AGILE ORGANISATIONS
Andrew Liveris, CEO of The Dow Chemical Company says “All innovation has become short cycle…Speed is survival.” According to Forbes the average tenure of a Fortune 500 CEO is 4.6 years. PwC’s Annual Global CEO Survey for 2015 says that the restless pursuit of ‘what’s new’ has meant that 51% of CEOs planned to enter into new strategic alliances or joint ventures in 2015. This restlessness means the workplace industry must deliver an agile work environment that allows businesses to jump on opportunities faster.
An agile organisation will continually observe, test, discuss, measure and be prepared to tweak and change the space they work in.
Property portfolios are now orientating towards a core space on longer leases supplemented with flexible space on short leases and co-working space. This portfolio shape will enable businesses to handle peaks and troughs with headcount and navigate longer term supply and demand.
Fast-growth businesses consistently demonstrate that business agility is contingent on a socially cohesive organisation. Human beings are social animals and work is a social institution. So, collaboration is contingent on social infrastructure. And that collaboration must be enabled and enhanced by investment in technology that helps the business to remain flexible and dynamic.
In fact, Leesman data shows being able to support collaborative activities is a differentiator between average and high performing workplaces. Agility requires work spaces to be fit for both collaborative and insular thinking.