The annual Flexible Workspace Association’s (FlexSa) annual conference took place last month and as a new Mum recently returning to the office, learning to juggle work and childcare, I was unable to attend in person so it was so beneficial being able to attend virtually, via the conference app.
Being a FlexSa Member has been so helpful during the expansion of One Hub and also as an independent regional workspace provider. Having access to their events and hearing from other operators is invaluable in this industry.
I was particularly interested in the ‘Growing Flex – exploring opportunities and risks in scaling Workspace Businesses’ and ‘Play where others can’t – competitive advantages for a smaller workspace operator’ talks. Both titles appealed to me as a small operator with long-term goals. However, I took something away from every session.
I certainly learned a lot but it was also reassuring to hear that we share many of the same shared goals as the other providers in attendance. Alan Pepper, the CEO of Orega spoke of seeing a larger corporate need for workspace and these Organisations having their own demands, not sticking to the traditional flexible workspace offer. This is a pattern we have seen with some of our Corporate Members, and we work with them to modify bespoke packages, tailored to their needs, making a conscious effort to listen to the local business needs and adapting.
Guest Speaker Ronen Journo, Senior MD at Hines, during the same session spoke on how occupiers expect operators to reflect their company’s culture and values. Offering flexible workspace is more than just desks. As a regional operator we need to understand our neighbourhood and align our own values to those of our business community.
This got me thinking about the work we are doing behind the scenes for our ESG accreditation. The online session from the conference, ‘Making a positive impact and responding to customer demands – ESG in practice in flexible workspaces’ offered some valuable advice for us, at the start of this journey. The panel all agreed ESG is not a choice anymore it is a minimal requirement. It provided some great insights and advice on where to concentrate our efforts and what we are already doing to meet the criteria. When thinking about community outreach and giving back as an Organisation, guest speaker Michelle Johnson from Hope Park Spaces was particularly inspiring, discussing the good work they are doing in the North of England for their Members, their staff and the local community.
The ‘Play where others can’t – competitive advantages for a smaller workspace operator’ session was aimed at smaller regional providers and one of the main themes I took away from this was that the people element in our model is key. Relying on a small operations team, knowing our neighbourhood, creating connections and taking a vested interest in our client’s growth are all at the forefront of our values and this is what sets us apart from the bigger players.
Hearing from industry insiders and generating my own ideas via the online conference so soon after returning to work was an inspiring way to get back to business and now the hard work begins putting it all into action. Looking forward to attending the conference in person next year.