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Hand selected flexible workspace news from the most reliable sources to keep you ahead of the pack. We find all the latest news, so you don’t have to. Morning and afternoon updates. Stay in the know.
Here’s what you need to know today:
- Hera Hub To Open New Minneapolis Location
- What If Mondays Were Fun?
- Revamping Employee Benefits For The Future
- The Wing Reopens New York City Spaces
- The Return To The Brand New Workplace
- Former Pizza Express To Become A Coworking Space In Leeds
Hera Hub To Open New Minneapolis Location
Female-oriented coworking firm Hera Hub will open a new location in downtown Minneapolis this year, taking up around 1,000 square feet in CommonGrounds Workplace on South Marquette Avenue.
The company also has plans to open locations in San Jose and Salt Lake City as part of its partnership with CommonGrounds.
Currently, Hera Hub has 500 members across six spaces in the country, not including the new location.
At the moment, Hera Hub is looking for a licensee to run its Minneapolis location, as it typically operates through licensing models.
According to founder Felena Hanson, the long-term goals for the space haven’t been decided yet.
“It could be something where we get a community started in the [CommonGrounds] space and then move on and open a bigger space,” said Hanson.
What If Mondays Were Fun?
The popularity of the hybrid workplace may mean coming into the office Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, but where does that leave Monday and Friday?
Employees are likely to choose this schedule to avoid the Sunday Scaries. However, what would happen if workers actually looked forward to Mondays?
Even if workers enjoy their job, many will state that switching from the calm of the weekend to sudden work mode on Monday can throw them out of whack.
The pandemic has contributed to the blurred lines between work and home, with many employees working longer hours over the past year than ever before. If business leaders can combat the fear of Monday, they can help keep workers engaged and stress levels low.
However, instead of throwing employees into the deep end of the pool on Mondays, managers can use the day for community building, collaboration and overall lighter days for work-related tasks. This eases employees into the work week, and allows the middle of the week to be reserved for heavy meetings and more focused work.
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Instead of rolling out of bed, grabbing a cup of coffee and anxiously sorting through your emails, Monday could serve as a time for mindfulness.
Taking the morning to lay out your goals for the week, understanding your purpose and how you can contribute to the company’s bottom line can help create a collective consciousness across all team members.
Revamping Employee Benefits For The Future
American Express became the first private company to offer retirement benefits in 1875, with their retirees receiving 50% of the salary earned during their last decade with the company.
Employee benefits have been a mainstay in the workplace for centuries now to attract and retain top talent. Today’s workplace benefits largely focus on improving the wellbeing and health of employees so that they stay engaged, satisfied and productive.
This has become a significant focus, as the past year has led many workers to suffer from increased mental health issues. But as we enter a new era of the workplace, what can business leaders do to adjust and improve their current benefits offerings?
Coaching has become increasingly popular in recent years as it has direct ties to improving worker welling and productivity levels. For instance, talent insurance allows companies to help teach their workers how to be mindful in the workplace, find purpose, identify emotional triggers and adopt tools to avoid burnout.
According to the Employee Benefits Trend Study, 86% of employees stated that finances were their top source of stress. The past year meant layoffs, cutbacks and other financial losses, which is why financial wellness offerings are a necessity today.
This can be done through financial coaching that helps guide fresh-out-of-school young workers struggling with debt or new parents trying to save for their child’s college tuition.
The Wing Reopens New York City Spaces
Female-oriented coworking company The Wing has announced that it has reopened its New York City offices and also brought on a new slew of leaders to help improve the company’s policies.
Its new leaders include Robbin Mitchell, a partner and managing director at Boston Consulting Group, who will be joining executive chairwoman Sheila Lirio Marcelo. Together, they will work to expand The Wing’s locations across the country.
“I couldn’t be more excited to join The Wing’s board of directors with a focus on retail and operations, where I will be providing support to The Wing on scaling operations and regrowing its retail and partnerships in the spaces for members to take advantage of,” said Mitchell. “It has been a very challenging time for women — especially women in the workforce — so the need to think creatively and thoughtfully about work and workspaces is more critical than ever.”
The company has also launched an Advisory Board to help navigate operations and diversity efforts, which will work alongside the Board of Directors to provide feedback about company policy, programs and events.
The Return To The Brand New Workplace
As employees finally return to their office, they will find that their former workspace has undergone a major transformation.
In an effort to make the workspace safe and free of the Covid-19, companies have totally revamped their workspaces. Whether it’s reducing their overall office footprint, incorporating movable walls or adding touchless technology to reduce the spread of disease, the office will definitely look different than it did pre-pandemic.
For employees of design and engineering consultancy Arcadis NV, they will be able to choose between 20 different workspaces through an app when they come into the company’s new London offices next month. The Building Intelligence app will also help monitor the amount of space that is occupied and set capacity limits when necessary.
“The app is the critical enabler,” said Mark Cowlard, UK CEO of Arcadis. “It helps us understand when people are using meeting spaces so they can be cleaned afterward.”
Another big change expected from the workplaces of the future will be the introduction of more outdoor areas. For instance, the Lloyd’s Building in London has introduced external ventilation ducts that help keep fresh air in the space.
CBRE has also been providing its clients on how to address inevitable issues that will come from the post-pandemic workplace, including how to keep workers safe and what they need to incorporate to keep them engaged.
Former Pizza Express To Become A Coworking Space In Leeds
Spacemade will transform a former Pizza Express into a coworking space at Park House in Leeds.
Spacemade, which partners with landlords to offer bespoke flex space, was brought in by the building’s owner to take over the 16,000 square feet of space that a serviced office provider had taken up.
“Non-essential retail and hospitality have suffered particularly hard during Covid-19,” said Jonathan Rosenblatt, cofounder of Spacemade. “Rather than letting disused sites become blank spaces in our cities and towns, many landlords are looking at change of use and bringing these spaces back to life with coworking.”
According to Richard Hatter of Epsilon Real Estate, which owns Park House, the company is aiming to reposition the building in order to meet the growing demand for flexible workspaces for the future of work.
“[Rather] than lease the space to traditional operator, we wanted to build the infrastructure ourselves and retain a working knowledge of the operations inside the building,” said Hatter. “Spacemade was the natural partner to achieve this and their platform, together with the team’s sound market knowledge, has helped us to create a new and exciting proposition that delivers the perfect mix of amenity and space provision.”
