According to recent data, the number of office jobs in New York City is at all-time high, since approximately 1.5 million of the city’s 4.5 million employees are office based. Working in an office has its advantages: you’re in a familiar environment and you have a fixed place of work (a time saver in a metropolis like New York City), but office work also comes with its drawbacks. After gathering data from many surveys, here’s a list of the top 8 grumbles of office employees.

1. Lack of Privacy

Office trends shows we’re moving away from cubicles towards open space, and this has brought some positive changes, but not everyone appreciates open plan layouts. Many office workers who spend their day in this type of setting complain about lack of privacy and about not having the right space for certain decision making or problem solving tasks. Open plan offices are not bad per se, but it’s always wise to have private spaces and design office layouts taking into account different roles and tasks.

The city of New York has been committed to implementing sustainable building practices since 1997. Over the years, the city has made significant advances in greenhouse emissions reduction, energy saving, and in creating a healthier environment. Below is a selection of the most well-known green office buildings in New York City

 Hearst Tower

This office development is located in the vicinity of Columbus Circle and serves as the global headquarters of the Hearst Communications Group. The building is often referred to as the most environmentally friendly office building in the Green Apple. In 2012, it received two LEED Certifications: Gold for New Construction and Platinum for Sustainable Building Operations. Although the tower itself was built in 1928 with no special regard for sustainability, in 2006 it underwent a makeover led by prestigious architect Norman Foster, and soon after it received the Emporis Skyscraper award. Te tower’s sustainable features include low-toxicity furniture and paint, automatically regulated artificial light, innovative cooling and heating systems, the reuse of collected rainwater, and the use of recycled construction materials, which make up 85 percent of the building’s structure. Overall, Hearst Tower is 26 percent more energy efficient than a standard skyscraper.

One Bryant Park

Also known as the Bank of America Tower, this 51-story office building is often listed among the world’s most sustainable buildings of its kind. Construction was completed in 2010 and soon after the building received a LEED Platinum certification, becoming the first skyscraper to receive it in North America. Recent reconstruction efforts have focused on preserving certain architectural elements (such as the early 20th century facade) while adding advanced sustainable elements that improved the building’s overall green ratings. Green features include an innovative air filtration system, rooftop gardens that reuse compost produced at building’s eating venues, water reclamation systems, the installation of waterless urinals, and an ice cooling system that significantly reduces air conditioning usage.

While there is little doubt that New York offers the optimal environment for business growth and professional development, many employees and entrepreneurs find it challenging to create organised professional development plans without expert guidance.

This is where mentoring schemes come into play. The benefits of mentoring are well documented and are evident not only at individual level, but also have a far-reaching impact since they contribute to the creation of a more skilled and better equipped workforce, which in turns has a direct impact on the city’s prosperity and economic development. A recent study of the tech sector in New York City revealed that mentorship was a key element of success. The study examined 700 tech companies and found that 33 per cent of tech entrepreneurs who had participated in mentoring schemes became top performers. The study went on to cite famous examples, such as Nat Turner (co-founder and CEO of Flatiron Health) or Dropbox’s CEO Drew Houston.

The findings of the study mentioned above can be extrapolated to other industry sectors, so in this blog post we examine the top five business mentoring schemes available to employees and entrepreneurs in New York City.

1. Business Mentor NY

This is a free mentoring program developed by the State of New York with the objective of connecting business experts with owners of small businesses and entrepreneurs. The program is delivered by the state’s main economic development agency, Empire State Development. Mentees are expected to spend at least 6 hours per month working on set objectives, and most participants enjoy higher business survival rates and increased revenues after completing the program.

The city of New York is known around the globe for its impressive architecture. In the spring of 2017, there were approximately 300 buildings under construction and a further 363 were planned, and it is estimated that in total, the city is home to more than 6,200 high rises and over 900 skyscrapers. New York’s tallest building is currently One World Trade Center, which was completed in 2014 with a total height of 1,774 feet. However, the city’s skyline is always evolving and it is expected that by 2021 new builds will transform the city’s impressive urban landscape. Here’s an overview of the buildings that will give New York a new appearance in the near future

New High Rises in New York City 

New York’s skyline makeover will be mostly brought about by the addition of six super-tall structures (defined as those over 1,000 feet tall). Many of them are already under construction and are expected to be delivered between 2018 and 2019.

30 Hudson Yards 

This 2.6 million square feet and 90-storey high office development will be completed in 2019 and will be the city’s second tallest building after One World Trade Center. The building is part of an extensive office construction plan for the Hudson Yards area, where 4 high-rises will be built in the coming years. The super-tower will feature an open-air observation deck, public gardens, and will be home to many Fortune 500 companies.

The Spiral 

Along with the Hudson Yards project, the Spiral building will play a key role in the revitalisation of Manhattan’s West Side. The high rise will feature sloped landscaped terraces and vertical gardens that will hug the building in a zigzag pattern. This building will add 2.85 million square feet of Class A office space to the city’s inventory, as well as nearly 30,000 square feet of prime retail space.

111 West 57th Street 

This architectural wonder fits criteria for both super-tall and super-slender. Once completed, the skyscraper will rise more than 1,400 feet above the ground, offering breathtaking 360-degree views over the city. Its most distinguishing element is a tapered effect over its western facade and a modern take on Art Deco style. The building is mostly intended for retail and residential use, with office space available on the 5th floor.

The New York Subway is one of the largest subway systems in the world, with trains departing from stations about every 2-5 minutes during rush hour and about every 5-15 minutes during the rest of the day.

The Subway is a cheap and convenient way to get around New York City, however traveling on the Subway during rush hour can be also daunting, lots of pushing and shoving, impatient people all trying to get to work at the same time.

We have put together some helpful tips on riding the Subway and ways to minimise risks.

New York is without a doubt the business capital of the world. The city has the nation’s third largest economy and its GDP is higher than the one produced by entire countries like Canada, Russia, or South Korea. In this article we take a look some of the most influential business people who are currently contributing to the city’s phenomenal success story.

1. Larry Fink, Blackrock

California-born Larry Fink currently serves as CEO and Chairman of New York-based investment management corporation BlackRock, also known as world’s largest money management company where managed assets are taken into account. After studying Political Science at UCLA and completing an MBA, Fink began a successful career in investment banking in New York. His business acumen is behind some of the largest deals in the city’s asset management history. Fink has acted as consultant to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Google, AT&T, and the United Kingdom’s Treasury. In addition to his role at BlackRock, his influence extends to other executive boards such as New York University, Langone Medical Center, and the Partnership for New York City.

2. Lee Bollinger, Columbia University

Lee Bollinger has been President of Columbia University since 2002 and is one of the most influential CEOs in New York’s not-for-profit sector. Although he has a legal background, Bollinger has been mainly involved in the management of higher education institutions. Under his leadership, Columbia made it to the top-5 business schools in the country. He also led Columbia’s expansion plan with a focus on green building practices and on accommodating some of the university’s most innovation-focused departments. Bollinger is on the board of directors of Graham Holdings and is a board member of Pulitzer Prize.

3. Lynne Doughtie, KPGM LLP

Lynne Doughtie has spent much of her career (approximately 30 years) working for KPGM, known as one of the Big Four accounting corporations. She was put in charge of the Advisory division in 2011, and was behind the team that achieved annual revenue growth rates of 17 per cent. Doughtie is considered to be behind one of the company’s most rapid period of revenue growth. She has been Chairman of the New York-based firm since 2015 and currently serves as KPGM’s Chief Executive Officer. Moreover, she is a member of KPGM’s Executive Committee and Global Board and plays an instrumental role in high-level decision making within the firm. Doughtie has received several awards in recognition of her professional caliber, including the 2015 Fortune’s Most Powerful Women in Business Award and the 2016 Accounting Today Top 100 Most Influential People Award.

Combining parenthood and a career can be quite a juggling act, and finding someone to care for your little one is of paramount importance. There are different types of childcare available in New York and finding a safe, reliable and licensed practitioner is vital. You need to be able to do your job knowing that your child is being taken care of, is happy and healthy. You, as the parent, know what is best for your child, and finding a warm, friendly environment requires some research.

The Bureau of Child Care provides a wealth of information and advice on childcare along with licensing and registration services for childcare workers. You should start looking a few months before the childcare needs to start, to give yourself time to check out what is available, and what would best suit you and your child’s needs.

Keeping fit is important for your well being as well as being a great way to keep stress levels down. Fitting exercise into your work day can be a difficult task, but is well worth the effort. Decide what type of fitness training you would like to do – power walking, yoga, jogging, swimming, or a mixture. Even a short walk will do you good – try getting off a stop before you need to and walk the rest of the way, run up the stairs instead of using the elevator and take a walk in the park at lunch time instead of sitting hunched over your desk.

As far as gyms go, there fitness classes for all abilities, with times to suit office workers. You could take a pre breakfast yoga class, a lunchtime spinning class or go for an after work weight training session. If your office building has its own gym you could come into work a little early and spend twenty minutes using the facilities.

One of the best ways to liven up offices, reception areas and conference rooms is adding a splash of color. If buying or renting colorful art is out of question, why not enhance the corporate space with plants?

Carefully selected indoor plants will soften the harsh effects of modern office decor; they are visually pleasing, soothing and keep up the positive image of your company, as well as help naturally improve the indoor air and are effective in decreasing tiredness.

With such a high density of business centers in New York, the city has an array of plant rental service providers covering Manhattan and surrounding areas. Here at NY Offices we decided to compile a list of companies that would be happy to revive any workspace, large or small.

Commercial plantscaping includes office plant rentals, seasonal plant displays, plant sales and, in some cases, on-going maintenance.

As one of the world’s most creative and innovative cities, New York is certainly not alien to the concept of collaborative and shared working spaces. According to a recent real estate survey, Manhattan alone is home to more than 5 million square feet of shared office space, and the figures are also high (and continue to increase) in boroughs like Brooklyn, which has approximately 1 million square feet of such space.

Over the past five years, New York City has witnessed the significant growth of co-working spaces that cater to very specific niches, from female-only spaces to those exclusively created to attract graphic designers or writers. New spaces are constantly appearing across the city, offering a range of fabulous benefits in an effort to target specific niche communities and to bring real value and opportunities for growth to the professionals using these spaces.

In this article we take a look at some of the most interesting, cool, and quirky perks offered by some of the top co-working spaces in New York.

Spacious defines itself as a co-working-hospitality hybrid model that provides workspaces in select New York restaurants when they are closed to diners. Perks include high-speed WiFi, private dining rooms used to conduct private calls or meetings complimentary tea and coffee, and food and drink discounts at each restaurant.