If you’re searching for a new office space location, you probably have a list of criteria for the new property dictated by the company. Adding some of the criteria your employees are likely to want can benefit you and your business in the long run. There can be many benefits to choosing a office space location that’s convenient for current and prospective employees. Having a suitable location can help you recruit new talent and keep current employees with you over time, reducing your turnover rate. It can help your current employees have a shorter, less stressful commute and a healthy balance between time at home and at the office.
Why Choose an Office Location That’s Convenient for Employees?
Choosing a favorable location for employees can help you at every stage of the employee life cycle. An office space location that is easily accessible by public transportation or offers ample parking will encourage more applicants to come to your door when your business is hiring. If you are on a public transportation route, you will open your applicant pool to people who may not have a vehicle of their own, but want to work. Being easily accessible eliminates the need for employees to call in with car trouble or miss work because they did not have a ride. Plus, having a short commute is seen as a highly desirable benefit for many employees, especially in large cities. Being close to amenities, like gyms, restaurants and climate controlled parking, will also go a long way towards keeping employees happy.
Related: The Ultimate Checklist for Choosing a Perfect Business Location [Free PDF Download]
What Benefits Are There to Choosing a Convenient Location?
Today’s millennial workforce is looking for much more than a paycheck from an employer. They want to work for a company that allows them to have a healthy work/life balance and cares about their well-being. In larger cities, potential employees have a large group of employers to choose from, and a favorable location can easily make you a more desirable employer than other surrounding businesses. Other benefits include:
- Attracting more applicants for open positions.
- Giving current employees many ways to get to the office, decreasing absences.
- Being seen as a desirable employer by potential and current employees.
- Helping employees achieve a healthy work life balance by minimizing time spent on commute.
Before choosing a new location, try to look at it through the eyes of your employees, and ask yourself what they are likely to think about:
- Will they be able to find and afford parking nearby?
- If they choose to take public transportation, how far will they have to walk from the bus or subway stop to get to work?
- Is the neighborhood safe?
- Will they feel safe leaving the office alone after dark or working late shifts by themselves?
- Does the location have options nearby where they can get lunch or run errands?
All of these small things factor into the employee’s day to day life and can create large problems in the long run. By taking these aspects into consideration, you can keep employees happy and increase your desirability as an employer.
What Possible Solutions Can You Offer Inconvenienced Employees?
No matter what location you choose, there are some employees who will be affected by a change in location. These employees may approach you with a proposed plan of action, or may bring you their concerns and wait for you to propose a solution. Some of the ways you can help these employees deal with the transition include:
- Looking into offering shuttle buses for large groups of employees who have to park far away.
- Considering schedule changes for employees who are most impacted by the change.
- Considering subsidizing parking costs for employees.
- Before moving, looking into whether or not there are public transportation options nearby.
- Investigating alternate scheduling options, such as a four day work week or remote work.
Keeping your employees in mind is just one of many factors that come into play when choosing a new business location.
Download our Ultimate Checklist for Choosing a Perfect Business Location for a complete list of pivotal questions you’ll want to ask yourself when searching for a new office space.
