One usually imagines coworking spaces filled with soloprenuers, remote workers, start ups and small businesses teams. After all, they are designed to accommodate these types. Coworking spaces make it possible for start ups with very limited resources to cut costs dramatically, they allow a professional setting and community for those who work from home. They have become an essential resource small business owners and remote workers.
But why are large companies like IBM, Verizon and Facebook sending their employees to coworking spaces?
Most well established, larger businesses like these have the infrastructure and capital needed to accommodate their employees. As it turns out, coworking can solve a lot of problems for big companies as well!
Coworking has made it much less risky and costly for large companies to test new markets in other locations.
Instead of entering into another costly lease agreement and equipping new offices they can eliminate or greatly reduce this risk by having their team work from a coworking space. Large companies have also used coworking spaces to deal with rapid growth because they offer the same flexibility needed if downsizing is necessary.
Most coworking spaces have 24/7 access so any business that relies on international markets benefit from the off hours access.
They can also send remote and contract workers from all over the world to a space equipped with everything they need to do business. They also offer opportunities for large businesses to access new talent in areas where they are not established.
Large companies continue to use coworking spaces all over the globe, but not just because they save money, offer flexibility, and reduce risk but they have noticed increased productivity and general happiness among their employees.
Coworking spaces offer a very different culture and work environment than of traditional offices.
Though they lack the bureaucracy, hierarchy and they impose no rigid expectations or restrictions, productivity and work ethic tend to be higher. This might be attributed to the fact that people are more productive in more relaxed environments. It may also have to do with working around Entrepreneurs, who tend to have very high work ethic.
Members in coworking spaces don’t compete for seniority or try to out-do one another, instead they work autonomously while promoting one another and using each others’ services. No wonder employees are happier and more productive!
In the future coworking may become just as important for large companies as they are for start ups. They can be the strategic edge that allows them the flexibility to grow and adapt to change.
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