Nation's Workplace Flexibility Forum Calls for Evolution of Workspace and
Lifestyle to Meet Budget, Environment and Staff Demands

Businesses Flexing Their 'Corporate Six Pack' are Best Positioned for Future Survival and Success

    
    MULTIMEDIA ELEMENTS

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    Regus Online Press Room
    Future of Work Website

    NEWS FACTS
    -   Visionaries Mark Dixon and Philip Ross collaborate to provide
        guidelines for the future of work in their report, Agility @ Work.
    -   The six major trends, called the corporate six pack, impacting
        businesses today as fixed expenses can be leveraged to provide a
        flexible, productive work space that facilitates tomorrow's work
        style.
    -   As evidenced by the White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility, now
        is the time for companies to get into shape-build up their corporate
        six pack-as the world emerges from the recession.
    

DALLAS, March 31 /CNW/ - The White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility builds on the more than 30-year effort to navigate through a forever morphing workplace. Technology, globalization, double-income households, longer commutes and other life-altering occurrences continue to complicate the reality of work for business leaders and their staff. For example, employees increasingly look for work-life balance through remote work capabilities. Businesses increasingly struggle with justifying underused fixed expenses. But, what work can and should look like for future success is largely undefined - until today.

"The White House Forum highlights the problems companies and individuals wrestle with," said Mark Dixon, CEO of Regus (LSE: RGU), the global leader of flexible workplace solutions. "How do I, as a business leader, create the right environment that meets my operational and staffing needs? And, simultaneously, as an employee, how can I raise a family or simply live some life outside of the office without sacrificing my career?"

The Council of Economic Advisors' report issued today, "Work-Life Balance and the Economics of Workplace Flexibility" addresses the causes that have contributed to the increasing need for workplace flexibility and the current state of flexible work arrangements. While understanding the economic and personal impact of flexible start times and telecommuting, for example, is important for businesses, it is only one part of a variety of factors contributing to the changing workforce. Business leaders need an understanding of what factors impact their potential success and how those factors can be used to their advantage. Written by Dixon and fellow visionary Philip Ross, CEO of the Cordless Group, Agility @ Work: Adopting the Corporate Six Pack provides that education through a methodical analysis of the six core trends reshaping work today. Those trends include:

    
    1.  Real Estate
    2.  Culture and Work Style
    3.  People
    4.  Information and Communication Technology
    5.  Transportation
    6.  Sustainability
    

"The six trends are the drivers of change offering the greatest areas of opportunity. Ironically, they're also the most oppressive operating costs every company carries," said Dixon. "However, they are inexorably interconnected. The appropriate work space may provide the desired 'third space', which, in turn, eases the burden of transportation. Minimized transportation creates greater sustainability, and so on. Getting a handle on these elements is necessary to creating the future workplace that enables greatness."

Within Agility @ Work, Dixon and Ross demonstrate the changing nature of work through several case studies from major global brands. The authors also cover how each of the six trends impact businesses and people financially, physically and, when appropriate, mentally. The report's conclusion is an actionable plan for achieving a fit corporate six pack that supports tomorrow's workplace reality.

Dixon and Ross will be available throughout the coming weeks to discuss Agility @ Work as each trend's concept, along with supporting data, is introduced in greater detail. To view the full report, please visit Regus' site: www.regus.com/futureofwork.com.

About the Authors

As the CEO of the Regus Group, Mark Dixon has a unique vantage point for observing emerging trends and needs in the work environment. Not only does he understand the demands of physical space, he understands the work style desires of multi-industry employees as Regus' clients span from corporations to individuals.

Philip Ross, CEO of the Cordless Group, studies the impact of emerging technology on people and their behavior in a built environment. His examination of such issues has become the foundation of several books on the future of cities, work and workplace including: The Creative Office, The 21st Century Office and Space to Work (all co-authored with Jeremy Myerson).

About Regus

Regus is the world's leading global provider of innovative workspace solutions, with products and services ranging from fully equipped offices to professional meeting rooms, business lounges and the world's largest network of video communication studios. Regus delivers a new way to work, whether it's from home, on the road or from an office. Clients such as Google, GlaxoSmithKline, and Nokia join thousands of growing small and medium businesses that benefit from outsourcing their office and workspace needs to Regus, allowing them to focus on their core business.

More than 500,000 clients a day benefit from Regus facilities spread across a global footprint of 1,000 locations in 450 cities and 80 countries, which allow individuals and companies to work wherever, however and whenever they want to. Regus was founded in 1989 in Brussels, Belgium and is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE:RGU).

For more information please visit www.regus.com or call 1-800-OFFICES. Journalists can also visit the Regus online press center at www.regus.presscentre.com.

For further information: Julia Gaynor, Affect Strategies, [phone], [email protected]