FutureSpace: Why Co-working is The Future of Work

Coworking spaces are increasingly popular in South Africa and around the world as more people and companies jump on the trend. 

Such a is the popularity, Linda Trim, Director at FutureSpace, a high-end work, ‘pro-working’ space joint venture between Investec Property and workplace specialists Giant Leap said: ”From what we have seen in past few years and the massive expected further adoption of shared work spaces as the norm, we think it is the future of work.” 

Here’a why: 

The age of start-ups
“As start-ups flourish,” said Trim, “so will the coworking culture. Start-ups are typically synonymous with limited funds and using coworking offices can save a lot of expenses related to resources and infrastructure such as internet, furniture, office space and facilities. Start-ups won’t need fork out large sums to get set up.” 

Killing the killer commute 

Basing individuals or groups of employees at shared offices closer to their homes allows them to commute short distances by car, on foot or by alternative, greener means of transport in some cities such as bicycles. This allows workers to remain in touch with colleagues while linked in to central information systems and all office facilities. 

Knowledge – the key asset of industries today
Said Trim: “With market competition only increasing, knowledge and intellectual property seem to be the major assets for companies to achieve product advantage and differentiation.” Giant multinational companies like IBM, Microsoft and AT&T have started coworking with start-ups in order to keep their current employees abreast of the latest innovations and trends. “Also, coworking provides a perfect platform for start-ups to get noticed by big companies,” said Trim. 

Economies of scale 

Companies, small and large, now recognise that utilizing coworking spaces can provide vast economies of scale, cost savings and sustainability benefits. “The traditional high-rise office block is a huge duplication of resources — everything from multiple staplers right, dozens of printers and numerous, hugely expensive, IT infrastructures,” Trim noted. Coworking allows tools such as these to be shared and the financial outlay spread across users.

Work-life balance
As employees give more importance to work-life balance, flexible work schedules, part-time jobs, independent consulting and freelancing are on the rise. “In such a scenario, coworking facilitates the remote work culture with better infrastructure and peaceful, helpful environment that is taking the place of the coffee shop,” Trim added. 

Sharing & caring leanings of younger workers
While people of all ages are adopting the coworking trend, tech savvy younger workers are particularly predisposed to coworking spaces as many live a sharing life anyway – cohabiting with friends and linking to them all day via social media platforms.  “This open and sharing mentality makes co-working, meeting new people and knowledge sharing inevitable for this group and it will become more entrenched as younger workers become more senior in organisations,” Trim noted. 

Eco-friendly 
Coworking allows resources to be used by many more people thereby cutting down on things like electricity and water use, two resources in short supply in South Africa. It also reduces the number of commercial buildings and land needed. 

For more visit FutureSpace.