With the world of business evolving at a rate faster than ever before, it’s easier than ever to venture into new markets, cross time-zones, and collaborate with businesses that were previously out of reach. It’s not just the development of communication technologies that are keeping us globally connected, with modern business practices it’s now achievable to expand enterprises quickly.
At the heart of this trend is the satellite office. But, what exactly is a satellite office?
A traditional definition is as follows: An office space set up in a different geographical location designed to carry on the work of a larger company across multiple areas – however, to simplify it: a satellite office is your main base of operations.
A satellite office is often called a branch, support, local, or sometimes an enterprise office. However, the value of the satellite office is rooted in its dynamism and interconnectivity, which makes the option of a satellite office better suited to the modern corporate universe – as a modern HQ.
Of course, with advancements in new communication technologies - there’s sometimes no longer a need to be physically on the ground in a new location. Why bother meeting in person when you can just Zoom someone instead?
While that’s a fine enough solution for some, as any successful business will tell you, if you’re looking to expand, nothing beats having a physical presence on the ground.
In times gone by, expanding a business’ presence to a new location required serious investment, but this simply isn’t the case anymore. The modern satellite office can be set up with maximum cost-effectiveness as well as speed.
At Christie Spaces, we offer fully furnished satellite office spaces, complete with desks, chairs, printers, kitchens, breakrooms, and super-fast WiFi. With flexible contracts available, it’s easy to get your new location up and running quickly, scaling your operations on the go.
How Does a Satellite Office Work?
Just as every business is unique, so too are their satellite offices. The general point is to keep a physical office space in another location. But there are a lot of different ways to use this space.
A typical set-up is to keep a core working group in the satellite office and at times also rotate workers in and out of this space. In particular, executives may only need to be there on a part-time basis, or only at the beginning of the expansion. While on the ground workers, may need a space to check-in or use certain facilities periodically.
The way in which this satellite office is laid out generally depends on the particular needs of the business. Usually, an essential aspect of moving into a new location is having facilities available for face-to-face meetings. In a coworking space, this may differ from dedicated meeting rooms to bookable meeting rooms. Onsite training facilities may also be needed for recruitment, regular staff training or as an end of the year or quarterly events.
Depending on how you use your satellite office, you may want to configure it to include collaborative workspaces, private offices, meeting rooms, or a mixture of these. Christie Spaces provides the opportunity to fully customise your workspace so you don’t have to compromise on functionality in your new location.
Why Set Up a Satellite Office?
Some reasons to set up a satellite office include starting a new collaboration with another business, developing on an existing client relationship, accessing a wider talent pool, offering customers more direct contact, reconsidering your space needs, or growing your space to help expand your business.
In a general sense, a satellite office space allows you to create more personal relationships with the main players in your industry, such as clients, customers, collaborators, and suppliers. Being there in person lets these people know that your company is personally engaged in the new location, and gives you a guaranteed space to host meetings, training sessions and corporate events – a personal touch which can give you an edge in the market.
It also means your business can be more efficient. Being close to the action, and with strong personal relationships in place, you can receive quicker and higher-quality feedback from your operations.
One of the most important reasons to consider a satellite office is to seek out new opportunities and take advantage of existing ones. While having a clear strategy of expansion is essential, it shouldn’t be so inflexible as to stop the company from taking opportunities as they arise. A strategy to expand through a satellite office can actively incorporate new and untried elements – with the room and flexibility to actively expand or roll back as your business requires.
Of course, one of the great things about a satellite office is that it can be established with very low costs, meaning that little investment is needed to access high-upside possibilities. Christie Spaces offers completely customised satellite office spaces fully set up with all the amenities your business needs.
So, is your company ready to expand into a satellite office?
