Wi-Fi for multi-tenant buildings: 7 things serviced office operators should get right
In a serviced or shared office building, the Wi-Fi is part of what tenants are paying for. When it works, nobody notices. When it doesn’t, it’s the first thing they complain about and one of the reasons they leave.
Wi-Fi for a multi-tenant building is a different job from Wi-Fi for a single office. Here’s what operators and building managers should get right.
1. Give every tenant their own private network
Tenants are separate businesses. They shouldn’t be able to see each other’s laptops, printers or traffic. A well-designed network gives each office its own secure segment, often with its own Wi-Fi name and password, so one tenant’s devices are kept apart from everyone else’s.
This matters for security, and for tenants who have to answer security questionnaires from their own clients or insurers.
2. Share bandwidth fairly
Without controls, one busy tenant uploading video or running large backups can slow the whole building down. Bandwidth limits per office, or per tenant, keep things fair and make it easy to offer different service levels if you want to.
3. Plan coverage floor by floor
Thick walls, glass partitions, lifts and stairwells all affect Wi-Fi. A proper survey before installation shows where access points need to go, so every office and meeting room gets a strong signal, not just the ones near the corridor.
Modern access points also cope much better with lots of devices at once, which matters in buildings where every person has a laptop, a phone and often a tablet too.
4. Don’t rely on a single internet connection
If the building has one internet line and it fails, every tenant is offline at once. A second connection, ideally from a different provider or over 5G, can take over automatically. For larger buildings, a leased line with a backup connection is the safest setup.
5. Make tenant moves easy
Offices change hands regularly. Setting up network access, Wi-Fi and phones for a new tenant, and removing access when one leaves, should be quick and routine, so offices are ready to let without waiting on IT.
6. Monitor it, so you hear about problems first
A managed network is monitored continuously. Problems with switches, access points or the internet connection are spotted early, often before tenants notice, and firmware is kept up to date so known security issues are fixed.
7. Keep one point of contact
Many buildings end up with one supplier for the internet line, another for the Wi-Fi and a third for the phones. When something goes wrong, they point at each other. One partner looking after all of it means one phone call and clear responsibility.
A quick checklist for operators
- Is each tenant on their own private network?
- Can one tenant slow down everyone else?
- Is there a backup internet connection, and does it switch over automatically?
- How long does it take to set up a new tenant?
- Who monitors the network, and who do tenants call when there’s a problem?
How we can help
We design, install and look after the networks behind serviced and shared office buildings across London and Hertfordshire, including multi-tenant Wi-Fi, leased lines with failover and business phones. Recently we upgraded the network for an eight-floor building with around 80 offices. See how we work with serviced offices.
If your tenants are complaining about the Wi-Fi, get in touch or call 0203 8833 444 and we’ll take a look.
