want to create a SEMOB (service-enhanced multi-occupancy building) portfolio. Fundamental to this strategy is the recognition offices need to be more than a functional place to work: they should meet other needs, they should be about people. The concept of SEMOB reflects and adapts to these needs, offering a more holistic working environment than the traditional private office.
While the inclusion of a gym space or café in an office building is often standard these days, SEMOB takes things further, offering endless possibilities to enhance the space. Our ultimate vision includes doctor’s surgeries, dentists, hair salons, health spas, restaurants, entertainment spaces – “a village in an office” as Niki likes to say.
Our Monument location is an example of SEMOB in practice. Not only does it offer beautifully designed, well considered, practical and efficient serviced offices in central London, together with stylish meeting rooms, plenty of breakout space and essential services, but includes event space and accommodation on-site. The Deck, on the roof of the centre, isn’t just a café, bar and social space for our clients and staff, it is also an event venue for hire. The Cabins, are five luxury serviced bedrooms serving up hotel quality stays; so OSiT clients and their guests can enjoy a night on the town or host an important client visiting for a meeting. It is a building that serves up solutions for businesses and employees, rather than simply providing an office space.
As a recent article in The New York Times discussing the ‘hotelification’ of offices highlights, these days people are looking for a hospitality experience from their workplace. The result is ‘work resorts’ which not only include luxury offices with a boutique hotel feel, but restaurants, upscale grocery shops, leisure and health facilities, and a calendar of social events.
Modern work spaces need to cater to people’s need for interaction, collaboration and flexibility as well as making life more convenient and helping to meet their needs. Our vision for the office of today (and the future) is founded on this. Businesses need to take the changing priorities of their employees into consideration when determining how and where they work. Ultimately better spaces will result in happier and healthier staff … and more productive businesses.