What have we learned from the last 12 months? We are seeing the workspace industry in Australia adapting to a radical shift in approach to the office, and its role for business.
The last year has been a period of change in all regions. The office has no option but to evolve to keep up with the needs and expectations of the client, and the associated workplace strategies which are developing as a result.
The importance of agility has been heightened by the pandemic. The agility inherent in the flexible office sector will become critical to businesses as they adapt to change, propelling the industry forward for the remainder of 2021 and into the future, and Australia is no exception.
The ability to right-size and right-purpose offices to meet the changing needs of the workforce who occupy them is now a top priority for heads of business, but more than that, they need to be in a position to react quickly to any future changes.
Across Australia, we are seeing an appetite for flexible workspace solutions, with both transaction size and length having increased over the past year. Businesses are seeing the benefits of moving away from a traditional office model and the focus is on creating a real estate model that will withstand any future changes.
Although our data shows that the recovery of the flex industry has been well underway during 2021, however, we publish this report against a backdrop of another round of lockdowns across the country, and the uncertainty that this brings. However, we believe that it is still a time for optimism from our observations of other global markets where the flex industry has bounced back strongly following each lockdown, with pent-up demand being released over the following three-month period.
Download the full report to see how the data suggests a significant shift is already underway and how the market is adapting its approach from a supply and demand perspective.
"The next 24 months will see businesses of all sizes reassessing the use of their office. It is a time to test different designs, locations and modes of working, as well as explore alternative routes to delivery. Demand for workspace has quickly returned but buyers are looking for short-term options to rethink the very purpose of their workspace. It will make for a unique point of time in the history and function of the office itself."
Sean Lynch, APAC Managing Director, The Instant Group