CHENNAI: The pandemic has resulted in workspaces becoming more flexible, and as much as 20 per cent of the workforce prefers to work from a non-office location in the near to medium term, according to a recent survey. A report on coworking spaces by international real estate advisory firm Savills India titled ‘Flexible Workspaces: Emergence of the New Dawn’ says the acceptability of working from anywhere (WFA) has increased among employees and employers alike.
The report says almost 75 per cent of survey respondents opined that more than 20 per cent of the workforce is expected to work from a non-office location in the near to medium term. However, considering the social benefits of a demarcated office space, among other things, coworking spaces offering office-like work environments have gained traction of late.
“WeWork, a firm, for instance, offers clients the flexibility of working from any of its facilities across the country. Organisations are preferring a ‘hub and spoke’ model, which is convenient for employees too. Flexible workspaces are best suited to play the balancing act between ‘home’ and ‘office’, says the report.
It also states that for more than 50 per cent of office occupiers, scalability, flexibility and employee well-being are the key priorities, indicating a sense of confidence in shared workspaces even amid the current challenging environment. The report says the survey was conducted in major cities.
Naveen Nandwani, managing director, commercial advisory and transactions, Savills India, and head of Workthere India, said, “Flexible workspaces or the co-working sector has come out offering innovative solutions and products to target all types of occupiers freelancers, start-ups, SMEs and large domestic and multinational companies. The emerging trends are likely to establish themselves as a regular feature in the coming few years and form the core of the shared space model of working.”