Technology Reshaping How Corporations Manage and Use Real Estate

Technology is advancing at a rapid rate and a press release has outlined how it is reshaping the way corporations manage and use their real estate. CoreNet Global, the leading global association for the corporate real estate profession has closely examined this trend and recently published a report entitled The Bigger Picture, The Future of Corporate Real Estate.

Kate Langan, chair of CoreNet Global and Group General Manager Property for ANZ Banking Group, Melbourne, Australia said “The real-world application of emerging technologies in how corporations manage and use their real estate means that the way people live and work will dramatically change. In turn, these changes will reflect back on the overall corporation, improving efficiency, sustainability and profitability.” According to Langan there are several factors that are converging to create a new style of working and living.

Technology is affecting the increasingly mobile and connected workforce and is changing real estate requirements with respect to how much space is needed, how that space is configured and managed and where facilities will be located. It’s expected the next-generation workplace will be built with networks able to support this new mobile complexity. Corporations will need to provide technology enabled workplace networks allowing for greater flexibility for both the employee and the organization, especially as workers have the ability to dictate a work style consistent with the lifestyle they have chosen. In order to keep talented workers, companies will have to learn to adapt.

Over the next couple of decades between 40% and 60% of the workforce now doing transactional work could be replaced and augmented by artificial intelligence. Companies will need to plan for and address the shift from human work to robotics.

The growing trend towards urbanization and modernized workplaces will in turn lead to smart cities, further changing the way we work and live. It is expected technology will drive a wide range of urban development initiatives, including the amount and type of housing built and the value of replacing old utility components with equipment that pays for itself.

This year it’s predicted there will be 5.5 million new things that will be connected to network infrastructure worldwide each day. This means the universe of connected things will grow from approximately 6.4 billion this year to 20.8 billion by 2020.

Beacon technology is expected to become more commonplace in office systems and will help optimize the use of space. With this technology an individual wouldn’t need to manually sign in and out of an office or conference room as the beacon will be able to recognize when a person enters or exits the room, giving managers greater ability to measure space utilization.

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