Working at Home vs Getting an Office
Working at Home vs Getting an Office
5 things to Consider when Finding your First office or Moving from a Home-Based Office
1. Term of the Lease: This first office lease will probably be one of the bigger commitments and liabilities of your business. Make sure the lease term is flexible and is within your budget now based on current cash flow not future projections. Most small businesses start with a 1-2 year lease because month to month leases are difficult to find.
2. Location, Location, Location: The location of your first office is a balance of price and quality of life. You can find an office 7 miles from your house in a more affordable location but your commute might be long and you might have an issue with safety. Focus on a location that is convenient for employees (or future employees) and one that is priced right. Commute times within the Bay Area have a drastic effect on your employee’s qualities of life and should be considered. Another thing to consider about your location is potential crime. Have there been break-ins in the neighborhood recently? Would an employee feel comfortable working in the building alone, or walking to their car or public transportation after working late on a project? All of these issues should be considered when considering your first office
3. Amenities: What restaurants and coffee shops are available nearby? Being in an isolated office park can be a very bad situation for the comfort of employees. At times it cannot be helped, but being in close proximity to the amenities employees use during their lunch break can be a huge recruiting and productivity advantage.
4. Expansion or Reduction of Space: If things go well, you will be thinking about business expansion and you don’t want your space or your lease holding you back. It is important to have a conversation with the owner about how much expansion space is available and an option to break your lease if it’s not available. If business is not going well, it is important to have an option to sublease your space or to buy out of the lease obligation.
5. Parking/Public Transit: Transportation and parking are two of the most pressing issues in the Bay Area. The proximity to public transportation and affordable and convenient parking are extremely important. The more transportation options the better.
Working at Home vs Getting an Office - To learn more about this author, visit Garrett Krueger's Website.
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Need an Office?
5 things to Consider when Finding your First office or Moving from a Home-Based Office
1. Term of the Lease: This first office lease will probably be one of the bigger commitments and liabilities of your business. Make sure the lease term is flexible and is within your budget now based on current cash flow not future projections. Most small businesses start with a 1-2 year lease because month to month leases are difficult to find.
2. Location, Location, Location: The location of your first office is a balance of price and quality of life. You can find an office 7 miles from your house in a more affordable location but your commute might be long and you might have an issue with safety. Focus on a location that is convenient for employees (or future employees) and one that is priced right. Commute times within the Bay Area have a drastic effect on your employee’s qualities of life and should be considered. Another thing to consider about your location is potential crime. Have there been break-ins in the neighborhood recently? Would an employee feel comfortable working in the building alone, or walking to their car or public transportation after working late on a project? All of these issues should be considered when considering your first office
3. Amenities: What restaurants and coffee shops are available nearby? Being in an isolated office park can be a very bad situation for the comfort of employees. At times it cannot be helped, but being in close proximity to the amenities employees use during their lunch break can be a huge recruiting and productivity advantage.
4. Expansion or Reduction of Space: If things go well, you will be thinking about business expansion and you don’t want your space or your lease holding you back. It is important to have a conversation with the owner about how much expansion space is available and an option to break your lease if it’s not available. If business is not going well, it is important to have an option to sublease your space or to buy out of the lease obligation.
5. Parking/Public Transit: Transportation and parking are two of the most pressing issues in the Bay Area. The proximity to public transportation and affordable and convenient parking are extremely important. The more transportation options the better.
Working at Home vs Getting an Office - To learn more about this author, visit Garrett Krueger's Website.
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Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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