📰 Coworking updates.
💡 Supporting & connecting with the next generation through coworking.
Zoe Ellis-Moore shares a project pioneered by Arc Club called the ‘Homework Club’. The space, based in Hackney, London, offers 17-25 year olds free access to the space to focus on homework or coursework.
Not only does this program bring in an increasingly diverse membership from the local area, but also introduces the benefits of shared workspaces and coworking to whole new generation.
👍 Employers should encourage work-near-home space access.
Georgetown University professor Cal Newport makes the case in The New Yorker for organizations that allow remote work to not only encourage employees to find professional spaces near (but distinct from) their homes, but that they should also directly subsidize these cognitive escapes.
🐣 On acknowledging workers who are also parents.
Amanda Munday shares how we can better signal that childcare is a collective responsibility as well as how we can tackle the flaw in the most discussions around why childcare support needs to be part of any economic infrastructure.
🏡 Is the future of coworking suburbanized?
Peter Maxwell looks into how (and why) so many coworking and flex space brands are branching into more suburban locations. He touches on the improved positioning to “purpose driven” decision makers and on what management of these suburbanized coworking spaces may look like.
🤔 Is the office really really dying?
Laura J Patel assesses a recent Axios story that dissects the exaggeration around the “death of the office” saying “Many people want to return to the office. But the notion of what the office looks like – and what we do there – is still in flux”. Interesting too that whilst 69% of CEOs said they’d be downsizing offices when asked in Aug 2020, only 17% said they’d be downsizing when asked in March 2021.
📈 Occupancy Index in UK reaches 50% of pre-pandemic levels.
Michael Grant from Metrikus shares that their data is reporting a return to 50% of the prepandemic occupancy numbers in the offices they work with in the UK.
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🤝 Coworking industry deals.
💥 Global brand acquires local coworking space.
The Denver Post reports on how the Modworks coworking space is changing hands, and becoming a Venture X location led by Paul Sheperd. This is the franchise’s second acquisition in the region. The article does also dive into why the previous owners sold and why Paul opted for Venture X’s franchise model for getting into coworking.
🍕 Upscale pizza spot becoming a coworking space.
PropertyWeek reports how Spacemade have been instructed to turn a 4000sqft unit that was previously a Pizza Express in Leeds into a coworking space. The landlord had already brought in the flex operator to take over 16,000 sqft of service offices in the same building.
Whilst retail-to-coworking has been a growing trend for a while, I’m curious to see how well ground-floor ex-restaurant space will work for coworking and returning buzz and footfall to office buildings.
💻 Coworking technology.
🔐 Pre-IPO Smart lock startup expands into offices.
Latch, who mainly focus on multifamily properties, have announced a pilot bringing their smart locks into 3 NYC developments – the Empire State Building, Brookfield Place and Rockefeller Center. The startup is preparing for a merger-based IPO through Tishman Speyer‘s SPAC at a $1.5B valuation.
💻 Massive tech advancements still needed to make flex really work.
Miroslav Miroslavov shares some insights (as a CEO of property management system OfficeRnD) as to what the industry still needs to truly allow everyone to work from anywhere.
☕️ What’s preventing more switching from leases to flex?
In this Q&A, Melissa Ansley (JLL Flex Occupier Solutions lead in Americas) shares insights into what’s holding back occupiers from leveraging more flex, what role technology will play in increasing adoption of flex space strategies and what they’re excited about regarding the industry right now.
🌾 Rural coworking network launches discord server.
Following a successful panel this week, the European Rural Coworking Project have launched a discord channel (think Clubhouse + Slack + Forum) to connect those running, or interested in supporting, rural coworking spaces.
🎙 Coworking conversations.
Business Wars Daily touches on what Google (and others) are testing for their post-pandemic future offices.
Frank Cottle chats with Richard Smith from Office Freedom about misconceptions around the term ‘shared space’, workspace branding, and the future kinds of offices companies are choosing.
Bernie Mitchell and Ashley Proctor chat all about the Coworking Canada 2021 unconference.
Jamie Russo and Ben Wright chat about Upsuite‘s recent set of coworking industry market data.
📆 Coworking events.
28 May: “Mental Wellness & Coworking” – Coworking Convo lead by Cat Johnson.
03 Jun: “Coworking Canada Unconference 2021“
28 Jun: “COLATAM Latam Summit“
💼 Coworking jobs.
BLANKSPACES are seeking full time a Location Coordinator in Culver City, CA.
Deskpass are seeking a full time Full Stack Engineer to work remotely.
Deskpass are seeking a full time Workspace Partnerships Associate to work remotely.
Deskpass are seeking a full time Account Executive to work remotely.
Good Coworking are seeking a part time Hospitality + Marketing Catalyst in Dallas, TX.
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