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6
How You Work: People, Places & Flexible Workspaces
The attractiveness of central, plug-and-play real estate, a comparatively
short lease and low capital investment has remained an integral asset of
the Flexible Office market. However, the product suite has evolved as well,
to reflect changing attitudes to work and working requirements over time.
The Revolution
Coworking Spaces arose as a result of the contextual
and cultural requirements of the 21st century.
Initially developed from niche ‘hackerspaces’ during
the Dotcom Bubble, Coworking galvanised the tech
grassroots with free wifi and an open community
for like-minded enthusiasts to meet, work and
collaborate. The growth of Coworking gained
momentum following the Global Financial Crisis (GFC)
in 2008 when traditional jobs vanished overnight,
forcing highly skilled individuals into unemployment.
Between 2008 and 2009, average GDP in the UK,
US, Germany and China declined starkly by 3.5%.
Remarkably, the amount of early-stage businesses
grew by 23%, particularly in digital, media and
technology sectors where low barriers to entry proved
a perfect ground for unexpected entrepreneurs.
In contrast to the desk-bound businesses of the
20th century, businesses could now choose to work
anywhere,
within
reason
. Modest budgets, poor credit
ratings and unencouraging survival rates meant that
startups required flexible office tenure at a low cost.
But between the local Wi-Fi enabled coffee shop and
Business Centre sat the Coworking space that offered
more than an affordable space; it offered a culture.
Coworking, as stated in Our
Coworking Revolution
report, is ‘where two or more people are working
in the same place together, but not for the same
company’. A Coworking space provides a flexible
rental or membership package operating on a rolling
per desk per month, week or day basis. Design of the
internal space aims to achieve the comfort of home and
culture of a private members club with the facilities of a
traditional office. They are typically open-plan, centred
around large, social break-out spaces, with a range of
environments to suit both individual and collaborative
work. Andrea Kolokasi, head of the Coworking offering
for the Workspace Group in London explains that
“Coworking is the new-age way of working, offering
flexibility and comfort. People want something more
professional than a Starbucks and less formal than a
traditional Business Centre. That is where Coworking
fills the gap.”
Sharing and collaborating are key aspects of Coworking
culture. Operators typically organise social initiatives
including skill-shares, events and clubs in order to
cultivate social and professional cohesion between
members. Charlie Green, co-founder and CEO of The
Office Group, views Coworking as “one extreme element
in the shift of working styles, which is one of the results
of the sharing economy.”
“Coworking is like dating and taking traditional office space is a
bit like getting married. You can date for a while but once you get
married, it’s a big commitment you want to get right first time.”
Celine Thompson
, Derwent, London