article embracing coworking by Ray Lindenberg

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Embracing Workspacism, Co-Working and "The 3rd Wave": Tackling the Myths, Misconceptions and Fears...and How to Add Co-Working to Your OBC/Serviced Office Menu

By Ray Lindenberg, Director of Branding, Select Office Suites

Back in the 80’s, the 1st full Wave of modern workspacism, a movement whereby companies sought alternatives to the traditional way of approaching work and the workspace, started to take root. Companies on the West Coast started pushing back on the IBM shirt and tie dress standard around that time. The 2nd full Wave of workspacism hit in the mid-to-late 90’s, when dot-coms started to proliferate, and even more open spaces and jeans became acceptable and en vogue across corporate America.

Fast-forward a decade later to about 2007, as the 3rd massive Wave of modern workspacism started to take form. Changes in the work-style tastes of work cultures inevitably occur every 10-15 years, but this generation has an even stronger desire to approach work more casually, both stylistically and functionally...feeling more creative and productive in non-walled work environments that invited collaboration.

Economics and mobility are driving this 3rd Wave in ways no one could have predicted. High unemployment rates mean that more people are jobless and have less money to risk on a traditional office. Meanwhile, more companies and governments are realizing that having a centralized corporate office, with all the related expenses to house their staffers, is fiscally inefficient. Hence, you see more and more organizations shifting their staff to a mobile workforce and distributed workers, as they struggle for greater profits through leaner expense sheets.

The question is whether your OBC/Serviced Office should start to widen its offerings to appeal to the 3rd Wave that includes Generation Y, Millennial, Mobile and Distributed work tribes, if it hasn’t incorporated some elements already. Statistics show that most OBCs already have, once you define the term “workspace” more clearly.

“Workspace” refers to an array of workplace solutions that include, but are not limited to: Virtual Office Plans; enclosed office and conference room hourly rentals; Hot-Desk and Touchdown Space offerings; semi-private and shared room rentals; and Co-working Spaces. Do you offer any of these low-cost options in your Center? If you offer Virtual Office Plans, you may already be more than just an OBC/Service Office provider – you may fall under the broader umbrella of “Workspace” and just didn’t realize it.

Here are some myths, misconceptions and fears you might be harboring about the two more-involved and apprehensively-approached workspace alternatives: Co-working and Hot-Desking.

You don’t have to change your Center’s name just because you expanded your offerings to include more low-cost workspace options. A separate page on your website will do -- or better yet, produce a landing page on the internet that introduces you to the many prospects that are looking for such options.

You don’t have to rent out a whole new separate space, or devote a large portion of your current space to Hot-Desking or Co-working. On the contrary, if you’re just testing the waters, sectioning off maybe 10% of your space, or one or two large team rooms is all that’s required.

Don’t be afraid of attracting the wrong Co-workers...any more than you should be afraid of attracting the wrong OBC/Serviced Office clients. In both cases you should have standards and do’s-and-don’ts that your clients must abide by. Neither can play loud music or be disruptive, for instance. And if they wind up dressing like the late, great Steve Jobs, so what. (He himself evolved to working in Levi’s, New Balances and turtlenecks, full-time, over the years.) That person you’re renting a Hot-desk space to might turn out to be the next Mark Zuckerberg, using your Center as the launching pad and eventually renting multiple offices.

Nurture and embrace the Co-working community. They’ll effortlessly market your space for you with their circle of Co-working friends, some of which may transfer into full-time, dedicated office renters too. An occasional lunch-and-learn or pizza party for them doesn’t cost you much, but they really appreciate the spirit of community and camaraderie, so play up to it. It’ll pay for itself in spades.

Don’t worry that we’ll eventually see the demise of the OBC/Serviced office industry. There will always be a need and market for a fully-enclosed, dedicated and serviced office, especially if it’s a good one. Bicycles aren’t replacing all the cars any time soon either.

It’s your choice whether to ride the current 3rd Wave, stay ahead of it, or watch it from the shore...and determine how you will position yourself for the 4th full Wave of workspace preferences evolving over the next 5-15 years. The world of work is changing at the blink of an eye. Isn’t it worth at least dipping your toe in the water so that you have something to offer all of today’s work generations?

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Ray Lindenberg Ray is Director of Branding for Select Office Suites in New York City; Co-Founder of the highly successful Office Business Center Association of New York which represents two million square feet of OBC Serviced Office space in the Tri-State area; and author of the upcoming book: ‘MILLION DOLLAR SECRETS OF A WORKSPACE TIP-STER: Best Practices and Approaches For Providing A Great Workspace.