The Future is Coworking
One big happy family
This week we take a look at the global and UK coworking sector, how it is coping with the pandemic and what the future might hold. Looking back at headlines, reports and articles related to the coworking and flexible office sector from the last 6 months, it's clear that while the pandemic has adversely affected the industry, the long term outlook remains extremely positive. Employers continue to evaluate future remote working options for their employees and many have already committed to a long term shift to more flexible working.
The headlines
"Enquiries for flexible office space in Europe almost triple in last three months" 28/07/21 (Source: Workthere)
"UK office demand 'shifting to the suburbs' amid Covid-19 crisis"
Workspace provider IWG says fear of commuting has turbo-charged move towards more local office facilities. "A gradual shift towards the hub-and-spoke model – where companies have their headquarters in a big city such as London or Birmingham and smaller satellite offices in the regions – was under way prior to the crisis, but the pandemic has given this a big push.
“The amount of interest in home working and local solutions has gone off the charts.”
“People have tasted the relative luxury of not having to commute,” Dixon said. At the same time, companies still need to have offices that staff can drop in for social interaction, meetings and business reviews. “You don’t want to meet people in your front room or bedroom.” Mark Dixon, IWG chief executive (Source: The Guardian)
The coworking x-factor
A regionally distributed workforce can be accommodated in smaller local and serviced offices but this presents its own problems for facilities and HR managers. Do these options really function well as a substitute for a buzzing head office with all the facilities and interactions to be found there, or are they simply convenient satellites where it's hard to nurture truly creative and collaborative relationships?
This is where coworking adds real value. On one level there's the practical appeal of flexible and short term local contracts, managed offices where the day to day hassle of dealing with utilities, cleaning and ordering supplies is all taken care of. But it's worth pointing out that only the best coworking spaces will be putting resources into curating their spaces, events and communities to maximise the value of membership.
Within the industry a key survey conducted in May 2020 by Coworking Insights, gathered data from coworking stakeholders around the world.
The not so good impact:
70% of coworking operators saw a significant drop in numbers using their spaces
40% saw a negative impact on memberships
67% saw a drop in the number of enquiries
22% of spaces closed
Followed by the plus side:
90% of regular users said they plan to return
70% of first-time remote workers believed their flexible arrangement increased productivity
54% of respondents who worked in an office with no remote working prior to the pandemic now anticipate their employer’s remote work policy changing
(Source: Coworker Insights 2020 Future of Work Report)
And while at Workshop we are well aware of the positive aspects of coworking and have been banging that drum (increasingly loudly) for years, it's taken a pandemic for many businesses to question what the office is really for and what alternatives there might be to the traditional setup. Coworking spaces provide a unique solution for companies looking for a hybrid alternative to the traditional office, a best-of-both-worlds office environment with value, community and flexibility as key features.