SMEs are flocking to Coworking spaces
The cultural of the office job is making way towards a work-life balance that doesn’t necessarily involve a permanent desk with a nameplate. Companies-especially in Tech and entrepreneur sphere- are turning more and more to coworking spaces.
The shared space industry has boomed over the last ten years or so, as the cultural of work is changing. Instead of posting up at the corner coffee shop all day with spotty Wi-Fi, people are now working in coworking spaces, or an office shared by multiple independent workers and companies.
Not only these spaces provide a productive place to get things done, but they also boost community. The key to the coworking spaces industry keeping its productivity high is its demographic also Coworking are home to people looking for flexile office solution; startups, graphic designers, bloggers, and developers.
These jobs aren’t for isolated spaces, they are in need for collaborative spaces, more suited to networking and the little management structure.
Nevertheless, not only these spaces provide a productive place to get things done, but they also boost community. And this is the key reason why SMEs should incorporate the coworking culture in their offices. Indeed, shared spaces capitalize on people who need an influx of creativity but are unable to be productive at home or in corporate offices either due to distractions or a rigid corporate structure.
This reminds us of Startups which can be great customers to coworking space, but there is a lot of uncertainty around them with an SME that has about 100 people and revenues of multi-cores. Strictly speaking, the biggest challenge with a startup-focused model is that this market is small as compared to the world of SMEs.
Therefore, Business models are moving towards solving the demand-supply gap. While most of the real estate developers in TUNISIA are focused on solving the space requirements of Startups, new-age co-working companies are striking model terms with landlords, catering to significant latent demand in smaller, mid-size yet stable companies.
So, what are the implications for traditional companies? Even though the coworking movement has its origins among freelancers, entrepreneurs, and the tech industry, it’s increasingly relevant for a broader range of people and organizations. In fact, coworking can become part of your company’s strategy, and it can help your people and your business thrive, a fact that testifies to the growing number of the companies that are incorporating coworking into their business strategies.
In reality, people need to be able to craft their work in ways that give them purpose and meaning. They should be given control and flexibility in their work environment — many companies are increasingly adopting the best planning practice of providing a 1:1 ratio (or close to it) of desk seats to seats in shared settings used for either collaborative work or quiet work. Companies are also trying to enable more connections, helping people to interact and build community beyond work meetings. Coworking spaces are one place to look for guidance, as they regularly offer networking events, training programs, social events, and even summer camps…the combination of a well-designed work environment and a well-curated work experience are part of the reason people who cowork demonstrate higher levels of thriving than their office-based counterparts. But what matters the most for high levels of thriving is that people who cowork have substantial autonomy and can be themselves at work.
Edited by: Tricky Safa
