I think if you would ask any man on the street about where the United States is at economically right now, and they would say it’s a bit of a basket case.
We hear almost daily about the rise of the new economies of China, India, and Brazil.
But if one digs a little deeper, Read the rest of this entry »
A few weeks ago I wrote about work space consultant Philip Ross’ ideas about how to increase productivity through rethinking how and where we work.
His ideas really struck a chord with me, and it got me to thinking about how many businesses today are being confronted by really getting to grips with figuring how much space they really need, and how to group their activities.
For instance, today 15 to 17 percent of a work space is taken up with Read the rest of this entry »
I’ve just completed a project for an engineering firm that has been operating from a number of locations around the Auckland region.
The aim was to achieve cost savings and greater efficiency.
Working through their strategy and their functions, it became clear they would be best to Read the rest of this entry »
Auckland businesses face an interesting time in the coming months as business confidence picks up, major event such as the Rugby World Cup hit town, and commodity prices continue upwards.
BNZ economist Tony Alexander says business confidence is the best it’s been for nearly 18 months.
Coupling these facts with research data on the commercial rental market, I’m suggesting the market is about to hit a very interesting crossroad. Read the rest of this entry »
The major thrust of my blogs over the past several years has been to focus on the issues surrounding commercial property leases.
I have often talked too about the need for flexibility in leases, strategies for commercial property leasing and innovative thinking about business locations.
And given the fast changing property markets, I have started to extend my thinking, and indeed the services I offer clients, to strategies for owner-occupied commercial property portfolios.
I’ve just read a great paper written by Philip Ross an internationally renowned consultant who is an expert in technology’s impact on the work place.
What’s great about his point of view is that it is both visionary and practical.
I love that; when new ideas have a very immediate practical application. And particularly in the case of business, improve results.
I’ve often talked in this blog about the need for both flexible and strategic thinking about the location and range of premises a business has.
The reasons regarding productivity, efficiency and taking advantage of technology to work at a range of sites all make good sense.
But the natural disasters from the Queensland floods, to the Christchurch earthquakes and Japanese earthquake/tsunami/nuclear trifecta have given us another very stark reason for flexible locations. Read the rest of this entry »
I think no matter where we live, we are all reeling in the aftermath of the series of natural disasters of the past few months; the Queensland floods, the Christchurch earthquake, and Japan’s tsunami and nuclear plant disasters.
It is really hard to rise above the shock and horror to think about what’s next, and what we can do to safeguard the future.
The Christchurch earthquake has the whole country reeling, for people both close to the tragedy and those far away.
I think most of us are really simply lost for words to describe the enormity of it. The devastation has hit on so many, many levels.
And we all come to terms with the shock in our own ways.
For myself, I am lucky not to have anyone close to me deeply affected.
In a professional capacity, I am already working with clients in Christchurch as they assess how to go about picking up the pieces. They are deeply traumatised and very unsure about what to do next as they stare through rubble, past armoured personnel carriers and cordons at where they used to work.
We have just added a case study on Zeald’s recent move to new premises to the Parallel Directions website. The purpose of this blog article is to give you more background on the events leading up to the move. You can read the full case study here to find out more about the solution and outcome.
Zeald.com, the rapid-growth web design and e-commerce firm, had been happily ensconced in its high-profile building alongside the northern motorway for only two and a half years when disaster struck.
I’ve just concluded some successful negotiations and located new properties for an IT company. The interesting thing was that we decided the best fit for their business strategy and brand was to move on from a highly visible location.
The usual take on property is “location, location, location”.
But is mainstreet, i.e. expensive CBD real estate, always the best place for a business?
The impacts of natural disasters on people around the world and close to home have been top of mind for us all in the past few months.
It brought home to me how vulnerable we are wherever we live and work.
I had a personal experience working with relocating businesses affected by the Christchurch earthquake, and it gave me a firsthand experience of how devastating this sort of disaster can be. And of course those impacts are continuing with the ongoing aftershocks.
