Tenant engagement is an important element in today’s office building. So much so that dozens of new apps, platforms, and partners have recently hit the market claiming to offer tenant engagement services. But before committing to a new app or service provider, it’s important to understand that building a tenant engagement program is more than planning a few events, providing dry cleaning services and linking out to food apps.
A true tenant engagement program focuses on each company’s needs and unique culture and tailors plans to accomplish specific goals. It’s not a one size fits all program, but one that will brand and market itself to each tenant, bringing the latest and greatest technologies, trends and services that appeal to their employees. And really—there are no shortcuts. For a program to be successful, it takes time to craft and execute customized plans with consistency. So before you align with a tenant engagement partner, consider these five crucial elements.
1. Understand the needs of the stakeholders
Whether this means meeting with each company in your building, or designated key leaders throughout one company, you need to uncover their goals and what they are looking to achieve within the workplace environment to attract and retain employees. Each stakeholder will likely have different goals in mind, requiring a customized program for you to help achieve them.
2. Determine who will envision and execute the programs
If you want to develop and execute a fully integrated program—from activations to wellness programs, to concierge services—who is going to make sure it all gets done? Someone may plan it, and an app may communicate it, but who will be on the ground to oversee the execution of the program? And who from the tenant engagement team is consistently dialed into the latest trends, wellness best practices and innovations in the workplace? Who’s tracking innovations in technology? And who will bring it all together?
3. Who owns the relationships
One program can consist of multiple relationships—from community partners to vendor partnerships to pull the program together to the building stakeholders, tenant companies, and individuals. Ask who will maintain these relationships and manage the engagement goals? Who will manage expectations of the ownership, asset management, leasing, marketing, and property management teams?
4. Develop a way to establish communication channels with employees
This is where technology is critical. Through tenant experience software, such as the Simpli app, a social engagement platform is created for the building, streamlining communication with employees and tenants. This enables tenants to learn about building event details and wellness class schedules, book amenity spaces, secure exclusive perks and discounts at area retailers and order concierge services at any time.
Before committing to an app for your property, determine how the content will get into the app. Who is selecting vendors, activations and perks to feature? Who is marketing the app to tenants? Who will be responsible for executing each program, and building and connecting with people at events? Someone still needs to mobilize tenants—urging them to attend events and educating them about the importance of utilizing the full program. Don’t rely on the app to do that.
5. Calculate the value
How will you show stakeholders that the program is working? What are ways that you can measure success (ie: attraction and retention)? Will the program’s technology/app share data, collect the results and craft a plan on what to do with that data?
Mining data is one thing, but it’s another to use it as a way to inform and customize future program planning that will continue to attract and retain tenants.
When faced with a variety of tenant engagement solutions, ask yourself—is this program going to empower my tenant companies to excite employees and create value for them? Will it develop programs my tenants will use and give them back time by taking care of their to-do lists—not just general conveniences? Will technology support the program, but not be the whole program?
The right tenant engagement program will elevate the entire workplace experience. It’s worth the investment to make sure it’s right for you.