Take a fresh look at your premises and ask whether they are still suitable for the direction of your business.
If you think you need more space, ask yourself what for? It may seem obvious but it is actually a key question.
Are you planning to expand by taking on more staff, have you simply outgrown your accommodation, or is it just that you need somewhere for business meetings, training sessions, even events or exhibitions and your current space doesn’t present the right image.
The decision to move offices, perhaps invest in new premises can be a difficult one, is your business at a stage when such a heavy long term commitment should be undertaken? For many companies at this transitional stage, serviced offices can be a good answer. Serviced offices are smart, well maintained, fully staffed and come without a long term commitment. You just rent the amount of space and the services you need on a regular basis, and rent conference or meeting rooms at the same place by the hour if you need them.
If you are just looking for occasional meeting, function or event space equipped with audio visual equipment and with catering available, then a specialised conference or event company will be able to meet your needs. They always have an experienced team of event co-coordinators and meeting rooms suitable for small board meetings or interviews, up to spaces suitable for large conferences, product launches or exhibitions.
If, however, you are basically satisfied with the offices you have but just want to smarten them up or make better use of existing space, then an office design company should be your first port of call. Likewise if you do decide to invest in a completely new office, call in the professionals.
Moving into new offices of your own is an exciting time, but a heavy financial commitment. It is, therefore, well worth making sure that you make the best use of the space, that it is laid out in the most practical and efficient way and presents the right image.
When the day comes that you collect the keys and unlock the door to your future have an office designer by your side. Ensuring that your premises reflect your vision can be a daunting task even if this isn’t your first venture and you are an old hand with years of experience behind you, to get the look just right requires know-how.
Choose a design company used to working in your sector, someone terrific at designing nightclubs or garden centres, while highly talented, should perhaps, not be first on your list.
Sit down with your designer and discuss what you are hoping to achieve, and how your business works. A good designer will want to know quite a lot about your business in order to come up with a design suitable just for you. Make sure you set a budget during your discussions; it can be very disappointing if your designer comes up with something fabulous that is beyond your pocket.
A professional office interior designer will be thoroughly aware of the latest design trends, and aware of developments in the fields of office technology, ergonomic design and energy saving measures. They will be able to advise on open plan working, the case for and against hot-desking, heating and lighting systems, to say nothing of appropriate use of colour and graphics.
They will be keen to show you their portfolio of projects and you should take the opportunity to go and visit them. See how they make you feel, are they imaginative yet comfortable, do you feel relaxed, but evidently not too relaxed, and most importantly do you like what you see, after all this is the environment you and your staff will be working in every day.
Contribute your own ideas to the mix to help your designer come up with compelling ideas and layouts. A good design agency should offer design solutions packed with creativity that nonetheless reflect the individual character of the many venues they have worked with over the years.
So the answers to your space conundrums are many and all come back to the original questions, are your premises still suitable, and if not, in what way do they no longer meet the needs of your business?