Will the work-from-home revolution shrink your office?

Sheldon Lewenfus, vice president of MedPoint Management, stands where hybrid work stations will be placed at the company’s new headquarters inside the Sherman Oaks Galleria. “Having an office space reinforces company culture, so you don’t have people constantly leaving if they feel they are free agents working from home,” said Michael Soto, a director of research for real estate brokerage Savills. “We simply don’t really know that when the fear of virus goes away whether people’s feelings around coming back into the office will change,” White said, “but there is still a fairly significant need that most employees, and certainly most companies, see for the office in a very profound way.” Some clients and companies White knows are exploring shrinking their offices, he said, “but broadly speaking we are not seeing that.” Tension over returning to the office is a chicken-and-egg dilemma for many who are vaccinated and might come back voluntarily if others did too, he said. “There is a realization now that the office space needs to compete with your home office,” he said, because it’s been proved people can easily perform many tasks remotely. Some companies with higher profit margins With its lease expiring, MedPoint didn’t have the luxury of waiting and chose a smaller office in a nicer building at the Sherman Oaks Galleria that offers employees amenities such as restaurants, a gym and movie theaters, said real estate broker Greg Lovett of Cresa, who represents MedPoint.