Contrary to the traditional office workplace where individuals work together for the same company, a co-working space is a flexible workspace option where employees from different companies share an office space to work independently on various projects or in teams on the same project. Co-working offices also offer conference rooms, desks, collaborative areas and amenities. Co-working offices are constantly gaining steam and popularity worldwide, and a lot of businesses are now switching from the conventional workplace to the flexible co-work office. On that premise, the following article explains the rise of co-working spaces and their effects on businesses’ success.
Freelance professional and independent contractors make up 33% of today’s workforce, and this number is expected to increase in the years to come. Although a substantial number of these individuals work from home, many find co-working spaces attractive and beneficial in how they work and are willing to give them a try. Indeed, solopreneurs, remote workers and freelancers find value in co-working spaces. They like the idea of being around like-minded individuals and have felt the positive impacts of co-working on how they do their job and engage in it. For that reason, the demand for these setups is continually increasing year to year, with thousands of co-working spaces opening worldwide every year.
In addition to remote working and freelancing individuals, small businesses and companies also benefit from co-working spaces. They are now comfortable in pivoting from the conventional office setup to a more flexible option. As individuals can focus only on their work without worrying about administrative tasks in co-working spaces, many businesses are witnessing increased productivity and scalability since co-working spaces let businesses scale up without fees or penalties. In addition to that, co-working spaces allow more room for networking as different skilled professionals and freelancers work together, and this network building might also lead to creativity and innovation.
Although it is currently small businesses and freelancers that are the predominant users of co-working spaces, it is expected that established firms and large businesses will also get involved very soon.