By Are you a business owner who’s trying to find the perfect space for your office? Whether you’re brand new to the business game or you’re relocating, you’re working on limited time. You have to find the right place (and fast).
Selecting an office space might seem stressful, but if you make a plan and consider a few key factors, you’ll find your ideal location in no time. Keep reading to learn all about the top factors that you should consider when you’re making your decision.
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1. Your Office Space Budget
First and foremost, you need to consider your budget. Your office space budget has to fit into your overall business budget. Many people choose to rent an office space because they don’t have the money to purchase a building, but renting is still costly.
Remember that your office space is only one small part of your overall business needs. You need to get all of your equipment, hire employees, plan for any potential disruptions (always have an emergency budget), cover any necessary insurance, and more.
If you’re a brand new business, you may want to consider a virtual office space. With more and more employees wanting to work from home in 2021, and the enhanced infrastructure associated with having employees work at home, it’s never a bad idea to have a complete “work-from-home” office or even a hybrid workplace.
In other words, start your search with a complete budget breakdown.
2. Your Employee Count
How many employees do you have (or, how many do you need to hire)? How many of these employees need to work on-site and how many can work at home? Are you going to aim for a half-and-half situation, or does everyone need to be in the office at once?
You want to make sure that your office is comfortable enough for all of your employees to work. If you do breakout sessions or free seating, you need to know that there’s enough room for you to do that without anyone getting into anyone else’s way.
Also, remember that you’re sharing this space with your employees. You need room too!
3. Parking and Storage
If you don’t live in a major city with great and reliable public transportation, you need to make sure that your office space has sufficient parking for all of your employees. Your employees shouldn’t have to walk long distances or pay hefty fees just to get into work.
Whether there’s ample street parking or on-site parking, make sure that there’s more than enough for employees and guests, or clients (if necessary).
If most people use public transportation to get to your workplace, you don’t need as much parking. You should, however, consider asking about areas for bicycle storage.
4. Privacy Needs
How much privacy does your business need?
If you’re dealing with sensitive information or private client meetings, it’s a good idea to find a space that can support that. Make sure that the office is secure and that there are private areas where you can talk to someone in peace.
This means that you want at least one area with opaque walls that restrict sound.
5. Accessibility
Almost all businesses need to consider accessibility. Both future employees and clients may need an accessible space someday.
Businesses should be accessible by ADA standards. You want to know that people with physical disabilities are able to access your workplace, even if no one on your team fits into this category right now.
You also want to know that it’s accessible to any potential workers that you’ll need to hire for short-term tasks. Would a cleaning crew be able to access your office with ease? Could someone easily move large furniture into your office space?
6. Overall Space
Many of these categories go into one overall issue: the overall space of the office.
When you’re renting office space, it’s unlikely that you’ll find something that’s perfect. Even if that’s the case, you need to know that you can transform the office into something that works for your needs.
Whether that means creating unique desk arrangements, adding room dividers, or anything else, you’re going to take measurements and make sure that you have all of the room that you need for all of your equipment.
Workstation and desk space should be roomy and comfortable. You should be able to move chairs with ease and the room should have good “flow.”
7. Business Location
Location is key when it comes to your business! Where do you need to be in order to get the most out of your office space?
If you’re creating a local business that will often have clients coming in and out, you need to be somewhere central. This is another time in which you need to consider parking availability.
“Central” can mean several things. Do you want the business to serve a specific neighborhood or an entire city? Do you want to be in the middle of a shopping center for reliable foot traffic, or would you prefer a standalone location that’s still easy to spot?
8. Business Type
Finally, what type of business are you running?
Not all office spaces work for all businesses. If you’re running a retail business, you have different needs from someone who’s running a healthcare office or a legal office.
Even an office that checks off all of your other boxes might not be a good fit if it can’t match the needs of your specific business. If you’re Austin-based, check out austinofficespace.com to talk to professionals about placing you in the perfect location for your business’s needs.
Selecting an Office Space Isn’t as Easy as It Looks
Selecting an office space can be a lot of fun, but there are more factors involved than you may have anticipated.
Remember, finding the perfect office space isn’t that different from finding the perfect rental home. You have factors to consider and desires to meet, but when you find the right fit, you’ll just know.
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