Accor enters ‘hotel office’ market

The 5,000-hotel group has entered the race for the expected move to ‘working from anywhere’ as an alternative to the office or home, offering work spaces for £35 a day with the added perks of room service and a bar below.

Accor said a survey of 2,000 British office workers currently working from home revealed that 41% feel their work-life balance ‘has worsened since working from home due to coronavirus’. And 22% of Brits said their productivity was down due to WFH distractions.

With millions of people adapting to new ways of working there is a need for safe, dedicated, flexible, isolated work spaces. Responding to this need, Accor has launched Hotel Office; private, socially isolated spaces coupled with hotel services including room service and use of the hotel’s facilities.

Karelle Lamouche, chief commercial officer, Accor Europe, said: “Workers are looking for alternatives to home working and many aren’t ready to or can’t return to offices. Hotel Office is a safe and flexible ‘working from anywhere’ solution to meet spontaneous needs as well as planned working. Hotel Office also responds to the needs of employers needing to tackle productivity drops whilst answering their duty of care to their staff to meet their physical and mental work pressures. As such many employers need a cost-effective, contract-free workspace solution for their staff which provides a reduced commute, flexibility and productivity in safe, clean private work spaces.”

When asked by Accor – which has 265 UK hotels from economy brands such as ibis to traditional business hotels such as Novotel, up to luxury brands including Sofitel and Fairmont – 17% admitted home working was not as they expected. The top 5 reasons cited in by British workers were:

1. I miss the social interaction of meeting people through my work, 47%
2. I’ve struggled for motivation working from home, 33%
3. I have found it harder to switch off from work when I’m based at home, 29%
4. I tend to work longer hours at home, 25%
5. I am less productive working from home because of distractions, 22%

Since the start of lockdown workers across the UK have been impacted by family needs, building works, loss of wi-fi, housemates all vying for the kitchen table – all adding to work pressures and stress levels.

And with office capacity down to as little as 25% in many cases, hotel meeting rooms represent a viable option for office extensions, team meetings and much-missed after work drinks.

The Hotel Office is the home office only better – no distractions, clean ALLSAFE approved surroundings, room service and hotel amenities plus complete flexibility to book whenever there’s the need, even at an hour’s notice. With a range of Accor hotels and brands offering Hotel Offices there are options from as little as £35 per day.