We’ve written numerous pieces over the past couple of years relating to Remote Working and Regional Job Creation and the benefits of coworking hubs to the local economy. And we aren’t alone in the cause, with many national and international thought-leaders rowing into the debate on ‘smart working’ and the ‘future of work’.
Let's not underestimate the societal shift that is required to fully embrace the possibilities of remote working, it is seismic! It is a change that’s coming, but the entire culture of work and its relationship with ‘place’ will undoubtedly take many years to filter into all organisations.
In the interim, what can be done? First off, we can address the ‘place’ part of the work relationship. To explain: Work in today’s society revolves around the place you ‘go to’, to do that work. In today's society, the vast majority of us must go to our ‘place of work’ to do whatever job it is we all do. Typically these places of work cluster together in our major towns and cities to maximise on infrastructure. In order to facilitate a real change in how we work, the place must change and evolve. We must put in the measures now that in the coming years will facilitate remote/smart workers to be more fluid in their decision on where their place of work will be.
Locations must become more worker-focused than company-focused in their infrastructure development. This focus is not only beneficial to attracting new remote workers, it also benefits indigenous companies in attracting talent. Society and work culture is evolving, and it is those locations that have created the right infrastructure will be the ones to reap the rewards.
Coworking spaces and Hubs are only an element of the infrastructure measures that need to be in place to position locations to accommodate remote workers. While essential to the mix, to focus on just these facilities alone as being the remedy to the remote worker needs would be a fallacy.
High-speed and reliable broadband, affordable and quality housing choice, exceptional schools, hospitality, recreational and health facilities — all of these are essential elements to a functioning place and are pre-requisites to accommodate a more flexible work culture. Essentials of this place must include the development of a welcoming community to make a relocation more seamless, an attractive location that integrates and values the benefit of new jobs and people into its society. And there’s more, the necessary ‘infrastructure’ to create that place must include activity, fun, culture, entertainment…for want of a better term, the place must include life!
Think about it logically — If workers could choose anywhere in the world to work from, why would they choose your location?
As we evolve into a ‘work-place-fluid’ society, just watch those locations who are acting now to accommodate and attract a new era of workers — they will be the ones to reap the rewards.
#WorkplaceFluid #RemoteWork #SmartWork #TheFutureOfWork
