The joy of somebody else's problem
Monday, 27 June 2011
I’m told by one of our long-standing clients that one of the joys of using serviced offices is that, on the odd occasion when something goes wrong, it’s our problem, not his and all he has to do is demand that we fix it. Happily we have an excellent support team and can generally fix most problems that are under our own control very quickly. However, I can understand his point of view. There are so many frustrations in modern life and so many layers of complexity – emails, IT systems, music systems, wifi devices, smartphones, websites and now, of course, kindles as well as tablets. All of these are brilliant and useful when they are working properly, be it in our personal or business lives. The minute there’s a problem – if it’s down to us as individuals to solve it – we can be letting ourselves in for hours and hours of frustration, stress and wasted time. This is where the joy of it being someone else’s problem comes in.
Serviced offices and office business centres such as ours work by providing a total office package to our clients (as opposed to managed offices suites where the client rents the space and dictates the infrastructure and fit-out themselves). That total package includes telephone and high speed internet, answering service, mail handling and forwarding as well as other elements such as facilities management, catering and administrative services when required. Buying into a bundled package such as this is an excellent way, particularly for smaller businesses, to punch above their weight. How many small businesses could afford to set up on their own from scratch in a listed building in the heart of the West End with all the associated business rates, staff costs, rents etc that come with such a prime location? How many could afford an impressive architect-designed lobby area or the highest spec copier/scanner? The more likely scenario for such businesses is a less desirable building, a less desirable location, lower specification services and certainly a lower standard of facilities all round. However, choose the office business centre option (run by the right operator) and suddenly a superior standard of everything is there for the taking. And, if there is a problem, oh the simple pleasure of picking up the phone and saying “you fix it.” If that’s not added value, I don’t know what is.
Philip Parris, Chairman, Harvard Managed Offices
27th June 2011
