Determining How Much Office Space You Need?

Determine Office Space Need

“How much office space do I need?” This is one of the biggest questions facing business owners looking to: expand out of their home office, move out of their current office space, or open up a remote office. There are many variables you need to consider before committing to commercial office space lease.  Here on some tips on how to determine office space need.

One Size Doesn’t Fit All

The amount of space needed for an office can vary widely by the type of business and workspace style desired. An office composed of mainly cubicles will then in private offices.

If you are the owner of an office-based sole proprietorship, you probably don’t really need much space. Even larger companies with similar numbers of employees will differ greatly when it comes to office space requirements. The answer to ‘how much office space do I need?’ will be completely different for an owner of a telemarketing company than it would be for a law firm, for example. The space required generally varies from 125 to 250 square feet per worker, but your figure will largely be reliant on your preferences and budget.

Common Spaces and Other Considerations

When determine office space need,  you should also consider whether your office will require a meeting room, conference room, reception area, quiet area, printer/fax areas, etc. If you are signing a long-term lease, you need to determine the number of employees throughout the entire lease. Does the space already have some kind of network setup that can fit your needs?

Be Prepared for Unexpected Changes

In addition to ‘how much office space do I need,’ you should be comfortable asking ‘Is this a reasonable space to occupy if things go downhill?’ The problem that many businesses owners who are locked into leases is that their team may expand or shrink due to company growth or the need to downsize. When a company downsizes, the space that they had is often a large, unnecessary drain. Because of this, many traditional office spaces end up contributing to the failure of the business during an economic downturn.

Find An Office with Flexibility

Ideally, an office would be able to expand or adapt as needed for a business. Many business centers have the kind of flexibility that traditional offices simply do not offer. The ability to increase or decrease your office’s size (and your rent) can be incredibly valuable for your business. Business centers offer short-term leases which are far more flexible then 3-5 years of traditional space.