Large-scale layoffs were up in March from a year ago, a fact that could have many workers fretting about their job security. But some are apparently focused on less extreme problems, like the shoddy artwork in their office hallways.
Google's goal is ''to strip away everything that gets in our employees' way.'' (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Blumberg Capital Partners, a real estate investment firm, surveyed U.S. office workers and reports they have a wide variety of complaints about their office conditions, from "It's so boring, all blah colors, no fun" to "The lighting is very harsh and causes eyestrain and migraines."
Certainly, complaints about dirty rugs and leaking roofs make sense, but if some requests sound frivolous ("free popcorn," for example), Blumberg says that the overall results confirm that office conditions have a direct effect on employee retention, recruitment, and productivity. Blumberg reported in January that one third of office workers said they had accepted or left a job based on the condition or amenities of the building where they worked.
That's big news for companies concerned with retaining talented workers.
But Rich Wellins, senior vice president at human resources consulting firm Development Dimensions International, is skeptical that office environments have such a significant effect on employment decisions.
"I would just bet my annual salary that people would not list, as one of their top three reasons, the physical office environment as a reason for leaving," Wellins says. "I just think there are other factors that are far more important in retention than a physical office, up to a certain point."
Employers may need to meet a minimal level of office comfort and space, Wellins says, but there are well-known companies, like Costco and Wal-Mart, that make a conscious effort to keep office expenses and frills to a minimum and still have solid retention rates.
Another recent survey by Robert Half Technology, an information-technology staffing firm, seems to support Wellins's opinion. The survey of 1,400 chief information officers found that their most effective method of holding on to staff is increased compensation, followed by professional development or training and flexible work schedules. The survey respondents also cited telecommuting, extra vacation time, and company stock or options as retention tools. Office conditions were not on the list.
For sure, some companies have made their working environments a recruitment tool. Employers like Google, where employees at its Mountain View, Calif., headquarters can munch free gourmet meals or visit a massage therapist, have put office perks front and center in the recruitment process. Google CEO Eric Schmidt says onGoogle's corporate benefits page that the company's goal is "to strip away everything that gets in our employees' way."
Wellins says that Google's many office perks may make sense in its particular field, because the company faces a tight labor market for software engineers. Other companies, like Best Buy, have had success by allowing employees to maintain flexible work schedules. But as far as massages go, "I'm not sure companies necessarily need to go to that extreme to retain employees," Wellins says.
Basic improvements to the physical space may benefit a company's bottom line. Research suggests office conditions like lighting and temperature affect employee productivity. Researchers at the Leeds Institute of Psychological Sciences recently reported finding that short bursts of very bright light may trick the brain into alertness in the afternoon.
Office temperature also seems to make a difference. In a 2004 study, Cornell University Prof. Alan Hedge found that a thermostat increase from 68 degrees to 77 degrees resulted in a 44 percent decrease in typing mistakes and a 150 percent increase in typing output. Two subsequent studies have borne very similar results, Hedge says. "We feel fairly confident that when people are working in conditions where they're pretty close to thermal comfort, their computer-work performance is improved," he says.
But for companies looking to hang on to talent, office contentment may have the most to do with people. Brock Boyd, president and CEO of Career Management Inc., a Vienna, Va., search firm, says the first question his firm asks candidates is "What's the main thing driving you to look around?"
At the top of the list: their boss.
Boyd, himself a boss of seven employees, says he prefers to be in nice office space, "but it's not very high on my totem pole." His employees seem not to be much affected by improvements, either. "Right now we're probably in the best space we've been in, but I don't think they've noticed," Boyd says.
Part of Plan to Offer Premium Services under Blumberg Office Properties Brand; Office Workers in Tampa Already Enjoy On-Site Swimming Pool
CORAL GABLES, FL-(Marketwire - December 11, 2007) - Philip Blumberg and Blumberg Office Properties, a U.S. commercial real estate investment manager, today said it has hired a luxury hotel executive to spearhead the rollout of five-star, premium services for its office properties. Ludovic Roche, the former general manager at private luxury hotelier Villazzo LLC, will assume a new role at Blumberg Office Properties as director of premium services. He will oversee the rollout of a comprehensive program to offer high-end amenities for tenants of the company's office properties nationally. Blumberg Office Properties is the real estate investment arm of Blumberg Capital Partners, a Florida-based investment manager.
"Ludovic's experience in catering to the discriminating clientele of Villazzo's world-class hotel properties will be instrumental in our formalizing an approach at Blumberg Office Properties to treat our tenants as valued guests," said Philip Blumberg, president and CEO of Blumberg Capital Partners. "We're entering a new era in commercial real estate, where premium services will set office building owners and operators apart. For years, the lodging industry has been marked by broad differentiation based on hotel guest experiences. Employers are increasingly interested in similar differentiation in quality work environments. To that end, we will make our office buildings much sought-after addresses through the implementation of the Blumberg Office Five-Star Services Program."
As GM at Villazzo, Roche was responsible for the delivery of luxury-based services to guests of Villazzo's VillaHotels, private boutique hotels catering to high-end travelers seeking privacy, space and luxury. His geographic responsibilities encompassed mansions and villas in the U.S. (Aspen, Col.; and Miami); France (St. Tropez, Courchevel and Paris) and Spain (Marbella). Prior to joining Villazzo in 2005, Roche was director of operations and purchasing at The Bentley Group, which specializes in hotel operations management.
Blumberg said his premium services program will encompass on-site concierge support, event tickets, health clubs, conference facilities, advanced technology and energy-efficient utilities. In addition, office building enhancements will include private "club-level" suites, offering unparalleled service to tenant members, akin to "club-level" suites commonly found in five-star hotels.
Under the first phase of the rollout, Blumberg recently announced plans to invest in its commercial properties in Houston, Tex., and Tampa, Fla. The initiative includes a $6 million project to offer new services and tenant amenities at Houston's Three Riverway Office property over the next year. The program will include upgrades to the building's fitness center, sauna facility and conference rooms, as well as the addition of wireless Internet access technology in building common areas and a complete overhaul of the lighting system to boost energy efficiency.
In addition, common area corridors and property landscaping will be redesigned and upgraded. The work also will include the creation of the "club-level executive suite" for use by tenant executives.
The company also will invest in significant upgrades to its property at 550 REO in Tampa, Fla., over the next year. The program will include improvements to the fitness center and common areas, as well as an overhaul of the lighting system and replacement of the air chillers to an advanced energy-efficient system. The property already is one of the most unique office buildings in the Tampa area, featuring a swimming pool for tenants, as well as wireless Internet access in common areas and poolside.
Blumberg Office Properties last year consolidated its national real estate portfolio, selling its office tower in Coral Gables for about $60 million. Earlier in 2006, Blumberg Office sold its office building in Miami for more than $61 million. Blumberg Office Properties had owned the Coral Gables property in a joint venture with Investcorp. Blumberg Capital Partners recently announced its intentions to start a media and entertainment investment fund in 2008, to augment its commercial real estate ventures.
Founded in 1979 by Philip Blumberg, Blumberg Capital Partners (previously known as American Ventures Corp.) specializes in U.S. commercial real estate, including acquisitions and divestments, market research, due diligence, and the management and leasing of commercial properties. Its investment portfolios have comprised some $500 million in commercial real estate assets around the United States. Investors include high net worth individuals in the U.S., Asia, Europe and the Middle East, as well as foundations, pension funds and banks. Blumberg Office is a member of the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries.
For more information, visit www.blumbergcapitalpartners.com.
Forget job perks like access to the company car or a cushy expense account. Keeping and recruiting employees might be as easy as keeping the bathrooms clean.
One-in-three employees surveyed by Blumberg Capital Partners, a U.S. investment firm that specializes in commercial real estate, have accepted or left a job due to the condition of the building or the amenities.
"Office conditions, indeed, directly impact employee retention, recruitment, and productivity," said Philip Blumberg, chairman and CEO of Blumberg Capital, in a statement.
The biggest complaint among the 500 office workers surveyed was extreme temperatures in the office followed closely by unclean restrooms, outdated furniture, persistent odors, leaky ceilings, crime and rodents or insect problems.
When asked to write-in their demands for a better workplace, they came up with some basic needs like hot water in bathrooms. Below are some of those requests:
"Mace for protection." "Area to lay down for a quick nap during lunch." "Men's room instead of unisex bathroom." "I wish the building had windows." "Take better care of the grounds, fix the kitchen, and make it not seem like a nursing home." "Security measures such as metal detectors and security guards. Bullet-proof glass would be an asset." "Some of the bathrooms don't have hot water." "Fix the roof so it doesn't leak." "Free parking." "Better vending machine selection."
The survey, commissioned to gauge the impact of office building conditions on worker attitudes, also found that one-fifth of employees said their office building's condition decreased their productivity and motivation.
Philip Blumberg's Blumberg Capital Partners releases verbatim comments and regional comparisons from landmark office worker survey; ‘I wish the building had windows'
CORAL GABLES, Fla., April 24 - Philip Blumberg's Blumberg Capital Partners, the U.S. investment firm and commercial real estate investment fund, today released verbatim comments and regional comparisons from its landmark survey of office workers. The comments from the survey respondents highlight the range of conditions under which U.S. office workers toil.
In the survey, a full interactive version of which is now online, workers note a lack of basic needs, such as hot water in restrooms, clean carpets and comfortable chairs, while others seek higher-end amenities like workout facilities, free snacks and coffee, and nap rooms. Among the comments: "I wish the building had windows," and "Build separate men's and ladies' rooms to replace the unisex bathroom."
The survey was commissioned to gauge the impact of office building conditions on worker attitudes, productivity and motivation. Initial findings, released in January 2008, unveiled a litany of common problems, including extreme temperatures, insects, leaky ceilings, rodents and messy bathrooms. The survey also found that a third of the workers have accepted or left a job due to building conditions or amenities. Nearly half described their office environments as "bland," "dumpy," or "stodgy."
Blumberg Capital Partners today released verbatim feedback from the survey - culled from more than 5,000 written responses. The company also posted its survey live as an interactive online tool for office workers to take the poll and see how they stack up against national averages. The interactive survey and full survey results - including a compilation of the verbatim comments andregional comparisons - are posted at http://www.blumbergcapitalpartners.com/.
"The companies of ‘Corporate America' have long been judged on the quality of work environments they provide to their employees," said Philip Blumberg, Chairman and CEO of Blumberg Capital Partners. "The results of our survey confirm that office conditions, indeed, directly impact employee retention, recruitment, and productivity. That is why Blumberg Capital Partners has spent the last 20 years providing the highest quality space and a broad range of exceptional services to our corporate tenants and their employees."
The results of another one of those surveys revealing things we'd rather not know have been announced - this time from Coral Gables commercial real estate investment and management firm Blumberg Capital Partners. The national survey conducted last December gauged the impact of office building conditions on worker attitudes, productivity and motivation, and discovered that one in three workers surveyed has either accepted or left a job because of ìthe condition of the building and/or the amenities offered.
As for complaints, offices with extreme office temperatures due to poor heating, air-conditioning and ventilation systems, topped the list at 47 percent of those surveyed. Next came messy restrooms (31 percent); tacky dÈcor (28 percent); foul or unclean air, theft and crime, and leaky ceilings and windows tied at 21 percent; and rodents and insects (20 percent).
About a quarter of the respondents said the cleanliness of their buildings is either "marginal" or "appalling," and one in three workers said they're concerned about getting sick or injured from unhealthy or unsafe building conditions.
As for the kicker that should make bosses sit up and take notice - 80 percent of workers said the overall condition of their office building affects how they perceive their employers, and 69 percent confirmed that the condition of their office building affects their own individual productivity and motivation.
Now we'll wait for the upside survey: results about those offices - and there must be some in South Florida - that offer a healthy and pleasing environment with such niceties as on-site concierge support, health clubs, conference facilities, energy-efficient utilities - and clean luxury restrooms!
CORAL GABLES, FL-(MARKET WIRE)-Feb 15, 2008 - Blumberg Capital Partners, the U.S. investment firm and commercial real estate investment manager headed by Philip Blumberg, today released additional data from its recent national survey of office workers.
Nearly half of office workers surveyed cited their own birthdays, when asked to rank their top choice for company-sponsored holiday among several days typically included among "floater" days. The choice far outpaced all other options, including Valentine's Day and Presidents' Day. Here are the complete rankings based on the December 2007 survey:
- Own birthday: 46% - Veterans' Day: 14% - Presidents' Day: 10% - Election Day: 10% - Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: 8% - Halloween: 6% - Valentine's Day: 2% - Columbus Day: 2% - St. Patrick's Day: 2% The holiday question was part of a broader survey designed to gauge the impact of office building conditions and ergonomics on worker attitudes, productivity and motivation. Those results were released in late January and are available at www.blumbergcapitalpartners.com, along with data on the holiday question. Some of the top-line results of the full survey:
- One in three workers surveyed said they have either accepted or left a job due to "the condition of the building and/or the amenities offered." - Nearly half said their office buildings and office environments are either "bland," "dumpy," or "stodgy." - The top office malady cited by workers: extreme office temperatures due to poor air ventilation and heating and air-conditioning systems, followed by outdated décor, unexplained odors or foul/unclean air, rodents/insects, theft/crime, and leaky ceilings and windows. - About a quarter of the respondents said the cleanliness of their buildings is either "marginal" or "appalling." - One in three workers said they're concerned about getting sick or injured from unhealthy or unsafe building conditions. - Fully 80% of workers said the condition of their office buildings affects how they perceive their employers. - The vast majority (69%) confirmed that the condition of their office buildings affects their own individual productivity and motivation.
"The survey uniquely illustrates just how much of an impact office environments have on worker attitudes and overall economic productivity," said Philip Blumberg, chairman and CEO of Blumberg Capital Partners, which owns and manages several Class A office buildings in the U.S. "We added the holiday question because it's an issue that our tenant companies often struggle with - designating specific days most appropriate as company holidays. While the roster includes some rather offbeat choices, it does show how much value employees place on their own birthdays."
The survey was commissioned by Blumberg Capital Partners and conducted by Fleishman-Hillard Research to highlight office workers' attitudes and opinions about various aspects of their office buildings. The findings are based on a national online survey of 500 adults who spend the majority of their workday in one office building. The poll was conducted in December 2007 and has a margin of error due to sampling of no more than plus or minus five percentage points at the 95% confidence level. The sample comprised 209 males and 291 females. Demographics were also collected for income level, job type, age, region, education and type of office building.
For complete results, visit www.blumbergcapitalpartners.com.
Founded in 1979 by Philip Blumberg, Blumberg Capital Partners specializes in U.S. commercial real estate, including acquisitions and divestments, market research, due diligence, and the management and leasing of commercial properties. Its investment portfolios have comprised some $500 million in commercial real estate assets. Blumberg Office Properties is a member of the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries. For more information, visit www.blumbergcapitalpartners.com.
Blumberg Office Properties in 2006 consolidated its national real estate portfolio, selling office towers in Coral Gables, Fla., and Miami. Blumberg Capital Partners recently announced intentions to start a media and entertainment investment fund in 2008, to augment its commercial real estate ventures.
33: Percentage of workers who say they have either accepted or left a job due to the condition of the building and/or the amenities offered, according to a national survey by Blumberg Capital Partners.
47: Percentage of workers who described their office buildings and office environments as either "bland," "dumpy" or "stodgy."
1, 2, 3, 4: Ranks of covered parking, subsidized cafeteria or restaurant, fitness or workout center, and on-site day care on the list of the most important office building amenities.
Many workers don't like their office buildings - and are willing to quit their jobs over it - a survey has found. They put the blame squarely on their employers - who, too often, focus more on location rather than daily working conditions.
By Scott Flander
As long as the company's offices are reasonably clean and pleasant, employees are probably happy, right?
Not so fast.
One-third of office employees worry their buildings are unhealthy or unsafe, and 20 percent say conditions in their offices are hurting productivity and motivation, a new survey has found.
And all this is a reflection on the employer. More than three-quarters of those surveyed say the condition of their office buildings affect how they see their companies. And, 17 percent say they've left a job because they disliked their building's conditions or amenities.
The survey results could be a wake-up call to building owners and employers, says Johnny Winton, president of Blumberg Capital Partners, the Coral Gables, Fla.-based commercial real estate investment firm that commissioned the survey.
When choosing office space, employers have been primarily concerned with whether the location is convenient for employees, he says.
But if the detail revealed in the survey "picks up steam," he says, employers may start choosing offices based on conditions as well as location. "Owners will get hit in the pocketbook," and so may pay more attention to improving conditions, says Winton.
The most frequent complaint - cited by nearly half (47 percent) of those surveyed - was that their offices are too hot or too cold, because of poor heating, air conditioning and ventilating systems.
Bill Kajola, an industrial hygienist with the AFL-CIO in Washington, agrees that extreme office temperatures are a common complaint, and often leads to problems such as fatigue and headaches.
In addition, many workers are concerned about getting injured at work due to ailments that can develop when work stations are improperly designed. The most common problems are musculoskeletal disorders affecting wrists, arms and other parts of the body, he says.
"Ergonomic hazards continue to be the most common cause of work-related injuries and illnesses in the U.S.," says Kajola, accounting for one-third of all such problems.
"It's the 800-pound gorilla in the workplace," he says.
Federal regulations regarding ergonomic hazards went into effect at the end of the Clinton administration, but were nullified by Congress after President Bush took office, says Kajola.
Meanwhile, there are no federal standards for office temperatures, and no comprehensive standards for air quality, he says.
"The conditions are probably not getting better," says Kajola. "Most employers and building owners only respond to conditions when there's a law or regulation that requires them to do so."
In the absence of such laws, he says, "most employers choose not to do anything."
Nearly one-third of those surveyed complained of unclean or under-stocked rest rooms. Among other gripes cited by office workers were outdated furniture and decor (28 percent), unexplained odors or foul/unclean air (21 percent), rodents/insects (20 percent), theft/crime (21 percent) and leaky ceilings and windows (21 percent).
According to Winton, as employee attitudes about work have evolved, so have attitudes toward the workplace.
Many workers, he says, want jobs that are meaningful, "not just a paycheck." And they are also demanding better office conditions.
They'll say, says Winton, "I want to work in an environment where I feel good, where I want to be here, where I feel productive. If I'm in an environment that's lousy, I'll walk around and say, ‘I don't want to work here today.' "
Forget salaries, expense accounts or keys to the executive washroom. Employee loyalty is won or lost over the cleanliness of the bathrooms and the amount of sticky goo on the carpet.
One in three workers surveyed recently said they had accepted a job - or quit one - because of the most basic working conditions. The respondents' chief complaints by far: the state of the indoor atmosphere, the gripes being about either hot-as-the-tropics heating or Antarctic air conditioning.
Corporate managers searching for new office space think mostly about rent and whether the layout and location will work for their companies, said Johnny Winton, president of Blumberg Capital Partners, which commissioned the survey. "They're not really thinking . . . ‘Will my employees be OK working in this environment?' "
Julie Buckner knows what Winton's talking about. The 40-year-old Valley Village resident is a veteran of what she dubbed "the office temperature wars."
"I always run hot," she said, recalling how she tricked her co-workers at several local public relations firms by surreptitiously powering up the air conditioner.
When her office mates began to shiver, she said, "My M.O. was to tell them, ‘you must just be imagining that it's getting colder.' "
Buckner now runs a consulting firm from her guest house, favoring an office decor that includes candles and cut roses. She has one employee, but Buckner's hand rules the thermostat, generally keeping it at 64 to 68 degrees.
Blumberg's survey of 500 workers was the first of its kind, Winton said. The Coral Gables, Fla.-based company develops and manages high-end commercial office buildings in Florida and Texas. "We thought that the office building itself could have some major play" in an employer's ability to attract and keep workers, Winton said.
Apparently it does. More than three quarters of those polled in December said the overall condition of their offices affected how they viewed their employer and whether they were likely to stay in their jobs. And 30% said they worried that unhealthy or unsafe conditions in their building might make them sick.
A worker's focus on disagreeable office conditions may be more a symptom of a larger problem than the sole cause for a defection, said Amy Lyman, co-founder of the Great Place to Work Institute, a San Francisco-based consulting company.
People don't quit just because the bathrooms are dirty, she said, but because employers that don't keep the bathrooms clean don't respond to other worker concerns as well.
The bathroom message is that "these are not high-trust environments," she said.
Apart from extreme temperatures, filthy bathrooms were among the most commonly cited problems in the survey, along with outdated furniture or decor, persistent foul smells, leaky ceilings or windows, worn carpeting and rodents or insects.
For employees of some companies, such as Microsoft Corp. and Google Inc., the office is a sprawling complex with manicured outdoor areas, cafeterias with extensive menus, light and airy working spaces, sports complexes, day care and more.
Winton said the survey results should encourage other companies to follow suit - or at least pay more attention to the basics.
Like vermin. Buckner has few fond memories of the down-at-the-heels San Francisco building where she worked in 1996. Much of the building was vacant, or so she thought, until she heard rats scurrying above the acoustic ceiling tiles.
"The tiles were always slightly askew," she recalled, "and every once in a while you could see their foot or tails come through." Her first rat sighting was quite alarming, she said, "but like all things, you get used to it."
Until you can find another job.
This article is also available on the lawyers.com website.
Extreme temperatures are the single biggest office complaint, followed by messy restrooms, rodents and insects, tacky decor and foul smells. More than a third find their offices ‘bland' -
CORAL GABLES, Fla., Jan. 29 /PRNewswire/ - Blumberg Capital Partners, the U.S. investment firm and commercial real estate investment manager, today released results of a national survey to gauge the impact of office building conditions on worker attitudes, productivity and motivation. The poll was conducted in December. Some of the top-line results: - One in three workers surveyed said they have either accepted or left a job due to "the condition of the building and/or the amenities offered." - Nearly half said their office buildings and office environments are either "bland" (36%), "dumpy" (7%) or "stodgy" (4%). - The most-frequent complaint (47%): extreme office temperatures due to poor heating, air-conditioning and ventilation systems. - About a quarter of the respondents said the cleanliness of their buildings is either "marginal" or "appalling." - One in three workers said they're concerned about getting sick or injured from unhealthy or unsafe building conditions. - Fully 80% of workers said the overall condition of their office buildings affects how they perceive their employers. - The vast majority (69%) confirmed that the condition of their office buildings affects their own individual productivity and motivation.
"We're entering a new era in commercial real estate, where premium services and amenities and employee-friendly facilities will differentiate office buildings and employers," said Philip Blumberg, chairman and CEO of Blumberg Capital Partners. "The survey results illustrate just how much of an impact office environments and ergonomics have on attitudes and overall employee productivity. The results also offer a unique glimpse into the current state of U.S. office buildings and the mindset of today's office worker." Given the increasing value placed on office amenities, Blumberg Office Properties, the real estate investment arm of Blumberg Capital Partners, recently hired a luxury hotel executive to spearhead the rollout of five-star, premium services to its properties. The program encompasses on-site concierge support, event tickets, health clubs, conference facilities, advanced technology and energy-efficient utilities. According to the survey, the most-frequent complaint aired by workers (47% of respondents) was extreme office temperatures due to poor heating, air-conditioning and ventilation systems. In addition, unclean/under-stocked restrooms (31%), outdated furniture and decor (28%), unexplained odors or foul/unclean air (21%), rodents/insects (20%), theft/crime (21%), and leaky ceilings and windows (21%) were common complaints. The survey also examined office security issues. While 89% of respondents believe their office buildings are safe in terms of their personal security, some 34% of respondents raised concerns about the safety of their personal belongings. In terms of security measures in demand by workers, 78% cited security cameras. More than half cited "security guards on patrol" as another effective tactic, while 28% want "metal detectors or other weapons-check measures." When asked which of these measures were already in place at their respective buildings, 54% cited security cameras, while 37% and 8% cited security guards on patrol and metal detectors/weapons checks, respectively, indicating a gap in actual and desired security measures. When asked to rank office building amenities, workers cited "covered parking" as the most important feature, followed closely by "subsidized cafeteria or restaurant," "fitness or workout center" and "on-site day care." The survey also examined the prevalence of office recycling and environmental programs. The most frequently cited program was "office paper/newspaper recycling," cited by 63% of the respondents. More than half also said their buildings offer can or bottle recycling. About a quarter of the respondents said their buildings or employers offer no recycling or environmental programs. The survey was commissioned by Blumberg Capital Partners and conducted by Fleishman-Hillard Research to gauge office workers' attitudes and opinions about various aspects of their office buildings. The findings are based on a national online survey of 500 adults who spend the majority of their workday in one office building. The poll was conducted from Dec. 14-17, 2007, using a nationwide Internet panel. The sample comprised 209 males and 291 females. Demographics were also collected for income level, job type, age, region, education level and building type. For complete survey results, visit here. The Rollout of Premium Amenities in Office Buildings Blumberg Office Properties' ongoing office improvement program includes building private "club-level" suites for tenant members, akin to "club-level" suites commonly found in five-star hotels. At one of its properties in Tampa, Fla., an on-site swimming pool is already available to office tenants. Blumberg Office Properties in 2006 consolidated its national real estate portfolio, selling its office towers in Coral Gables, Fla., and Miami. Blumberg Capital Partners recently announced its intentions to start a media and entertainment investment fund in 2008, to augment its commercial real estate ventures. Founded in 1979 by Philip Blumberg, Blumberg Capital Partners specializes in U.S. commercial real estate, including acquisitions and divestments, market research, due diligence, and the management and leasing of commercial properties. Its investment portfolios have comprised some $500 million in commercial real estate assets. Blumberg Office Properties is a member of the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries. For more information, visit here.
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As for complaints, offices with extreme office temperatures due to poor heating, air-conditioning and ventilation systems, topped the list at 47 percent of those surveyed. Next came messy restrooms (31 percent); tacky dÈcor (28 percent); foul or unclean air, theft and crime, and leaky ceilings and windows tied at 21 percent; and rodents and insects (20 percent).
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