More than a year ago, citizens in the United Kingdom voted to exit the European Union in a move that is now known as Brexit.
While the intentions of the vote are more than clear, exactly how and when Brexit will take place is the stuff of endless debate and analysis. But change is most definitely coming, and for companies that have headquarters or even operations in the UK, there is a lot to figure out and a lot on the line.
René Buck, founder and CEO of Buck Consultants International, examines the ways that corporate real estate executives can play a vital role in determining an appropriate Brexit strategy for their companies in a new whitepaper written for CoreNet Global.
What are the key things corporations need to be thinking about, and what is the role that corporate real estate executives can play? Buck lays out several key principles:
- Brexit Impact Assessment
- Supplying accurate and actual information about size and quality of current real estate in the UK, leases, expiration dates, and other details to corporate working groups facing Brexit challenges
- European Footprint Scenarios
- Actively contributing to European Footprint Scenarios with analyses about opportunities and risks of various scenarios and locational strategies.
- Location Strategy Development and Implementation
- Co-leading with business operations the location search process, ensuring that all relevant information for a comprehensive, unbiased business case is available.
“With their extensive knowledge of opportunities and risks of various locational scenarios, corporate real estate executives should play an active role within their corporations by combining strategic insights with an operations perspective and by delivering well-thought location alternatives if necessary,” Buck said.
Buck will be speaking more about Brexit at the CoreNet Global Summit taking place this week in London.