Work from home not working for many as kids prove too disruptive
- Written by Tess Sanders Lazarus
According to Jenny Folley, demand for private office space across her brand of premium coworking and private office spaces is soaring.
Jenny Folley is the founder and managing director of @WORKSPACES, a national and international network of premium coworking and private offices.
"The reality is that many people can't work from home," Jenny said.
"Working from home just isn't working.
"Many people are not able to work at home with a house full of kids. The kids are noisy, busy and enjoying their time at home and it is difficult for the two to work together. The television is on, or the kids are playing games.
"The other problem is that internet and mobile services are struggling. Many people are finding connectivity patchy. Quite a few of our tenants have told us that they just can't get reliable internet or phone service in their apartment or in areas around their suburb.
"Those in shared living arrangements are also finding working from home hard."
Enquiries regarding private office space have increased by 30 percent.
"Private offices are being snapped up by small through to large businesses as a place for people to operate in a safe, quiet and enclosed space," Jenny added.
"Some people may only be with us for three months, where as others may be here longer.
"Some of our new clients have even closed down their offices and moved into private office space permanently as a means of getting through. They no longer need the commercial space in their old office because most staff are working from home."
Jenny believes we are going to see fundamental and structural changes in the way workplaces function moving forward. With many businesses investing significant resources into enabling their people to work from home, it is likely that many of these will continue to function in a remote way once things return to normal. This will reduce the commercial office footprint of businesses and their fixed costs.
@WORKSPACES is a premium provider of coworking and private office spaces. They have locations in most cities across Australia as well as overseas. They have recently opened two new sites in Melbourne in Brighton and Toorak.
