Anticipating the future of office design

Posted on January 31, 2025July 27, 2026 by charlotte

Anticipating the future of office design

The major trends that will redefine workspaces in 2025

January 31, 2025

At Parella, we've always sought to design spaces that not only meet today's needs, but also those of tomorrow. As office design debates evolve - influenced by generational transformations in the ways we work, socialize and connect - Cormac O'Sullivan, Director of Operations at Agility - a Parella company, explores in this post the major trends that will shape workspaces in 2025.

Agility © Matteo Bellomo

Flexibility, always at the heart of trends

Flexibility remains a fundamental pillar as traditional offices give way to versatile environments, capable of adapting to different uses throughout the day.

Modular furniture, configurable workstations and dual-use spaces enable companies to maximize their real estate while giving employees the freedom to choose how and where they work. Our recent project for Colliers Global Investors SGR Spa in Milan, Italy, perfectly illustrates this concept.

This approach generates clear benefits for all parties: owners, companies and employees. It reflects a new relationship with the traditional office, where flexibility becomes a secure investment for businesses and an aesthetically pleasing, functional space for teams.

Take, for example, our work for The Social Hub in Glasgow, a project that embodies the key office trends of tomorrow. As a certified B Corp, The Social Hub entrusted us with the creation of a dynamic, multifunctional community environment, in harmony with its concept of "hybrid hospitality". The result is an avant-garde space, celebrating both flexibility and community spirit - values that are gradually becoming central to modern office design.

Agility © Matteo Bellomo

Technology for comfort and durability

Intelligent integration of technology into office design is another major trend.

Connected systems, such as app-controlled lighting, climate control and presence sensors, are becoming essential. These innovations optimize the user experience while supporting sustainability goals, notably by reducing energy consumption.

For employees, it's essential that sustainable choices are intuitive and effortless. By facilitating these practices, we help companies and their teams to combine performance with positive environmental impact.

A focus on well-being

Supporting mental and physical health is now a priority.

Increasingly, offices are incorporating quiet areas, carefully designed acoustics and optimum access to natural light. In Scalapay's Italian offices, for example, zones dedicated to relaxation and concentration coexist harmoniously with elegant soundproofing elements, a far cry from traditional foam tiles.

Increase in ILAT

Posted on January 30, 2025June 4, 2026 by Sixtine Epitalon

Increase in ILAT

a silent threat to tenant businesses in the Île-de-France region.

January 30, 2025

With the steady rise in the index of rents for commercial activities (Indice des Loyers des Activités Tertiaires - ILAT), companies renting office space, particularly in the Paris region, are seeing their service charges increase.

Although this may seem a technical subject, it is one that should be at the heart of CFOs' concerns, as it has a direct impact on cash flow and budgets.

Analysis of a phenomenon and solutions to deal with it.

Michael Kaplan

Associate

Vincent Ternynck

Real Estate Services Director

An increase that weighs heavily

Since 2018, ILAT has recorded an increase of 21.62%, rising from 112.74 in the 3ᵉquarter of 2018 to 137.12 in the 3ᵉquarter of 2024.

This index, which adjusts rents for tertiary activities, follows inflationary trends and reflects the cost of construction and economic growth.

Let's take a concrete example: a company having signed a lease in 2018 for an annual rent of €300,000.

With the ILAT evolution, its rent for 2024 will reach €364,875, i.e. an increase of +€64,875.

Why is ILAT rising so fast?

Historically, ILAT was supposed to be less volatile than ICC (Indice du Coût de la Construction), long used to index commercial leases.

ILAT is based on a mixed basket including inflation (Consumer Price Index), the cost of new construction and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in value terms. This combination was intended to mitigate extreme variations, unlike the ICC, which is based solely on the cost of construction.

Currently, ILAT is particularly sensitive to economic fluctuations, due to the combined effect of several factors:

- Inflation, which remains high since 2021, fueled by rising energy and raw material prices.

- The cost of construction, impacted by rising materials prices and environmental constraints.

- Changes in GDP, which reflect an uneven economic recovery and influence.

This dynamic highlights a central issue for companies: how to absorb these increases while other operating expenses are also rising?

Major risks for tenant companies

The impact of the ILAT increase goes beyond rents. Several risks are looming for tenant companies:

- Increased financial pressure
An unanticipated increase in rents can reduce companies' investment capacity and affect their cash flow.

- Unpredictable budget
The high volatility of the ILAT complicates budget planning, making financial projections less reliable.

- Reduced margins
Real estate often represents the second largest expense item for companies, just after salaries. In a tense economic environment, where cost control is essential, a 20% increase in an expense item as strategic as real estate can weigh heavily.

How to adapt?

To cope with this increase, companies are well advised to adopt a proactive management approach.
Here are a few avenues to explore:

- Anticipate ILAT increases in budget forecasts

CFOs need to factor anticipated ILAT increases into their budgets. With an average annual increase of 3-4%, planning over 3 to 5 years becomes crucial.

- Negotiate leases

When signing or renewing a lease, negotiate more protective clauses, for example by capping indexation (e.g., at 2-3% per annum upwards or downwards).

- Optimize office space use

With the spread of telecommuting and hybrid ways of working, the question of leased space is essential. Reducing a €364,875 rent by 10% saves €36,487 a year in rent alone. Controlling surface area will also save on charges and taxes.

- Diversify locations

If business allows, explore locations outside the most expensive areas of the Paris region. Some locations offer more affordable rents, with lower indexations.

A challenge, but also an opportunity

The ILAT increase is a reality that all companies have to face.

While the risks are significant, they can be transformed into opportunities. Optimizing space, renegotiating lease clauses, or even reinventing real estate organization are all levers that can be used to lighten this burden.

To remain competitive, companies need to adopt a proactive and strategic approach. Above all, they need to bear in mind that real estate, although costly, can be a lever for attractiveness and performance, if carefully managed.

IN BRIEF

- ILAT has risen by +21.62% since 2018.

- A company with an annual rent of €300,000 in 2018 could be paying €64,875 more in 2024.

- Solutions lie in anticipation, negotiation and optimization of leased space.

Acting now is essential to limit future impacts and better control costs.

Olympic & Paralympic inspirations

Posted on October 22, 2024June 4, 2026 by charlotte

Olympics & Paralympics: Inspiration. Memories and the Lessons They Teach

This weekend I received my souvenir tickets for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

October 22, 2024

It took me back to the stands at the Versailles stadium during the para-dressage event, facing the palace and the reflecting pools, surrounded by greenery and supporters who were thoroughly soaked but delighted. What will remain of the vision of the future that the Olympic and Paralympic Games offered us? Was it a magical interlude, quickly overshadowed by the busy news cycle of the new school year?

Like many of us, I refuse to believe it, preferring to think that we might also be able to draw lessons and inspiration from it for our day-to-day office life.

What can we learn from these magical moments for our work environments?"

Hospitality

How pleasant it is to be greeted by an enthusiastic, smiling human being on arrival at a site!
While the volunteers demonstrated incomparable energy and good humor throughout the events that punctuated our summer, the baristas or coworking hosts were not to be outdone.

Post covid, we realized that offices would remain an essential place to work, not least because of the social ties that employees bring with them (a trend confirmed by our latest barometer).

Today, a human welcome remains a strong added value, provided you give it the means to do so. A mobile hostess, freed from her reception desk, working in a warm environment like a hotel lobby, and able to offer your visitors a cup of coffee, will put them in a much better mood.

We applauded these volunteers because, in addition to their smiles, they were the backbone of these games, some visible, others working in the shadows. Doesn't it make you think of other colleagues, whether they're called members of the work environment, or more soberly general services? We should think about celebrating them too, highlighting the actions that keep our buildings running smoothly.

Inclusion

Much has been said about this for the opening ceremonies, but I found it particularly well done on site access, removing the usual barriers around disability.

As the Versailles site requires a long walk, electric shuttles were made available for anyone who has difficulty walking, has a visible or invisible disability, or is just elderly, pregnant, etc. There was no need to show any kind of card or pass to benefit from them.

Tools developed to assist one type of disability can be used by all if they are designed with this in mind. For example, for each event, the Games' dedicated application gave you access to an audio description. While this was aimed at the visually impaired, it was also educational, and very useful for children or non-expert audiences.

In the design of spaces, inclusive design aims to take into account the physical and physiological needs specific to each person by translating them into spaces that are useful to all. A height-adjustable desk, for example, will be indispensable for an employee in a wheelchair, but will also be much appreciated by someone suffering from occasional lumbago.

Taking inclusion into account must also be reflected in communication, like this delicate attention to "Stand up, if you can, for the hymns."

Digitization

Venue management applications are still underdeveloped, implemented by lessors during the marketing phase, but often shunned by users.
During the Games, the various applications (Transport, Tickets and Olympic) were particularly used by visitors. I'll give you my positive impressions of these applications:

- Visible: Everywhere, on all the physical sites or websites, QRcodes prompted visitors to download the applications. Impossible to miss.

- Systematic: No choice for tickets, you had to go through the tickets application. I found this compulsory process very reassuring.

- Updated: The news feed was regularly updated. It's true that there was a lot of news during the Games, but there must be something to be said for regular news in our businesses.

- Ergonomics: it can't be said often enough, but the care taken over the ergonomics and design of an application makes it a success. The graphic charter, also applied to all downloadable documents, contributes to a pleasant digital experience.

- Rich content: in addition to the latest news, a wealth of educational and practical content was available, including maps, explanations of events and sites, etc.

- Personalization: the content on offer could be personalized according to your choices (which team you support, which sport you want to follow) and according to the tickets you purchased. This implies a certain interconnection.

Less concrete

"Less concrete" as Phryge would say: To reduce its ecological impact, Paris 2024 has given priority to temporary installations. We've seen ephemeral stadiums spring up right in the center of town.

This inspires me to think about 2 things: Firstly, the question of materials. In many development projects, particular attention is paid to the sourcing of local or recycled materials. This virtuous practice should be encouraged. But it also needs to be sustained over time.

As I said in my article on persistence in real estate projects, it's all very well to inform your employees at the time of the project, but it's also important to keep this information available over time. For example, a label indicating that such and such a piece of furniture was produced in France, or that such and such an acoustic wall is made from recycled materials. This way, new employees or visitors will be able to (re)discover your environmental commitment long after the project has been completed.

Then there's the question of temporary installation. We all know that the animation of a site is essential. It can also be a factor in innovation, by testing out new facilities. How can we do this? With furniture rental, which is becoming increasingly popular. For example, if your team is unsure about the type of meeting room it should use, you can test a brainstorming area with tall furniture and, after a few weeks' use, decide whether it's the right choice. You can also apply it to your common spaces, reception areas, etc.

Nudge addict

For the end At last but not least as our English friends say.

I loved the little messages from the phrygians.
" One two tri!" to encourage people to recycle waste, "Chou must go on" and "veni vidi veggie" to encourage people to discover vegetarian and gourmet recipes, "espace VIB (Very Important Biodiversity" to raise awareness of the need to respect the site, with each time a too-cute drawing of Phryge and a QR code to find out more.
Passing on an instruction with joy and happiness is definitely more effective than the traditional "forbidden to" and "Thank you for" methods.

So here's to your word games!

Remanence of a real estate project

Posted on September 6, 2024June 4, 2026 by charlotte

The Lingering Impact of a Real Estate Project: An Important Issue.

Aftereffect: “ Partial persistence of a phenomenon after its cause has disappeared .” When managing a relocation project, there are often numerous time constraints, and the focus is on the teams’ move-in date, with all efforts concentrated on ensuring the success of this onboarding day.

September 6, 2024

This must indeed be a highlight for the teams involved, the culmination of several months of planning and hard work. But what remainsof this collectiveeffortand enthusiasm once the move is complete?

After all, a transformation project bears fruit over time, so it is important to ensure itslong-term impact.

Laurens project by Parella

Think story telling right from the start

What do you want to retain as a strong message from this move?
Certainly not the fact that you had to leave your previous location because the building was outdated or your premises were too small for your growth.

While this cause must of course be explained at the outsetthe project, it the ambition you're going to define for your target building. target building:

- the creation of a common home,

- theexpression of your values,

- the deployment of an employee experience in symmetry with your attentions to your customers ...

This ambition will guide the programming of your building and the design of your spaces, and will need to berelayed by the communication plan.

Tverything doesn't end with the move - on the contrary, it's where it all begins!

While project teams generally arrive exhausted at the end of the marathon that is a relocation project, for employees, this is where it all begins: the appropriation of new premises, the discovery of new ways of working, the establishment of new rituals...

To get the ball rolling, we feel it is necessary to bring new players into the game, second-half "finishers of the second half as Fabien Galthié in rugby.

They will be in charge of instilling this energy and promoting these new uses, making the most of the spaces and services put in place by the design team.

It's to accompany this implementation that we like to return to our projects after the move-in, to provide feedback that is much more than an assessment, it's a plan of action for the future.

Time for appropriation

During the course of your project, you may also discover a subject that you don't have the time to deal with, or for which the use is not yet complete: for example, the installation of a multi-purpose reception area.

Rather than risk setting up a layout that is not suitable, launch an experiment with salvaged or rented furniture for the test period.

In this way, you can calmly fine-tune uses with users, and continue the dynamic of progress after installation on site.

In the same way, you can leave yourself breathing space, in terms of personalization or additional space, as uses are gradually defined as the site is appropriated.

Experiment with, formalize and disseminate the development charter

In the case of a group with several sites, the deployment of newworkspaces and innovative services on one site should be considered as an experiment.

This can be an opportunity to publish a workspace designcharter , as in the case ofArkea, which presented it to its Works Council before rolling it out to the various projects in progress, or Sanofi, which has written a playbook of service references to be applied to its various sites.

This helps to unite the group and spread the employer brand. Employees who have to travel to different sites will find a familiar working environment, which reinforces the sense of belonging and collective performance.

Include user experience din the integration process

It is essential to include two moments in thee integration process: firstly, to remind them of the ambition and the reason why we are living together in this building, and secondly to explain to them the how, the services they will be able to find, the good uses of the facilities. explain the how, the services they'll find and how to use the various spaces.

That's a lot of information for a first day, this appropriation must be staggered, as it is when you're moving in: add abuddy"to to help the new employee first discover his or her immediate working environment: team territoryteam territory, and and, of course, the restaurant..

To promote good habits, a session on the rules of life could be useful.At Parella, every 6 months, we hold a workshop on the rules of life.La Bonne Bulle© to share uses to newcomers.
Then we'll take the new employee to discover the building's building, for for example a visit to a sports class.

Time for appropriation

Lhe eye for detail

In a development project, many ideas are put forward by project teams, debated and adjustedes, finally implemented ... but who remembers the care taken to the choice of layout?

Yet it's this detail that I feel is important to highlight and to remember - or to discover for newcomers and visitors alike.

I found interesting the little explanatory labels that Sanofi has been able to put up in its its Maison: indicating that a particular acoustic has been eco-made from recycled materials, and its contribution to workspace comfort, or that the presence of planted areas promotes the well-being of employeesand that they have have been designeds so that that 65% of employees have a direct view of the vegetation.

The future every day

When we ask workplace managers about the future of the office, they tell us that they are living the future on a daily basis, constantly listening to new user needs and adapting and testing their service offering accordingly.

We can lay the foundations for continuous improvement on 3 principles:

- Sponsoring / Reporting: Setting objectives and using KPIs in line with corporate strategy (space occupancy, employee satisfaction, service use, etc.).

- Transversality: Include all contributors to the user experience (Work Environment, IT, HR, Com) in a monitoring committee, and define management processes to ensure its reliability.

- Community animation: Establish a dialogue with employees and managers, based on regular workshops and surveys, to consolidate areas for improvement and identify new expectations.

Flexibility in your rental commitments

Posted on August 6, 2024June 4, 2026 by charlotte

Make Your Lease Terms More Flexible: 5 Tips to Help You Do It.

Flexibility is a growing need for companies, in a changing economic and social context.

August 6, 2024

Do you know how much m² will be needed to support your growth in 3, 6 or 9 years' time?

As your business evolves, so will your needs. Flexibility in your lease commitments is essential to ensure that they don't prove restrictive over time.

Here are 5 tips to help you add flexibility to your leases.

Rent too big and sublet your surplus while you grow

To make your rental commitments more flexible, we recommend over-letting and subletting.
Some companies choose to take on larger surface areas than they need from the outset, and sublet the surplus.

There are several reasons for this:

- While subletting can represent a financial risk, this is limited in areas with low vacancy rates (Paris Centre, Paris QCA, etc.).

- This option enables you to absorb your growth over time by limiting the rental charge to the surface area you need.

- In in-demand and competitive rental sectors, taking on large surface areas can help your bid, and prevent the landlord from dividing up the building.

- If you opt for an entire building, which you can dispose of independently, you'll gain in ease of management. You'll also be able to create synergies that will boost your internal innovation by welcoming like-minded companies onto your premises, as in the case of corpoworking.

For every context, the right solution

We helped one of our customers, a major player in the tech sector, to lease a 7,000 m2 building in the CBD.
Their initial requirement was for 5,500 m2, so to position themselves in the face of strong competition for the premises that best met their needs, we negotiated a clause allowing them to sublet up to 40% to third-party companies without prior approval from the lessor, enabling them to adjust their space requirements.
Our customer chose to take the risk of subletting, a risk that paid off.

Add an additional exit option to the usual 3/6/9 maturities

Lease deadlines are not always adapted to your company's strategic stages.
To limit constraints and be able to move without delay, it is possible to negotiate one or more exit options in your lease, in addition to the usual deadlines (3, 6 and 9 years).

Depending on the geographical sector and the balance of power between lessors and lessees, a departure indemnity is usually requested. It is generally calculated in proportion to the support measures obtained at the start of the lease. It is therefore essential to negotiate them well.
You can also think in terms of flex ready, i.e. right from the start of your construction phase, design layouts to facilitate the implementation of a flex office organization, which can be deployed during the life of the lease without any additional work. In the current context, our customers are increasingly demanding this type of support.

Negotiate the possibility of surrendering or taking over additional m² during the lease term

During the term of your lease, it's a good idea to be able to increase or restore floor space in the event of a sharp change in your workforce and your requirements.

Including the possibility of reducing your m² between two terms can give you real flexibility.

In the event of unexpected growth, we recommend that you include a preferential right on floor space that becomes available in the building. This will give you priority over other applicants from outside the building.

For every context, the right solution

To support several of our customers (industry and investment funds) with medium-term external growth plans, we included a preferential right in the negotiations.
This gave them the possibility, during the lease term, of taking on additional floor space within their property complex, in the event of a third party vacating it.

For a shorter commitment, opt for derogatory leases or
subleases.

If the minimum firm term of a standard
lease (3 years) seems too long, there are other solutions that offer a shorter commitment.

Overriding leases or subleases are sometimes offered for 1 or 2 years. We recommend that you consider these options.

But beware: fitting out premises so that you can work in good conditions comes at a cost, and this must be taken into account in relation to the short commitment period.

For every context, the right solution

We recently assisted one of our customers in the consultancy sector with the transfer of one of their group's activities. To enable the entity concerned to take the time to build its new corporate strategy and anticipate its longer-term growth needs, the option of a 2-year sublease in plug-and-play premises was chosen after comparing the various possibilities.

To make your rental commitments even more flexible, opt for coworking.

If our previous tips don't give you enough flexibility, coworking is an option to consider.
By freeing yourself from design-build periods, you can speed up your move-in.

Once you're in the premises, flexibility works both ways:

- If your needs are shrinking, it's possible to free them up with short notice (usually 1 month). If you're expanding, it's easy to take on more workstations or space on the site.

- If, on the other hand, you're expanding, it's easy to take on more workstations or space on the site.

Of course, this flexibility comes at a cost, as coworking spaces are more expensive than traditional office leases over the long term.

For every context, the right solution

When the timing is tight, this option can be a real advantage. This was the case for one of our customers whose head office was spread over two buildings. As one of the sites had to be evicted by its owner, it became urgent to relocate the teams quickly.
As one of the sites had to be evicted by its owner, a deadline issue required rapid repositioning. We advised our client on a suitable co-working solution, while we supported the group in defining and implementing its new reunified headquarters project.

Key figures in brief

In the 1st quarter of 2022, coworking operators were back in the driving seat (5-digit numbers or more).

10%

of all volumes placed in the capital

14%

in the Paris Central Business District (CBD)

of leased space in this sector

Category: Blog