The flex office: the art of reinventing work spaces

Flex office: what are we talking about?

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Flex office is also known as desk sharing. It is often confused with flexible working, where employees are free to manage their own schedules.

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With telecommuting, employees are not present on company premises at the same time. The flex office enables companies to rethink their internal spaces by reducing the number of individual offices.

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What's in it for you? Giving more room to other types of space, encouraging group work, adapting to the hybrid hybrid work environmentand evolve with business needs over time.

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The great advantages of the flex office for your company

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Reallocation of office space

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In French companies, the occupancy rate of workstations varies according to the sector of activity: between 50% and 70%. As an employer, you can maximize this by reducing the amount of floor space. Spaces no longer used by employees can be sold or sublet to reduce the cost of real estate charges.

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Another solution to regulate the flow of employees: relocation. Choose local coworking spaces to reduce your company's carbon footprint. Offices are no longer unnecessarily heated, and employees spend less time commuting to work.

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What's more, access to these external group offices helps to avoid peak traffic on the company's premises. The company is thus able to offer its employees pleasant, functional workplaces. In other words, it's a win-win situation!

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Layout is a key element of the flex office. Seize this opportunity to transform work areas so that they are perfectly suited to employees' needs, with :

• Collaborative spaces (creation of an agora for creative workshops or brainstorming sessions, etc.);
• Private spaces (creation of soundproofed cubicles for employees who need to concentrate on complex tasks, etc.).

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Improving team performance

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With the flex office, you can enhance the well-being and productivity of your employees by making your workspaces more lively, more human. To achieve this, you can :

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• Implement collaborative digital tools that make it easier for teams to communicate with each other (Slack, Zoom, Teams...) and share knowledge (Miro, Drive, Nuclino, Notion...) ;
• Replace the fixed desk with the flexible office and invite each employee to choose his or her workspace according to needs (concentration, collaboration, meetings, appointments...) and preferences.

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A flexible space improves the quality of life at work and helps break the routine: employees are more relaxed, more motivated and more productive.

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The method of application: how to set up the flex office?

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Carry out a diagnosis

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Implementing a flex office involves a preliminary analysis that will provide you with a number of key data:

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• Actual office occupancy rate
• Number of days employees telework
• The number of days they are not on company premises

To create greater buy-in for your flex office project, consider the habits and needs of the people who work there. After all, every employee has a different working model. Some prefer a fixed space, while others appreciate a more open and flexible environment. As an employer, you need to offer them a solution tailored to their preferences, while optimizing every square meter of the workplace.

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Define rules

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Although the flex office concept offers more flexibility for everyone, it's important to define a framework and standards to maintain a pleasant working atmosphere. Here are a few examples of the rules you need to put in place:

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• Use a reservation platform technology (computer software, mobile application, etc.) to reserve a workstation;
• Tidy up and clean workstations before vacating them, for clean spaces.

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Our advice: allow employees to decorate their temporary workspace with their own personal objects, to break down the impersonal aspect and lack of identity in the office. Provide lockers for personal belongings.

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A few best practices:

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• Zone booking: reserving a place in a workspace to encourage exchange and collaboration;
• For a successful transition, it's essential to choose flex office software that meets the specific needs of your organization and facilitates the management of shared spaces.
• Organize collaborative rituals to maintain the social bond between colleagues ;
• Ensure an efficient rotation between telecommuting and presence at company headquarters;
• Listening to needs to optimize the layout of the new working environment.

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Redesigning the office

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A well thought-out layout is a prerequisite for the successful implementation of a flex office. Create work zones that meet employees' needs, such as relaxation areas, creative spaces, quiet zones for concentration, as well as large meeting rooms. An employer with a modern, flexible work environment can help employees manage stress and improve productivity. 

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Implementing change management in the management style

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Finding the right balance between autonomous work and remote support is the key to creating flexibility. 

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In times of crisis, particularly with the Covid situation, this adaptation has become even more necessary. It's important to guarantee a humane, caring working environment to limit the risks of disengagement and loss of motivation.

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To maintain cohesion within workgroups, communication is your best asset. Invest in quality tools to keep your employees happy and motivated. A key mission to satisfy your employees. 

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In short, it's important to encourage exchanges, even if they take place around a virtual table. 

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The introduction of the shared office (or flex office) concept needs to be gradual. This working model, based on the flexible use of space, generates savings by optimizing the use of premises and improving office occupancy rates. 

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To ensure the success of this project, it is essential to observe the work habits of managers and employees, to take into account their expectations in terms of relaxation, concentration and collaboration, and to carry out tests to adjust the layout of the spaces.

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Certain disadvantages can arise if the transition is not well managed, particularly with regard to space management, the lack of fixed points of reference or the loss of a sense of belonging for some people. That's why it's essential to create a balanced, humane working environment that meets professional needs while incorporating areas for relaxation and conviviality.

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What's more, some companies offer a support service to introduce flex office in different organizations, which can ease the transition and ensure a smoother implementation. 

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Think about it to guarantee the success of your furnishing project and offer your employees a workspace adapted to their needs and conducive to their well-being and productivity.