Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
Nirit Cohen – WorkFutures
Angela Howard – Culture Expert
Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
In last week’s article we mentioned how Regus Canada acquired Global Prime Office Networks in late December, 2015.
By now, Regus’ plans for expansion are no secret. We heard about their expansion last year from VP, Wayne Berger, and he hinted at continued expansion and growth for this 2016. Excited about the plans for this year, Berger even shared that Regus Canada will be celebrating its 15 year anniversary and the opening of its 100th location in the region.
But, as with every story, there’s a positive and a negative side to it. OT spoke with Isabel Garcia, former VP of Global Prime Office Networks, one of the various senior level staff members that was let go once Regus took over.
On Friday, December 18th the Managers were told that the sale of our company to Regus was finalized; at 4:30 we were told who they were keeping…the following Monday they [Regus] were the owners.
“They didn’t keep any senior people…we didn’t receive a reason why.” Garcia did say, however, that after being let go, she didn’t further inquire about the decision; she thought it best to leave it at that.
No managers were kept on staff and she believes no new managers will be hired. Her observations led her to believe that Regus will simply add new locations to the managers it already has, changing their role from location managers to area managers. An accurate observation from Garcia’s part, as it’s now been confirmed that existing Regus Managers will be in charge of Global Prime Office Network’s locations.
Having been made redundant, Garcia has experienced the unpleasant side-effects of Regus’ expansion. So asked about her thoughts on Regus’ acquisitions in Canada and globally, she responded:
“They acquired us and that’s it. There’s not much to say about it; they’re acquiring everyone.”
Our industry has been growing exponentially in the last years, and Garcia is aware that in order to be successful in it operators need to constantly find new ways in which to differentiate themselves. The growth outlook for the industry and wanting to start something that is fully directed to what clients now expect is Garcia’s motivator to remain within the industry after being let go by Regus.
“I’ve been involved in the serviced offices since 1989 and now is the best time to be in this industry. It coasted along for many years with little change and over the past 5-10 years so many exciting things have changed. It’s the best time to be in when so much is evolving!”
Global Prime Office Network’s locations are now operating under the Regus name in Canada. As for operations, Garcia got the impression, but didn’t confirm, that they’re minimizing the staff as well as the services offered to clients.
We look forward to seeing how the serviced office industry continues to grow and evolve globally and in Canada. We’ll especially keep an eye out on Isabel and her projects within the industry, as we’re sure she’s already got some great ideas to start developing in mind.
We contacted Wayne Berger to get Regus’ side of the story, but we hadn’t received a reply by the article’s publishing day.
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