Coworking Spaces Could Help The Wage Increments Challenge

Date: Tue Jul 5 Author: Chelliah Nakeeran

As employees feel the pinch of inflation, CXO’s and HR managers may face several difficult conversations in the coming weeks. Trading rented office space for flexible coworking facilities can help to free up cash and keep your workers happy.

An increase in living costs, sky-rocketing fuel and energy prices together with tax hikes has devastated the income of families all over the UK. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reports that 9 in 10 adults say their living costs have increased whilst 23% report they are struggling to pay typical household bills.

Low-income families naturally spend a larger proportion of their earnings on food and energy. Living costs have leapt by 9% whilst wage increases averaged 4.1% – less than half the rate of inflation.

Business leaders are bracing themselves for an influx of employees asking for pay rises or other types of benefits. But with a potential dip in revenue, making ends meet and keeping your employees happy may require decisive action.

To cut costs.

Coworking Spaces Cut Costs

Bloomberg reports that one in five UK workers expect to leave their job in the next year in search of better pay and more job satisfaction. Replacing employees is more costly for businesses that retain a trained and experienced member of their workforce.

It is estimated that the cost of replacing employees is between 6-9 months of the employee’s annual salary. That takes into account the loss of productivity, training expenses and the cost of recruitment.

A key part of retaining your best employees is how well you compensate them. Depending on their age, some employees will look for other opportunities if they do not feel respected or if they’re not permitted to work from home.

The ONS reports that 80% of UK workers would prefer their employer to adopt a hybrid model. This gives them the opportunity to work from home for part of the week and in the office for part of the week.

Hybrid working fulfils the needs of employees and has numerous benefits for employers also. In fact, it ticks so many boxes that the hybrid model is expected to be adopted by 84% of UK firms.

Rent Coworking Spaces with BluDesks

Renting coworking space with BluDesks gives you the flexibility to facilitate a hybrid working model and significantly cut the cost associated with renting office space.

With a single login, you have access to hundreds of coworking spaces in London and all over the country. Actually the world. Moreover, our pay-as-you-go model means you only pay for the space you use – enabling you to manage your costs. For example, if you only need a meeting room for one hour, you only pay for the hour.

The coworking spaces available give your teams more flexibility to work where they want and save money on travel and food. Whilst these costs savings may still need to be supplemented with wage increments, BluDesks provide you with a solution that enables you to reinvigorate your financial resources and keep your employees happy.

4 Reasons Why Relocating Businesses Need Ad-Hoc Meeting Rooms

Date: Thu May 12 Author: Chelliah Nakeeran

Pivoting to the hybrid model seems to be the latest buzzword or business trend. But businesses that are renovating or relocating to new offices also face the challenges involved with remote working.

A distributed workforce during office renovations and relocations can be difficult to manage. Although the workplace is on hold, work is not. Managers and staff still need to hold meetings, engage in discussions, brainstorm and pep talks.

Hiring external meeting rooms on an ad-hoc basis can help you to move your business forward efficiently. It gives you valuable space to be creative, productive and inspired.

Moreover, with BluDesks pay-as-you-go model, renting meeting rooms is affordable, easy to manage and convenient. We also have flexible short-term offices which you can book as and when you need it, for one week, one month, three hours or three months. You choose when you need space and only pay for the time you book the space for.

Here are four reasons ad-hoc meeting rooms benefit a business that temporarily does not have access to office space.

Increase Productivity

A 2017 Stanford study confirmed that individuals are more productive when they work collectively. Even the perception of working as part of a team can improve performance levels.

Whilst technology can help bring a remote workforce together, individuals that are not accustomed to remote working need reminding they are part of a physical team.

Productivity can be enhanced when your team also know they have a limited window of time to reach a goal. Time-sensitive ad-hoc meeting rooms can help to supercharge productivity by increasing concentration levels whilst giving team members an ideal space to collaborate.

Meet With Clients and Partners

Coffee shops and restaurants are not always the best places to meet with clients to discuss serious business. Large firms trying to broker a deal with an important client or develop a project with a partner need a quiet space where you can hold a meeting in private.

Fully-Equipped Meeting Rooms

Meeting rooms can be used for several different reasons. Maybe you need space to give a presentation or a training session. A team of collaborators may need a whiteboard or overhead projectors to help share their vision with other team members.

BluDesks have a wide selection of fully-equipped ad hoc meeting rooms to choose from. With co-working spaces all over the city, you have the option to choose meeting rooms of various sizes that have the equipment you require such as AV facilities, wide-screen TVs, a variety of plug sockets and Wi-Fi.

Saves Time

The BluDesks model is designed for your convenience. We host a large number of co-working spaces on our website so that you can find the most suitable meeting room for your needs.

With a single login, you have access to ad hoc meeting rooms all over the city in which you live – and in multiple locations around the world. With this many meeting rooms at your fingertips, you won’t waste so much time skipping from one coworking space provider to the next.

To take advantage of the benefits are pay-as-you-go meeting rooms offer, sign up for a BluDesks Membership today.

Interviewing In Coffee Shops? Really!

Date: Thu Mar 31 Author: Chelliah Nakeeran

Conducting an interview is something of a trend these days. And as more businesses and start-ups pursue remote working, the trend is likely to increase.

But is interviewing in coffee shops a good idea?

Edward Avila, the vice president of talent acquisition at Alation suggests recruiters to “try to avoid” interviewing in coffee shops.

On the other hand, coffee shop interviews can be a useful pre-screening opportunity. If you’re interviewing for a critical position, a casual chat over a coffee can help you evaluate candidates you would like to move on to the next stage.

The noisy environment of a coffee shop can also help you to determine whether a candidate can concentrate in the vibrant atmosphere of an office. Or evaluate how they operate under pressure in a chaotic environment imbued with distractions.

However, none of these screening strategies actually translate into a worthwhile interview.

How do candidates feel about coffee shop interviews?

Opinions on the topic of interviewing in coffee shops are divided. Some candidates may like the casual approach and a free coffee, whilst others can’t understand why recruiters think it’s a good idea.

Depending on the type of interview you intend to conduct it may not be a good idea at all. As a matter of fact, interviewing in coffee shops may not even be ethical.

Interviews should be private and confidential. Candidates would prefer not to discuss personal things and may feel uncomfortable answering some questions when they know the person at the next table can hear them.

Meeting a stranger in a coffee shop can also create an awkward greeting. In an already tense situation, recruiters invite unnecessary stress and pressure on themselves and on candidates.

Interviewing in coffee shops does not create a good impression

Millennials are known for being choosy about the type of company they work for. They want to know about the culture of a company to determine if the job is a good fit for the lifestyle they want.

When you hold interviews in a coffee shop, you deny candidates the opportunity to get a feel for the environment they will be working in and assess where they will be spending their days.

They do not have the opportunity to see your office, experience the atmosphere or meet the people they could be working with. All these things are decision making factors for some people – especially top talent who will no doubt have more than one job offer coming their way.

It’s worth considering that at the time of writing, the number of vacancies in the UK job market is at an all-time high. With more opportunities open to more people, the onus is on recruiters to make a good impression on the candidates they want to recruit.

Wrap up

Coffee shops are rarely the best choice for conducting an interview. They are fine for casual interviews with a view to assess whether the personality of a candidate is a good fit for the team and company culture.

However, casual interviews should come after you have already interviewed the candidate to assess how qualified they are for the job. And serious interviews should take place in a professional environment.

If you need a private room to host interview candidates, BluDesks can help. We have hundreds of meeting rooms available near you. And they’re easy to book with one simple login and a wide choice of locations.