One major drawback for a professional working from home is how to maintain a professional image for their clients. In addition, having mail and deliveries sent to a residential address compromises your privacy.
Smart professionals have learnt to use a well-run Business Centre to be their face to the world, and at the same time contain their overheads. Wilkin Group offers an array of ‘virtual office’ options to such businesses, and specifically tailor the offerings for each client.
Some enterprises just need a CBD business address for ASIC registration and delivery of mail and parcels. They are immediately notified of deliveries. Mail can be confidentially re-directed, whilst others use our ‘open and scan’ service.
Phones are an interesting quandary for many people who only wish certain people to have their private mobile number. Using a phone answering service – with calls answered here in Adelaide with highly trained receptionists – sets your business apart. Calls can be redirected to your mobile if you wish, but most clients prefer a message taken and instantly relayed for them to prioritise.
Most Business Centres have an array of meeting spaces, so when you need to meet with business associates you have an ideal and private place to do so in the Adelaide CBD and close to transport routes (and easy parking out the front).
But the best aspect is the price. You only pay for the service(s) you require, as and when you use them. For a fraction of the cost of an actual office, you present to the world a professional image. Ring today on (08) 7071 7273 to find out more.
As businesses evolve in the modern era, the concept of a traditional office is undergoing a transformation. In particular with more people working from home.
Virtual offices have become an increasingly popular solution for companies looking to establish a professional presence without the need for a physical workspace. At the Wilkin Group, we offer comprehensive Virtual Office Services designed to cater to the unique needs of businesses in the digital age.
If you’re considering a virtual office for your company, you might have some questions. Here are the top 10 frequently asked questions about virtual office services:
1. What is a Virtual Office?
A virtual office provides businesses with a professional address and essential services without the need for a physical office space. It allows companies to establish a credible and prestigious presence in a prime location without the associated costs and commitments of a traditional office space.
2. How Does a Virtual Office Benefit My Business?
Our Virtual Office Services offer a range of benefits, including a prestigious Adelaide CBD address for your business, landline number and phone answering, a secure mail management system, and access to essential facilities such as copying and printing services.
3. Is a Virtual Office Suitable for ASIC Registration?
Absolutely! Our services include a suitable address for ASIC registration, ensuring that your business meets all regulatory requirements.
4. How Does Mail Management Work?
Our secure mail management system includes parcel receipt services. We ensure that all your mail and packages are received and handled professionally, giving you peace of mind.
5. What Communication Services are Included?
We provide a dedicated landline number for your business, with all phone calls answered in Adelaide. Your calls are professionally handled in your company name during business hours, with messages relayed promptly.
6. Can Calls be Diverted After Business Hours?
Yes, call diversion after hours is part of our virtual office services. This ensures that you never miss important calls even outside regular business hours.
7. What Meeting Room Facilities are Available?
Our Premium Virtual Office Package includes 5 hours of meeting room use per month, allowing you to conduct business meetings in a professional setting when required. Or our Virtual clients can book and pay for meeting rooms as they need them.
8. Is Wi-Fi Available On-Site?
Complimentary Wi-Fi is available on-site, ensuring that you can stay connected and productive whenever you’re at our location.
9. What Additional Facilities are Provided?
When utilising our meeting rooms, you have access to a breakout lounge and kitchen on-site, creating a comfortable and collaborative environment for your team.
10. How Can I Get Started with The Wilkin Group’s Virtual Office Services?
At the Wilkin Group, we understand the changing dynamics of the business landscape. Our Virtual Office Services are designed to empower your business with flexibility, professionalism, and efficiency. If you have any more questions or would like to explore our services further, don’t hesitate to get in touch!
In the dynamic world of business, adaptability is key. Traditional office setups are evolving, and virtual offices are becoming a strategic choice for many forward-thinking companies. Wilkin Group, a leading provider of virtual office solutions in Adelaide, is paving the way for businesses to thrive in the modern landscape.
The Rise of Adelaide Virtual Offices
As businesses navigate the ever-changing demands of the market, the concept of a virtual office is gaining prominence. A virtual office at Wilkin Group allows companies to establish a prestigious address in the heart of Adelaide without the need for a physical space. This not only reduces overhead costs but also provides unparalleled flexibility.
Wilkin Group offers additional services like mail forwarding, telephone answering, and administrative support.
Focus on your core business activities while leaving the operational tasks to the experts.
Navigating the Adelaide Business Landscape
Adelaide is a thriving hub of commerce and innovation. Establishing a virtual office through Wilkin Group provides businesses with a strategic advantage. Enjoy the perks of a central location, without being bound by the limitations of a physical space. This flexibility is especially beneficial for startups, freelancers, and small to medium-sized enterprises looking to make their mark in Adelaide.
In the competitive business landscape of Adelaide, the decision to embrace a virtual office with Wilkin Group is a strategic move towards success. Unlock new possibilities, streamline your operations, and project a professional image with a virtual office tailored to your business needs.
Choose Wilkin Group for your Adelaide virtual office requirements and position your business for growth.
On the face of it, working from home seems like a great idea. No need to face traffic on the morning commute, no need to line up for an over-priced baguette at lunch and no boss looking over your shoulder as you try and clear your to do list during the afternoon. Technology and changing corporate perceptions have led to more people working from home and it looks like it’s a trend which is here to stay. However, as many home office warriors have discovered, working from your dining table may not be all it cracked up to be and isn’t the answer to all workplace issues that some would have you believe it is.
Your Kids Don’t Understand You’re Working
Even if you speak to your family and lay down the best plan for how you are going to work from home it can still be difficult to get the clear head space you need to be truly productive. As much as your family say they will respect the fact you need to work, they will always find it difficult to give you the actual space you need because they can physically see you all the time. The fact you are physically present, even if your mind is on the job, gives people the impression that you’re available to walk the dog, build a LEGO castle or whatever other job may spring to mind.
Distractions Everywhere You Turn
You won’t notice them when you are at home on weekends, but there are distractions at every turn when you are trying to get work done. That load of washing that needs to be hung out, the midday news on TV, checking the mail as soon as the postman has been – they’re things which somehow become urgent when working from home. One of the underrated roles of an effective workspace is to put you in an environment which is conducive to actually getting things done – distraction free.
You Lack Real Interactions
Thanks to technology, working from home is no longer the sentence to solitary confinement it once was. Between talking on the phone, teleconferencing and interacting on social media you are able to keep in touch with your colleagues whenever you need to from home. However, even with all of this technology we all still need to have ‘real’ face to face interactions from time to time. Unless you fancy inviting co-workers over to share the couch, this is something working from home just can’t provide.
You Can’t Collaborate With Your Kids
As the old saying goes, “two heads are better than one” and this is especially true when considering tough business issues. Unfortunately your 4 year old (if they’re anything like mine) is unlikely to come up with a new marketing idea or ways to improve your cashflow, so you need a resource which has a little more knowledge and experience. One of the perks of having a work environment where you have co-workers or other people around is that you always have a human knowledge bank at your disposal to assist when issues get a bit tricky. The human resource built into your work-space can also work for business development, as you never know who you might meet while making a coffee and what they might need that you can provide.
Do You Want To Meet At Your Kitchen Table?
As I am sure you appreciate, perception is everything and a big part of setting the right image for your business is how you meet with people. Even though there are a multitude of different digital technologies which provide remote meeting options, face to face meetings are still a critical part of any business. You can’t exactly bring a new client to your kitchen table to sign a contract or hold a sales presentation in the rumpus room while the kids are at school – you need to be able to set the right image for your business and you need to have somewhere professional to meet people.
The good news is that there are also a range of solutions which can support home workers and assist to make it a viable way to work. Wilkin Group works with a number of clients who spend the majority of their time working ‘out of the office’ to fill the gaps and make working from home a joy rather than a chore. Check out the Wilkin Group at www.wilkingroup.com.au, or ring them on (08) 7071 7273
Sometimes, right? And I’m betting it’s usually about something small too, like what to eat for dinner or if you should finish your work tomorrow when you feel more rested.
It’s really no surprise, life is nothing more than a bunch of small-scale decisions. But here’s the thing, all those decisions eventually add up.
And together, they can drastically alter your life, especially when it comes to productivity.
How so?
Decisions can occur before, during, and after work sessions. And a single decision alone can throw your productivity out the window if it’s handled inefficiently. All it takes is that you spend a few precious minutes weighing a decision, and before you know it you’ve wasted an hour doing nothing.
Luckily though, there are some simple tips that can prevent this from happening to you ever again.
You don’t make fast and effective decisions
Maybe you think it’s smarter to carefully weigh your options and scrutinize every single detail. Well, that “sort of” works, but ultimately it ends up costing you more time than the outcome warrants.
The truth is this – the majority of decisions you make only need to be “good enough.” If you make a string of “good enough” decisions, you still get great results out of it because you accomplished something, so long as you acted on those decisions.
But considering the time and energy it takes to go beyond making a good decision, and the fact that slow and thoughtful decision making doesn’t always lead to significantly better results, makes slow decision making the lesser choice in most situations.
Most people don’t drastically alter the way they make decisions in life. Some people don’t think their decisions through at all, leading to reckless behavior. Others though, can spend all day on a decision and still having nothing the next day. You, of course, are the latter (or else why would you be reading this?). The question is – how do you fix it?
Slow decision makers struggle because they don’t know how to leave the “information gathering” process of decision making.
1. Limit decision making time
To the slow decision maker, extra time is useless. It’s just going to be spent gathering more information not really needed.
Instead, you should force efficiency by establishing a time limit. A time limit will urge you to restrict thinking to only the most important criteria (see tip #2 for more info), streamlining your decision making process.
The limit should be dependent on the importance of the decision, but in general 2-5 minutes should be adequate for 90% of decision making.
This time limit works because most decisions are small-scaled; try not to increase it if you can.
2. Establish the minimum criteria
If you’re a stickler for needing “more information,” then you should focus on the most basic, essential criteria needed to make a decision and no more.
Just say “I only need x,y, and z.” If one of your options has those essential characteristics, then that’s the correction option. Don’t see if something else is “a little better,” make the decision and move on with your life.
3. Keep a backup decision in mind
Some decisions we make on a regular basis (e.g. what should I have for dinner?). In these cases it’s best to have a backup decision in case you find yourself wasting more time than you should on a small-scale decision.
Example, don’t know where to eat? Mcdonald’s is your backup decision. Simple, right?
(That’s just an example, I don’t recommend making Mcdonald’s your backup decision for food).
This is a perfect tip if find yourself making the same decision on a regular basis, especially if it costs you time.
4. Make many small decisions
The best decisions are the ones based on experience. If you can, make as many decisions as you can and learn all you can from each outcome.
This way you’ll build up a knowledge base that lets you naturally make quicker and faster decisions over time.
5. Favor action over perfection
Finally, be of the mindset that action is more powerful than a perfectly crafted decision.
Sure, a well thought out decision can be a great thing. But here’s the thing, unless it’s a big-picture decision, it isn’t worth expending the energy. Like I said, 90% of decisions are small-scale. Over time, though, they can add up and become something big. But if you aren’t constantly refining your decision-making through practice, those decisions won’t amount to anything great.
Over to you
Are you a fast or slow decision maker? Do you have any decision-making tips to teach me? Leave your answer below because I’d love to hear it. ?
With donations to date, plus known extra commitments coming in, Wilkin Group is well on the way to achieving its target of $1,000.
Whilst we only have two MOs being grown (or at least obvious) there is still time to promote the concept around the coffee machine to ensure we meet the target by the end of November. Many of those making donations are either survives of cancer, or more sadly have lost a loved one due to prostrate or testicular cancer. The $5 mill planned to be raised this year will go towards worthy research in these areas. All donations are gratefully received.
For a few years now, collaboration has been one of the most used buzz words in organisations around the world. Collaboration means different things to different organisations, however most businesses have one thing in common – they would like to collaborate more. A recent Deloitte study identified that approximately 30% of respondents said that they would like more collaboration in their organisation. Although everyone is chasing more of it, the collaboration which is already taking place is having a huge impact on the Australian economy adding more than $46bn of value each year.
An organisation’s workspace design can dictate how and how much its employees are able to collaborate. A well-designed workspace can help facilitate collaboration through lowering the barriers to employee interactions and providing readily available spaces which support collaboration.
So how do different elements of a workspace assist in fostering collaboration?
Break-out Space/Kitchen
Break-out spaces (space where people can get away from their workstation and either enjoy some downtime or work more casually) are part of many workspaces these days. These spaces are often a hot bed of collaboration as the change in environment when people step away from their workstation allows them to think differently and act accordingly. The conversations which are generally held in break-out spaces (also known as “water-cooler” conversations) are ad-hoc and unplanned, but they can certainly address work issues and as a result often alleviate the need for meetings.
Meeting Rooms
It should seem pretty obvious that meeting rooms play a major part in how an organisation collaborates as they are a key place where people come together. In addition to just providing a location for people to meet, when people step into a meeting room their mentality shifts from one of just getting things done at their workstation to being ready to share and collaborate. However, in order to maximise collaboration in the 21st century meetings rooms must be equipped with the right technology and tools such as WiFi, smart whiteboard, video-conferencing facilities etc.
Open Plan Offices
Most organisations have at least some of their office space designed in an open plan configuration and there are pros and cons to this use of space. One of the biggest benefits offered by open plan offices is the fact they support collaboration primarily by lowering the physical and perceived barriers to the activities which foster collaboration, most notably face to face communication. Team members have instant access to the rest of their team which allows them to collaborate on their terms without having to plan how it will take place. With all staff being able to collaborate as they please, a collaborative culture can quickly be generated with less structure than may otherwise be required.
Small Offices
On the face of it small or private offices may not seem to actively support collaboration, however these offices certainly have a part to play in developing a collaborative culture. In cases where a small team is able to share a private office, away from other staff, it allows this team to establish a sub-culture where they can collaborate on their own terms and not be bound by some of the rules of the wider team. Even in instances where staff work from private offices by themselves and are ‘cutoff’ from the team, a small office can actually encourage collaboration as the people who work from them are likely to be more engaged with the team when they step into meetings or other settings where the ability to collaborate is required, as they know they have a haven to return to when ‘the work needs to be done’.
Hallways, Reception, Foyer etc
Spaces such as hallways, reception and foyers are often underrated in office space design, however they can also support collaboration as they are places where people meet in passing and can have casual conversations relating to projects and other tasks they may be working together on.
Workspace design can have an effect on the way an organisation collaborates and the ideal design will differ greatly from business to business. However one takeaway from the Deloitte survey is the fact that collaboration is one of the most important elements of the way a successful organisation operates. When employees collaborate:
– They work 15% faster, on average;
– 73% do better work;
– 60% are more innovative;
– 56% are more satisfied.
Source: Deloitte Access Economics, The Collaborative Economy, Summary Findings 2014
