What actually is the New Way of Work?

The interview with Michael Graf (Managing Director of YOUR OFFICE) was conducted by Philipp Stewart (Editor ÖTZ, Local & Business) in August 2020

Philipp Stewart: Mr. Graf, various studies indicate that serviced office workspaces are on average cheaper than traditional office workspaces. Why do traditional offices still exist then?

Michael Graf: That is indeed the case. We estimate a savings of between 10 to 40 percent compared to traditional office workspaces. That surprises many people. The typical tenant is simply not used to creating a full-cost analysis when comparing office solutions. For example, 16 euros per square meter for a conventional office might be compared with 60 euros per square meter for a serviced office. Educational work is needed here, because many managers overlook the actual costs in their analysis. But if you want true cost transparency, you have to include expenses such as electricity, water, heating, cooling, daily office cleaning, as well as services—whether provided in-house or purchased from partners—such as facility management, reception staffing, mail handling, internet, or telephony in the calculation. Maintenance, labor law regulations, or security solutions must also be taken into account. With a serviced office, there are all-in solutions with no risk of additional payments or other unexpected costs.

Philipp Stewart: Does that mean the future clearly lies with serviced offices?

Michael Graf: You can't make such a blanket statement. Of course, the traditional office model makes complete sense under certain structural conditions or for specific company sizes. This applies primarily to industries where planning far in advance is very well possible. Especially in combination with storage space, a custom solution is quite sensible and economically viable. However, I have often witnessed corporations renting traditional offices only to realize after a year that 30 percent of the space is no longer needed at all due to changing circumstances. With a long-term commitment via a five- or ten-year contract, it quickly becomes unnecessarily expensive. Therefore, the trend is moving toward shorter lease terms and more flexibility.

Philipp Stewart: At YOUR OFFICE, you offer office space with daily cancellation terms. How can that work?

Michael Graf: We are indeed the most flexible landlord in Europe. Specifically, we are the only landlord that offers rental agreements terminable on a daily basis, which are truly billed proportionally and can still be concluded for an indefinite period. We have been offering this for around five years. The concept is comparable to insurance—similar to cancellation protection. The rent for the customer is only marginally higher than with longer terms. Therefore, I see us not only as a serviced office provider, but above all as a flex-office provider.

Philipp Stewart: And what are your experiences with it?

Michael Graf: They are extremely positive. So much so that we have made flexibility one of our core competencies. Today's demanding tenants simply want to organize less and less themselves—just like in many other areas—but they also only want to pay for the services they actually use. On-demand services, pure and simple. That requires a great deal of flexibility—and we provide it. Our self-image has therefore changed. We do not see ourselves as a conventional landlord, but rather as a modern office hotel. Our customers expect a smiling face at the entrance, professional reception service, and a consistently well-organized premium office with all the amenities you would typically associate with a 5-star hotel. Whether it's the serviced lounge, a comprehensive selection of serviced coffee specialties, a concierge service that spontaneously takes care of any requests, cleaning available around the clock, or technical infrastructure—presentation technology, building technology down to high-speed internet—all of this is standard in our business and conference centers. Since a large proportion of our clients are also corporate customers, we are accustomed to very high expectations regarding the security standards of the locations and technical support; so it is truly a fully managed property where tenants don't have to worry about a thing, with everything available from the daily newspaper to a fruit basket. Furthermore, maximum flexibility is also offered in billing. For fixed office users who take advantage of the entire package, just as well as for homeworkers who only purchase individual services, or corporate coworking clients who want to offer their employees maximum flexibility at all times along with the most suitable, inspiring working environment. "Value Added Service" is a standard with us today.

Philipp Stewart: But what about your planning security as an entrepreneur? How can that work?

Michael Graf: Fortunately, we don't have to worry about that. Our industry has been experiencing a massive demand boom for several years. Spontaneous and unexpected cancellations are extremely rare and are usually due to changed corporate strategies or business unit closures. We achieve planning security through satisfied customers—and thus through the quality of our services and the location of our properties. These not only feature top transport connections but also bring a range of other relevant factors such as generous parking options in in-house underground garages—for guests as well as employees, state-of-the-art building technology, excellent connections to the international transport network, and much more. This plays a major role, especially for our international customers. We also always keep the surrounding environment in mind during site development. Neighboring office hubs can create synergies for our users. A good example is Euro Plaza, where many technology or IT companies have settled. Or the QBC, which has evolved somewhat into a financial district since banks, financial service providers, and insurance companies have located there in recent years. Of course, we also offer proximity to other hubs where, for example, the pharmaceutical industry is strongly represented. Our customers definitely see this as a benefit.

Philipp Stewart: So does YOUR OFFICE suffer from increased fluctuation due to the flexible cancellation options?

Michael Graf: No. Absolutely not. As I said, this is due to the high quality of the locations, our services, but of course also our customers themselves. What's more, over the past few years, the average flex-office users have also grown. While a flex-office used to be more of a concept for start-ups or spin-offs, many of these once-small companies have grown with us—both in terms of success and in terms of their number of employees and thus workspaces. We are naturally very pleased about that. Moreover, the flex-office concept itself has now reached established corporations as well. These companies in particular especially appreciate the advantages of a fully serviced all-in concept with corresponding planning security, flexibility, and scalability. Because of this, and due to a good industry mix among our clients, we appear to be less susceptible to crises. This can be observed once again in the current health and economic crisis. Demand is rising precisely because of the economically unstable framework conditions and the increased need for flexible, innovative, comfortable, and above all, productivity-enhancing workplace solutions.

From our perspective, that is precisely the New Way of Work.

We are pleased to announce that Your Office and Vision Decision are now here for you together. All familiar services remain in place—with even more locations and possibilities for you.