What Is a Satellite Office? The Ultimate Guide and Tips for 2024

The COVID-19 pandemic left its mark on many aspects of what everyday life used to be. In terms of how companies are run, many employees have been allowed to carry on working from home long after the disease ran its course. However, not all businesses are structured that way, which is where having a satellite office becomes important.

Whether you are running an industrial office or any other type of business, having some form of flexibility is important both for the growth of your company and the happiness of your employees. This means making room to accommodate those workers who are finding it difficult to return to the normal routine of daily commutes to and from work.

This guide will provide useful information and insightful tips to help you discover the importance of having more than one business location. By the time you finish reading, you will be able to answer the question "What is a satellite office?” and decide whether it can be a good fit for your company.

Satellite Office Concept

The concept of satellite offices has been around for decades in the US. It is only that the emergence of COVID-19 made it popular once more.

As such, many business owners would be forgiven for thinking it is a new idea. In its simplest format, a satellite office can be described as a branch of offices that exists physically apart from the main business location.

Depending on the size of the company, such an office can have anywhere between one and hundreds of employees. Some companies have satellite offices scattered around the US while others have an international reach.

Functions of a Satellite Office

Why would you consider investing in satellite office space in 2024? With the current economic turmoil being experienced across the globe, it is understandable that you might be reluctant to take any risks.

However, there are many benefits when it comes to expanding your business in such a way. Consider the following functions of a satellite office.

Increases the Reach of a Business

With many different satellite office locations at your disposal, you can reach out to a wider pool of customers rather than simply focusing on those in your immediate vicinity.

You can enjoy the benefits of having a main headquarters while making your presence known in many locations. If you need to meet with clients or employees, you can simply choose the closest satellite office to them.

Strategic Role

Having a satellite workspace can also be regarded as a form of business strategy. In such a competitive economic environment, you need to use every advantage you can get. As such, by using a satellite office as a sort of base camp to launch location-specific operations, you can stay one step ahead of your competition.

Cost-savings

These days, it is important for every business, big or small, to find ways to cut costs wherever possible. A satellite office helps minimize the amount of money that is spent transporting employees to and from work daily, while also providing you with more affordable locations to operate from.

Various Employee Benefits

If you want to keep your employees happy and working productively, you need to address their needs as best as you can. One area that you can improve by having satellite office locations is making their daily commutes easier. Rather than travel long distances to the main headquarters every day, your employees can simply work from the closest satellite office. This will give them more time with their families and improve their productivity at work.

Similar Work Models to Satellite Offices

As mentioned earlier, having satellite office space as a branch of the main headquarters is not a new concept. It has been around for decades and many similar models are also used. Here is a look at three alternatives and how they differ from a satellite office:

Office Campus

Many American companies use the term office campus to describe a collection of buildings located in a particular region. This sets them apart from a satellite office which is usually just a single building. An office campus could be also used to describe the company’s main headquarters, as is the case with Google’s California campus called the Googleplex.

Regional Offices

Another term that is widely used is "regional offices." However, this is never used for the main business location but for smaller satellite offices that are located within the same country as the HQ. Unlike satellite offices, the term regional office cannot be used for locations scattered across the globe.

It is also important to note that a regional office does not necessarily have to be smaller than the headquarters. If the amount of business in a particular location warrants the use of larger premises, the regional office can become a lot bigger than other offices.

Hub and Spoke Offices

With a “Hub and spoke” type of satellite workspace areas, the business utilizes flexible locations that allow employees to conduct their work from remote places or regional offices. With such a strategy, the headquarters acts as the “hub” that feeds the “spokes” of the wheel made up of satellite offices. The term is borrowed from the flight industry and is used to make the business more efficient in terms of time and resource management.

Setup Tips for a Satellite Office for Great Savings

Are you thinking of setting up a satellite office for your business? Consider the following office design ideas and tips to help you enjoy better savings:

• Choose the best location for your offices
• Engage your employees wherever possible
• Look for flexible rental and lease agreements
• Calculate the costs of setting up the satellite office and compare it to having just a single business location
• Consider any legal and financial issues
• Observe how employees work in the new location
• Provide enough access to technology and other business tools for maximum productivity

Must-have Furniture and Accessories to Promote Employees’ Productivity

Just like in your main headquarters, your satellite locations need access to essential office supplies, furniture, and accessories to function properly. The last thing you want is to cause a reduction in employee productivity after moving your workforce to satellite offices.

As such, provide the following essentials for your employees:

1. Ergonomic Chair

In 2024, it can be considered irresponsible to disregard the impact that office work has on the health, productivity, and posture of your employees. Sitting long hours behind a desk has long-term consequences that any responsible employer will try to avoid.

That is why you need to buy an ergonomic office chair for each of your workers. You can find some great options to choose from at Autonomous, such as the ErgoChair Pro, ErgoChair Curve, and ErgoChair Plus.

ErgoChair Pro

2422 reviews

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ErgoChair Curve

48 reviews

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ErgoChair Plus

549 reviews

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2. Standing Desk

The best companion to go with your ergonomic chair is a standing desk. Providing such a vital piece of furniture to your employees will show that you take the work being done in the satellite office space as seriously as all of your other business locations.

A sit-stand desk allows your employees to choose whether they feel like working while seated in their chairs or while standing next to their desks. Research has shown that regularly alternating between the two has great health and productivity benefits.

SmartDesk Core

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SmartDesk Pro

1165 reviews

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3. Filing Cabinet

Just like any other busy office space, your satellite location is likely to generate a lot of paperwork. That, along with all the regular office accessories, can quickly cause a lot of clutter, which is why you need a proper filing cabinet.

You can choose from a wide range of filing cabinets available at Autonomous depending on the size of your satellite office and the type of work you will be doing. Investing in storage solutions such as this is one of the first things you should do when moving into your office space.

Filing Cabinet

50 reviews

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4. Desk Organizer

Every modern office requires desk accessories to function normally. As such, you will also require a proper place to keep these items when not in use. A good desk organizer can make it easy to keep your desk tidy while keeping all your important accessories within easy reach.

The Office Oasis Magnetic Desk Organizer

126 reviews

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5. Cable Tray

A major symptom of the modernization of offices is that there are often a lot of cables to deal with from a variety of gadgets, such as computers, printers, and fax machines.

If you want to maintain order in your satellite office and reduce the occurrence of tripping accidents, you may have to consider getting each of your workers a cable tray. This is such a small and simple device that has a lot of benefits when dealing with cables from different devices.

Cable Tray

208 reviews

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6. Monitor Arm/Stand

Are you looking for the right kind of office décor for men? You can consider buying a few monitor arms or computer stands. The position of the computer screen relative to the height of the user is a very important aspect of ergonomics.

With the right stand or monitor arm, you can help your employees reduce the occurrence of neck or back problems caused by poor sitting posture.

Monitor Arm

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FENGE Dual Monitor Stand with Drawer

50 reviews

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7. Desk/Floor/Corner Lamp

Regardless of where your satellite workspace is located, or how big it is, one thing it will require is proper lighting. Research has shown that poor lighting has a negative impact on employee productivity and can even have long-term health effects.

As such, as part of the feng shui office layout that you may be considering, remember to invest in proper lighting solutions in the form of a desk, floor, or corner lamp.

Light Bar

39 reviews

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Lamp Depot RGB Corner Lamp: 300+ Lighting Effects, Black

104 reviews

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The Autonomous Bulk Order Program

If you are planning to furnish your satellite offices in 2024, one thing that you might be worried about is the high cost of office furniture and accessories, particularly when it comes to buying ergonomic furniture.

However, setting up a new office does not need to cost you an arm and a leg. You can take advantage of the Autonomous Bulk Order Program and buy all your office furniture at once. Buying bulk office furniture has many advantages such as:

• Cost-effective
• Options for customization
• Easier and flexible transportation and storage of your furniture
• Many items are always in stock
• Installation and setup services provided
• Free bonus products with certain purchases

Purchasing bulk furniture from Autonomous is very easy. All you have to do is visit the website and access the Bulk Order Program page. From there, you will have access to the many awesome furniture deals that are available throughout the year.

If you are having problems choosing the right type of furniture for your satellite office, Autonomous even offers a free design service to cover each office space in a variety of different styles. This makes the whole process of setting up a satellite office a lot easier and more efficient.

Boost Your Business by Setting up a Satellite Office

One thing that the COVID-19 pandemic taught business owners is that they need to be flexible and be prepared to handle situations that disrupt their employees’ ability to come to work. Setting up satellite office locations in different places is one way of doing that.

While the advantages of having such a "hub and spoke" system are obvious, many businesses are reluctant to take this route because of the fear of incurring extra costs. However, Autonomous is ready to assist by giving you access to its Bulk Order Program which allows you to buy all the furniture you need with just a few clicks.

Many companies have seen the benefits of having satellite locations spread around the country, and have stuck to it long after the last COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. You can visit Autonomous and take the first steps to furnish your satellite offices today.