TenantSee Weekly: AirOffice
Have we reached the point at which the office product might be consumed like the hotel, or the homes and rooms rented on platforms like Airbnb? We’re certainly moving in that direction. Companies like Upflex (a Cushman & Wakefield partner), The Instant Group and others aggregate global facilities for easy access via technology apps. This transition resonates with the growing demand for flexible, location-independent work solutions, allowing employees to effortlessly book an office space wherever required. I’m in Denver, I go to my app, enter my requirements (much like I would do on Airbnb) and, voila! my space is ready. The question is: are we ready to redefine our workspace consumption in line with the on-demand economy?
TenantSee Weekly: Unicorn Farming
Unicorn farming is risky business. I should know. For the past 30 years, I’ve lived and farmed here on the world’s biggest unicorn farm called San Francisco. Growing unicorns requires massive investment. Care must be given almost exclusively to fueling their mythical growth. They’re highly susceptible to infection by ethics, laws, economic reality, truth and any number of other real-world impediments to growth.
TenantSee Weekly: What Happens When...
This week we’re exploring what happens when companies define their own bespoke approach to the office vs. when they default to their pre-pandemic office construct, despite significant changes in how they work. To date, many small to mid-size organizations have chosen not to formulate a definitive new approach, instead relying on the old office design and a loosely defined hybrid approach. In a time when the mere discussion of corporate office policy has the potential to trigger highly negative reactions among employees, it takes courage and leadership to advocate a new plan that reflects a vision for the future. Understandably, as we’ve crept out of full pandemic mode and begun to look to the future, many companies have been uneasy about taking a definitive position.
TenantSee Weekly: IRL vs. URL
Lately, something has been bothering me (IRL). I’m losing sleep. I don’t understand how life can be IRL and URL. To me, life is only IRL – there is no such thing as URL. Technology is merely a construct that we created, presumably to make IRL better. What began slowly, now rapidly causes big shifts in how we experience life, IRL. Not all change is good. The modern office is among the high value social constructs which technology seeks to upend. The office IRL is fast becoming the office URL. Is this a good thing?
TenantSee Weekly: Unpleasant to Existential
When the pandemic hit in 2020, emptying San Francisco office buildings, landlords were mostly unfazed given high levels of occupancy and income. As the pandemic gained momentum, some owners began to quietly wonder if this could be bad enough to render their buildings empty for a prolonged period. Yet it wasn’t until late 2021/early 2022 that investors began to fully grasp that appetite for their product had changed in significant ways.
TenantSee Weekly: Maybe The Office Isn't So Bad After All
There’s been a lot written over the past 3 years about the negative aspects of office life, about how it harms our health, distracts us from what really matters and makes us less productive. The freedom to choose where and when we work, it’s argued, is transformative, enabling us all to create our own perfectly tuned work-life balance. It sounds nice, the idea that no one (at least no white collar worker) will remain oppressed by the constraints of working at an office, or working on a fixed schedule. Turbo-charged gig workers, calling our own shots. What could go wrong? Maybe a lot.
TenantSee Weekl: Change is Hard
While change is generally a constant state, big changes in one area can have the effect of spurring many additional changes in related areas. In most cases we’re not very good at forecasting all the add-on changes that may follow the initial change. We’re like low skill chess players, unable to see the full spectrum of opportunity and vulnerability created by our moves. And when big change requires us to take action, we often seek the comfort of doing what everyone else does as opposed to formulating our own approach. In the business world, this is a byproduct of risk aversion, or what can be called CYA at scale. Our corporate structures don’t typically provide incentive for creative, individualized responses to business challenges.
TenantSee Weekly: Why Flex is Hard (but Inevitable)
The “flex” in flexible office solutions is about the occupier’s ability to limit commitment. A one-year lease is more flexible than a two-year lease, so on and so forth. With occupier uncertainty about why, where and when they should provide office solutions for their employees at an all-time high, you’d think landlords would be eager to offer high flex options in order to meet demand where it’s at. However, it’s difficult for landlords to provide the flex product, despite its potential to command premium rents and increase demand. Why? Because it’s expensive to build office space, and it’s difficult to design space that has broad residual appeal to a large swath of occupiers.
TenantSee Weekly: Educating vs. Selling
Selling is important. It’s what makes the world go round. But sometimes selling crosses the line and gets a little too close to misrepresenting or worse, lying. After all, there’s always been a healthy dose of deception built into selling. In sports, teams and athletes sell their opponents on the idea they’re going to zig when they in fact zag. Governments seek to sell a vision in order to successfully lead their people. Sometimes the vision is wrong, out of synch with what the people want. Look no further than China’s Zero Covid policy. Companies must sell their products and services to succeed. Startup founders must sell investors on the merits of investing in their companies. Buyers don’t want to buy an “OK” product or service. No one ever said, “…hey, let’s go with those guys, their product seems flawed but they’re really honest about it”. Much of what is sold is imperfect. Sellers have incentive to craft approaches that distract from imperfection while accentuating strengths. Even the salesman with a crappy product has to eat. It’s no wonder we’ve become skeptical. It’s essential to our survival. Storytelling is a form of selling. It often seems the best storytellers are selling the worst products. Sam Bankman-Fried of FTX and Adam Neuman of WeWork come to mind. My family loves the classic Christmas movie “Elf” starring Will Ferrell. There’s this great scene when his character, “Buddy”, first arrives in New York. He passes by a coffee shop with a sign in the window that reads, “World’s Best Cup of Coffee”. He sees the sign and runs inside full of excitement to congratulate everyone, much to their bewilderment.
