IWG urges more flexible workspaces

Option increases talent retention

Businesses that are not agile will not survive and should adopt more flexible workspaces, says the Belgium-based office space supplier IWG Plc.

To keep pace with legislative and social changes, businesses need to harness the power of flexible offices, said Lars Wittig, country manager of Spaces by IWG for Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia and South Korea.

“We now have many ways of working. And we’ve got new global accounting standards for leases, which completely change how companies look at office space,” he said at the 2019 MIPIM conference in Cannes, France.

IFRS 16, an international accounting standard introduced in January 2019, means lease contracts now have to be reported as liabilities.

As for Thailand, the country is set to adopt the new IFRS 16 under the Thai Financial Reporting Standard 16 (TFRS 16) beginning on Jan 1, 2020. This will have an effect on the operations of many industries across the board including airlines, retailers, healthcare, transport and logistics.

IWG has already seen a rise in corporate clients seeking flexible workspace solutions in response to the introduction of the new standard.

“We’re pretty much a third up on corporate business from the fourth quarter of last year,” said Mr Wittig. “That’s not all coming from IFRS 16, but a lot of it is.”

There are other drivers for businesses to evolve their workspace strategy, including retaining talented staff.

According to IWG’s 2019 Global Workspace Survey, which interviewed 15,000 people from 80 different countries, 77% of businesses are introducing flexible working (or the chance to work from home sometimes) to improve talent retention. Flexible working is fast becoming the new normal, according to 75% of respondents.

IWG’s research also found 83% of respondents would turn down a job that didn’t offer flexible working. Some 28% said they value being able to choose their work location over an increase in paid days.

The value of cutting down on the time spent commuting was also highlighted in the survey. Two-fifths of respondents worldwide see commuting as the worst part of their day, and more than half believe it could be obsolete in the next decade.

Having the option of working in a flexible workspace close to their home eliminates this pain point, improving their everyday well-being by freeing up more of their time.

Aside from the added value it brings to employees, IWG’s survey found 64% of respondents chose to adopt flexible working as it speeds up their set-up in new countries, while 66% said it helps them scale up more effectively.

‘‘ We have many ways of working and new global accounting standards for leases, changing how firms look at office space. LARS WITTIG Country manager, Spaces by IWG