Funding Ideas for Your South Florida Business

When your new company starts showing exceptional profit, it’s time to consider growth and investment. Real estate is one of the surest ways to invest in your company’s future growth, giving you a professional location for employees to come into work and clients to meet you. If you are interesting in investing in commercial real estate, but need funding to do so, consider the ideas below.

• Bootstrapping allows you to keep total control over the investing process. In this case you draw funding from credit cards, savings and possibly equity from your home. If you succeed, you have no one to pay back but yourself, but it is a risky form of investment.
• Bank financing also allows you to maintain sole equity in the business and can also prove useful down to the road if you need additional funding. Be sure to prepare for a loan application to increase the likelihood of successfully obtaining a loan.
• If you’re new to real estate investing, seek out an angel investor that can show you the ropes and provide funding.

Make sure you are ready for your business to be up and running by preparing for a move into new offices in South Florida. Contact one of our real estate experts at Morris Southeast when you are ready to begin your search.

Keep Up With Workplace Trends to Stay Competitive

Harnessing today’s workplace trends is crucial to business success. B Your employees are bound to be aware of the trends through discussion with friends and families in other workplaces, and if your office is not moving with the times your employees may start seeking more current and relevant companies with which to work.

TelecommutingB Infrastructure

Employees have busier lives than ever. Many have to juggle the demands of children, elderly parents and long commutes. Creating infrastructure to allow employees to telecommuteB can help you retain top talent. It can also help lower sick leave costs, since employees can get work done from home when they or their children are feeling slightly unwell. B This will also keep sick employees from coming to work to avoid using a sick day and exposing other employees to illness and affecting overall productivity. B It also helps to be flexible about the traditional 9 to 5 schedule.

Professionalism Training

In the social media age, a single bad post under your company’s name can really hurt reputation. Training for professionalism is important; it can prevent huge PR disasters. To make training cost-effective, focus resources on in-service training and cut out after-hours “team building” activities. While you can enforce professionalism, you cannot force employees to become best friends, and attempting to do so only creates resentment.

Lifelong Learning

Today’s society is one of constant change; the business environment can turn on a dime due to advances in technology. Staying current requires lifelong learning on the part of workers. It pays to invest in your employees’ career development. B You also need to make sure your company itself is a lifelong learner and can stay on top of technology advances and changes in business styles. B Find an office space with plenty of power resources with the expectation that we will become more reliant on technology for everyday business tasks. B Collaborative workspaces are another growing shift in the business world, so you will want to have an office that is prepared for this change.

Contact Morris Southeast Group at 866-930-1426 for help finding an office in South Florida that can help your company stay on top of trends.

Projected Changes to Industrial Buildings in Miami May Boost the Commercial Real Estate Market

The Port Miami Tunnel and Panama Canal are nearing B the end of renovations, which will make them more efficient trade ports. As global industry increases, Miami must update its commercial structures to stay relevant in the global trade economy. Recently, the Realtors Commercial Alliance in Miami outlined some of the changes that are likely to take place as part of the renovation process.

Due to the changes in the ports, commercial structures must be updated to accommodate the types of goods that will be traded and maintain international standards. B It is likely that older buildings will be retro-fitted with these requirements and new offices will be designed to benefit the new trade opportunities.B As a result of increased trade coming to Miami, you will witness a surge in commercial real estate as jobs are created and more office space is needed to accommodate the growing global trade industry.

For those seeking more information, you can attend or read notes from a six-panel discussion held May 31 at Port Miami. B If you are looking for South Florida Commercial Real Estate, contact Morris SoutheastB to speak with B one of our dedicated real estate agents about your move.

Stressed About Moving Your Office? Prepare With These Tips

Moving an office from one location to another is a very stressful process, as you have no control of certain aspects in the move. Upper management will provide enough time for you to move an office, but you will have to follow certain guidelines.

Here are tips to be less stressed about moving your office:

Preparing for the Upcoming Move

The initial preparation for an upcoming move is the most important part of the entire process. All aspects of the pending move must be planned in advance, as businesses are all about making money. A good office move is both time and cost-efficient, employees must receive a copy of the moving plans in their mailbox, and post them all throughout the building on moving day.

Correspond With Your Staff

Communication is a key ingredient for any successful office move. The less questions asked on moving day, the better you have communicated the plan to all involved. Color-coded labeling on all furniture and office equipment is an important tool in the moving process.

Inspect New Building

You must personally examine the condition and size of the elevators at the new location. They must be large enough to handle large office equipment.

Universal Design in the Office Can Be a Good Investment

Modern offices should be accessible to people of all ages and abilities. B With the aging baby boomer population and people retiring later in life, more of the workforce is going to require universal design features in the office. B Their needs can be safely accommodated with the right office space design.

• Safety and comfort are important for office flooring. B Low profile floor coverings, often modular carpet tiles with high density backing, offer comfort for walking and standing.B Flooring should be smooth enough for wheelchairs and prevent high-heeled shoes from getting caught in carpet yarn.
• Extra space gives a person in a wheelchair a little more room for maneuvering. B It also helps to spread out workstations so that people do not feel cramped. B People with desk jobs also need space to stand, stretch and move around at various intervals.
• Ergonomic desks and chairs are also important for comfort no matter what your age or physical abilities. B Modern swivel chairs are now designed with lower back support.
• Lighting should always be adequate and free from glare to prevent eye strain. Older staff members will find their eyes changing as they age, and good lighting can keep all of your employees more comfortable.

The right office environment can lower employee injury and absentee rates.B Morris Southeast Group can help you find office space that provides safe and comfortable working conditions for people of all ages and abilities.

Creating an Effective Conference Room

It should surprise no one that team oriented work spaces are becoming more and more popular. More work gets done in a team setting and great ideas are exchanged when teams are front and center. So how does one go about creating an effective conference room when you are looking around at office space? Here are some suggestions.

• Capacity: How big is the conference room in your office space going to need to be? This will most immediately determine what type of a conference room you are able to have.
• Image: What type of an image or style are you trying to get across in your office? This is another determining factor when you’re trying to hone in on the perfect room type.
• Use: How often will this conference room be used? Will teams meet here daily and keep notes and meetings flowing through? Or will this room be used for a multitude of different things, sometimes several in a day?

It’s also wise to decide what you’d like the layout to look like, what type of fixed and mobile amenities you would like and how efficient you need the space to be. Write down your needs and speak to Morris Southeast Group to let us help find commercial real estate that will meet your company’s needs for conference room space.