SMALL OFFICE HOME OFFICE : SINGAPORE AGENTS' PERSPECTIVES ON WORKING AT HOME

Abstract

Technological innovations and improvements not only facilitate the change in urban structure in the past decades, it has also brought about transformation in the traditional structure of work environment. Telecommuting, a form of work-at-home concept, has gradually become an alternative work arrangement, which is embraced by many organizations, in today’s business environment. Even though the benefits and costs of working from home are highly debatable, it is inevitable that such a trend towards alternative work arrangement will continue to persist in the years to come.

In the context of Singapore, work-at-home concept may not be as intensively applied by individuals as compared to those residing in the U.S., as reviewed in the past literature. However, there are still relatively a small number of individuals, typically the younger entrepreneurs, who are living in such a home-office environment. Likewise, the overwhelming responses and high take-up rates by the recent SOHO-style developments in Singapore has further support the presence of a work-at-home concept.

To have a better understanding on how such a work-at-home concept can influence the market on SOHO developments and be the first to review on SOHO developments per se, research is conducted to test the plausible relationships which may exist. It is hypothesized that there are positive correlations between the level of attractiveness of the SOHO features and individual’s desire to purchase a SOHO unit, and between the reasons of working from home and individual’s desire to purchase a SOHO unit. Through conducting a series of face-to-face interviews, survey questionnaires with targeted group of agents and subsequent running of statistical model to analyze the data, it is found out that both variables have positive relationships to individual’s choice of purchasing a SOHO unit.

At the current situation, despite the high level of attractiveness of the three features, namely strategic location, excellent connectivity and flexible space, some homebuyers are looking at other push factors, such as a more conducive working environment and provision of better technological network and facilities which are mainly found in an office, to motivate them to live in a SOHO-style apartment. However, while technology can replace some of the office functions, it cannot supersede them all. The need for socialization, loyalty and informal communications has not gone or diminish in the business environment. Rather, it is research that such need has increased in its importance.

Though an understanding in the relationship between individual choice and the various factors is established and the gap between existing features and the ideal features in the wants of individual is closed,, future research can probably look into ways to overcome the needs for human relation as fulfilled purely in a traditional office setting, and to integrate into future SOHO-style developments to promote its marketability in Singapore.