How Telefónica sees the office of the future

Chris Early, Estates and Development Manager for Telefónica UK, joins Bold Founder, Caleb Parker, to talk about the future of work and how he expects commercial real estate to evolve in the coming years.

Chris believes on average we’re all going to need less space post-Covid.

He says he expects lease terms to shrink and permit more flexibility, and asks "how efficient is it for a company to provide all the amenities to their team, when they can choose a building where those services are already provided and shared by all customers of that building?"

In this episode you're going to hear how Telefónica is leaning into the future with flexible working, Chris’s view on Space-as-a-Service and why he believes BRAND MATTERS to enterprise customers to ensure a consistent experience for their teams.

Connect with Chris on LinkedIn

Connect with Caleb on LinkedIn

If you have any questions or feedback on this episode, email podcast@workbold.co

Value Bombs

• Telefonica has 26 sites across the UK, and 700,000 SqFt of office space
• Expects lease terms to shrink and permit more flexibility
• Looking to trim down legacy low efficient regional sites and focus on the larger hubs
• How efficient is it for a company to provide all amenities to their team, when they can choose a building where those services are provided and shared by all customers of the building?
• Some companies will partner with Space-as-a-Service operators to reduce lease liabilities and share with other customers
• The office of the future 
  • must be super connected, so people can move seamlesly between activity based work settings with whatever device they’re using. 
  • Must have space for introverts and extroverts - we can’t expect everyone to just go work from home
• On average we’re all going to need less space
• But we need that space to be more efficient, and we’re going to need to share amenities
• Flex is not just about lease terms
• People aren’t going to come back into the office like they did pre-Covid
• Some companies will democratise workplace choice
• If people commute less there is an inherent cost savings that could be used for booking Thirdspace
• Some companies will subsidise their team’s Thirdplace usage
• Brand matters to enterprise customers to ensure a consistent experience for their teams
• We could see a future where the CRE Agent/Broker community manages flexible and transient workspace bookings for enterprise employees

About Chris Early

Chris Early is Estates and Development manager for Telefónica UK, who owns O2, one of the largest telecommunications networks in the United Kingdom.

He oversees the entire building life cycle, from acquisition to disposal, as well as office design and fit-out, space management and facilities management. His leadership helps the team deliver an efficient office and technical estate which is designed to meet the needs of a fast-changing business. 

Chris came into corporate real estate through an unconventional route. In 2001 he started out as a contractor, managing cell site acquisition in Central London. He then moved from build and implementation roles, through the setup of Cornerstone (the network share with Vodafone) and eventually into his role today in Property. He has a master’s degree in commercial property law.

Chris has a particular interest in new ways of working, as a tool to improve the world of work more widely, and he’s focused on helping his team deliver for their customers.

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