Thijs van der Burgt, CEO of the Netherlands-based tenant and engagement platform Office App, has a long history of technology ventures. Though his prior companies focused on health and parenting, Thijs was inspired to found Office App after a negative experience at an office building. He began to look into the market, noticed that “there was nobody really understanding offices,” and set out to change that.
Thijs combined his integration and data skillset with his love for providing a more personalized experience to individuals to create Office App. In the past seven years, Office App has grown with the intention of providing a unified engagement solution for both employees and the offices they work in.
This week, Thijs joined Chase Garbarino on The Let’s Go Show at an exciting time: in case you missed it, HqO announced our acquisition of Office App a few weeks ago. In addition to discussing how Office App came to be what it is today, Chase and Thijs also reflect on changes in the commercial real estate (CRE) market and what the acquisition means for the future of the workplace.
One of the changes, as Thijs pointed out, is the increase in providers for key functions of the office (from access control and room booking to parking management). Looking ahead to 2022, he believes that merging HqO and Office App’s integrations and Marketplace will allow more properties to centralize these systems in one place.
When it comes to the workplace experience, Thijs also noted that landlords are beginning to realize the value of engagement. As Chase and Thijs touched on this episode, landlords need to begin thinking of their tenants as customers that want to feel connected and appreciated, because otherwise they will choose to work elsewhere.
Inevitably, Thijs asserted that landlords will “have to make sure that there’s more cohesion in the building, that people feel connected, that they want to go into these office buildings, and that they feel appreciated for being there.”
To learn more about the future of the workplace, listen to The Let’s Go Show’s latest episode.
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On Today’s Episode
Chase Garbarino, CEO and Co-Founder at HqO, the only end-to-end operating system for commercial office buildings.
Thijs van der Burgt is the MD of Corporate Solutions at HqO. Prior to HqO, Thijs started and sold a health platform for young parents in 2010. He also started and grew a social network for young parents to Benelux, France, and Italy. He is now the CEO and Co-Founder of Office App, which was acquired by HqO in 2021.
Want to learn more? Listen to The Let’s Go Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Podcasts.
