tag:theconversation.com,2011:/id/topics/coworking-7994/articlescoworking – The Conversation2020-04-29T12:08:51Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1359222020-04-29T12:08:51Z2020-04-29T12:08:51ZVery good dogs don’t necessarily make very good co-workers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326948/original/file-20200409-130026-aq84nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Working from home involves new co-workers.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/dog-sitting-on-a-chair-at-a-table-with-laptop-in-royalty-free-image/1142537289?adppopup=true">Halfpoint Images/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us are working from home in close proximity to our human children or fur babies.</p>
<p>Cats have their fans, but I want to focus on dogs. </p>
<p>Dogs are great companions. Science suggests <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08927936.2019.1673033?casa_token=Nz3cwWmzkW0AAAAA:Q5lVEFM33_Wxx0ayJmZMH3H5ZQadZDOUanDK0y16bOLV3KUr2AOUleYxPp9cO4u-5xtTNpIiV139Pg">owning one may benefit mental health</a>. Just <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/348/6232/333.abstract?casa_token=eWMKl2Bi9YgAAAAA:LhK7QvRCADGnGWXnQACCEokq5MCqsgwKu4TyIj7cvkBB7VR-rbMcbQQWSD1Fnl8-SE17K9hxCResRR8">making eye contact with your dog can release the feel-good hormone oxytocin</a>.</p>
<p>But, as a researcher who <a href="https://pennstate.academia.edu/JessicaMyrick">studies emotions, procrastination and how people interact with pets</a>, I can tell you that sometimes work emphasizes getting things done over feel-good chemicals. So what do we know about how this new-found time with your dog might be affecting your productivity?</p>
<h2>Good dog, bad dog</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/17538351211215366/full/html?utm_campaign=dc.ourcommunitynow.com%20website&utm_source=ocn_story&utm_medium=website&utm_content=Virginia%20Commonwealth%20University">There’s evidence</a> that bringing your dog to work with you can reduce your perceived stress levels as the day progresses. And <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F1072-5245.12.4.409">research on stress management</a> has shown that employees who feel good are more productive.</p>
<p>Taken together, those findings bode well for including your canine companions in your at-home work routines.</p>
<p>Keep in mind, <a href="https://theconversation.com/lockdown-can-be-stressful-for-pets-too-heres-how-to-keep-your-dog-entertained-135156">pets can get stressed when their surroundings or routines change</a>, and it may take a while for both you and your pup to settle into a new working-with-your-dog lifestyle.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326955/original/file-20200409-119167-12uf4vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326955/original/file-20200409-119167-12uf4vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326955/original/file-20200409-119167-12uf4vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326955/original/file-20200409-119167-12uf4vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326955/original/file-20200409-119167-12uf4vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326955/original/file-20200409-119167-12uf4vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326955/original/file-20200409-119167-12uf4vc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sometimes the best co-workers have four legs and a tail.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/female-professionals-using-laptops-while-sitting-royalty-free-image/991160798?adppopup=true">Maskot/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Working with pet videos</h2>
<p>If you don’t have a pet but want to benefit from the same potential boosts in mood or productivity, there is always the internet.</p>
<p>In a cross-sectional <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563215004343?casa_token=93B6CsXRvGUAAAAA:77tsamV-uhMnokx4a-6y9GqsAhM0mr0zO6ePqCWSmeP6U4IPgZWRhmBG3n8zzS6Oy-uSW5jz_bI">survey I conducted with 7,000 internet users</a> in 2015, I found that watching cat videos can give people a quick boost of happiness and energy. While this study focused on felines, dog lovers may get similar benefits from watching videos of their favorite pooches. </p>
<p><a href="https://jvme.utpjournals.press/doi/abs/10.3138/jvme.1016-162r">A study of veterinary students</a> tested this idea. The course instructor picked 20 class days and on half showed a cute or funny video featuring dogs or cats during the middle of the lecture.</p>
<p>Students were surveyed during all 20 class days. On the days they viewed animal videos they reported more positive mood, greater interest in the course material and deeper understanding of the course material.</p>
<p>While you are not going to get a lot of work done watching hours of pet videos on YouTube, some research suggests that taking short breaks for a mood-boosting activity, be it <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08927936.2017.1370244?casa_token=ArJR2Cf4xu8AAAAA:xZEW0yuDeckjv2HuoOWizEjQMBoQCTtqBze5Tcf-VpKz-Lt_bD5Jee3bFYajo1JSf9RfUZ8Lx8YUfg">petting an actual dog</a> or <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563215004343?casa_token=DofGpKpBOQQAAAAA:fhZ53HzuMs2rNzc3koMqXfhxOt0IlIycluHXy25dvy_ua-PUZW0SomfjSpNLkqch_K6cX01DZT8">watching a video of one online</a>, may not only improve your mood but also decrease stress or re-energize you when you do return to your work.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326972/original/file-20200409-59613-14bp631.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326972/original/file-20200409-59613-14bp631.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326972/original/file-20200409-59613-14bp631.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326972/original/file-20200409-59613-14bp631.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326972/original/file-20200409-59613-14bp631.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326972/original/file-20200409-59613-14bp631.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326972/original/file-20200409-59613-14bp631.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">While Mom works hard, Fido is hardly working.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/business-woman-working-at-office-with-dog-royalty-free-image/673510431?adppopup=true">Kohei Hara/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Finding a solution</h2>
<p>More studies are needed in this area to come to a stronger scientific consensus on the relationship between working alongside your dog and your productivity.</p>
<p>The value of having a dog with you during your workday will depend on the type of work, the workplace or work-from-home environment, the type of dog and your own style of work.</p>
<p>In the meantime, pick up your dog for a minute so all your co-workers can make eye contact with her via the group Zoom video session and share in your <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/made-each-other/201005/dog-good">oxytocin boost</a>.</p>
<p>[<em>Like what you’ve read? Want more?</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=likethis">Sign up for The Conversation’s daily newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135922/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jessica Myrick does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Are the best co-workers really the ones with four legs and a tail? Science says it depends.Jessica Myrick, Associate Professor of Media Studies, Penn StateLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1339892020-03-18T15:45:43Z2020-03-18T15:45:43ZRemote working: the new normal for many, but it comes with hidden risks – new research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321332/original/file-20200318-1913-189rbhn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Cry freedom. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/female-freelancer-her-casual-home-clothing-241592305">Matej Kastelic</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Many of us have had little choice but to resort to remote working in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. It is just days since <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2020/03/10/google-tells-more-than-100000-employees-to-work-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/">Google</a>, <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/facebook-apple-google-and-twitter-ask-staff-to-work-remotely-due-to-coronavirus-heres-the-bad-news-for-the-rest-of-america-2020-03-08?link=MW_latest_news">Apple and Twitter</a> were making headlines by ordering their employees to work from home, but you could now say the same about lots of companies. </p>
<p>Whatever you think about this style of working, the trend is increasing. Remote working was already growing fast – <a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/blog/post/flexjobs-gwa-report-remote-growth/">more than doubling</a> since 2005 to 4.7 million workers in the US, for example. If you believe <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonobacon/2020/03/10/how-to-switch-to-remote-working-quickly-for-both-employers-and-employees/">recent headlines</a>, the transition is all too easy and seamless.</p>
<p>Yet the march towards this utopian future has been uneven – witness IBM’s decision to dump remote working several years ago, <a href="https://qz.com/924167/ibm-remote-work-pioneer-is-calling-thousands-of-employees-back-to-the-office/">because</a> it was preventing innovation and collaboration. I have just <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs40558-020-00172-4">published research</a> that highlights additional challenges and difficulties. And if people don’t approach remote working in the right way, they risk making their work lives worse. </p>
<h2>Pros and cons</h2>
<p>When discussing remote working, academics and the media have been split into opposing camps. The pro camp <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-remote-work-can-affect-and-improve-your-mental-strength-2020-3?r=US&IR=T">talk about</a> cuttng out commutes, increasing quality family time and productivity and achieving a better work-life balance. Sceptics <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-remote-working-can-increase-stress-and-reduce-well-being-125021">reply that</a> flexibility comes at a cost. They warn about losing social interaction, nuance and community – and potentially becoming less productive. These give us mixed messages when we need certainty.</p>
<p>As an anthropologist, I’ve spent the past four years <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs40558-020-00172-4">researching how</a> people adjusted to becoming an extreme type of remote worker known as <a href="https://theconversation.com/digital-nomads-what-its-really-like-to-work-while-travelling-the-world-99345">digital nomads</a>. These workers move from country to country, always working online. I followed more than 50 in total, employed in a range of jobs including computer coding, graphic design, online marketing and travel journalism. </p>
<p>After an initial honeymoon period, remote working quickly became too isolating for over 25% of my participants. As one said, “Some aren’t naturally self-motivated, and no end of self-help books will change that”. </p>
<p>One solution turned out to be the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-rise-of-the-coworking-space-sign-of-the-times-or-flash-in-the-pan-43368">coworking space</a>. It gave a sense of community and face-to-face interaction, but more important was just to be around other workers – academic jargon for this is <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0212004">co-presence</a>. As a remote employee working in ecommerce explained: “Just being around other folk working turbocharges your day.” </p>
<p>I completely understand this sentiment. I wrote most of this article in a coworking space, and just being around others <a href="https://www.standard.co.uk/comment/comment/coronavirus-closed-your-office-here-s-my-guide-to-working-from-home-yes-you-need-to-get-dressed-a4379411.html">tapping away</a> at their keyboards creates a feeling of effortless productivity.</p>
<p>Yet things change quickly. Coworking spaces are not going to be an option for many people for a while. Some of those in house shares will be able to recreate the same environment at home. There are various forms of coworking space etiquette that can be adopted at home, such as having quiet zones for focused work and having separate areas for voice and video calls. </p>
<h2>Digital discipline</h2>
<p>If working near other people is important, the need for a disciplined work life is everything. For my research participants, this was the secret ingredient in sustaining remote working – whether the discipline was <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/self-discipline">self-imposed</a> or externally set by <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90474550/one-simple-trick-to-make-any-deadline-manageable">deadlines</a>. </p>
<p>My participants never discussed discipline at first. The initial excitement of remote working made them productive for a while. But after a few months, motivation became harder. At this point, some participants gave up on this lifestyle. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321383/original/file-20200318-1982-1jh57jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321383/original/file-20200318-1982-1jh57jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321383/original/file-20200318-1982-1jh57jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321383/original/file-20200318-1982-1jh57jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321383/original/file-20200318-1982-1jh57jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321383/original/file-20200318-1982-1jh57jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321383/original/file-20200318-1982-1jh57jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321383/original/file-20200318-1982-1jh57jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Productivity waning?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/freelance-work-casual-dressed-man-sitting-389902036">Moshbidon</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Those who thrived tended to be more strict, ensuring they went to coworking spaces every day and put phones and social media noise out of reach. Many also set up rituals. One graphic designer deliberately chose to work in a space that was 15 minutes walk from their home, to “mentally gear up for work” on his way in and to decompress before he got home. </p>
<p>Fascinatingly, here was a worker who had not only given up one office for another, but was recreating the daily commute. And just because coworking spaces are off limits at the moment it doesn’t mean you can’t consider equivalent rituals. It is still an option to build a short walk into the beginning and end of the working day, thereby creating a clear division between your home and work life.</p>
<h2>Always on, always available</h2>
<p>Digital technology may free people to work remotely in the first place, but it also causes unforeseen problems. My participants reported a growing expectation to be available 24/7, reflecting <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-remote-working-can-increase-stress-and-reduce-well-being-125021">similar findings</a> in <a href="https://theconversation.com/leaveism-welcome-to-the-dark-side-of-21st-century-flexible-working-130976">other studies</a>. </p>
<p>This is an issue for the entire workforce, but it is arguably exacerbated by remote working. Our 24/7 work culture didn’t happen overnight, or because of coercive managers. Instead, the perceived division between work and non-work has steadily disappeared over time, while few of us were paying attention. </p>
<p>Sociologist Judy Wajcman argues that this mentality is <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1461444818820073">even restructuring</a> how we think about time, as Silicon Valley designs devices and apps that urge us all on a never-ending quest for productivity and self-discipline. Besides work, the ways in which we read books, watch TV, exercise and meditate can now be timeboxed into app-sized chunks as well. </p>
<p><a href="https://hbr.org/2018/11/helping-remote-workers-avoid-loneliness-and-burnout">This culture</a> has led some remote workers to experience mental health issues and burnout. Reflecting back on his burnout, one interviewee called Sam explained:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I didn’t have the concept of free time until I found myself scheduling four-hour meetings in my diary titled ‘downtime’. It’s insane; I look back at this period in my life and wonder why it took so long to burnout.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321335/original/file-20200318-1942-1tmky04.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321335/original/file-20200318-1942-1tmky04.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321335/original/file-20200318-1942-1tmky04.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321335/original/file-20200318-1942-1tmky04.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321335/original/file-20200318-1942-1tmky04.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321335/original/file-20200318-1942-1tmky04.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321335/original/file-20200318-1942-1tmky04.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321335/original/file-20200318-1942-1tmky04.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Yes boss.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/woman-bed-phone-headache-638526568">Aldeca Productions</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We all need to keep an eye on this dangerous trend. It is crucial to set clear boundaries between home life and work and not put pressure on ourselves to be available outside working hours – particularly during a crisis when many of us will need to support family and friends. </p>
<p>Finally, remote working could well become permanent for many people. Many companies were encouraging staff to work elsewhere to reduce office costs before the outbreak, and this will probably be all the more attractive to the businesses that survive this crisis. One wonders if in ten years we will look back from our remote workstations and remember 2020 as the year we last went into the office. Either way, we need to be careful. Remote working always tantalises with the promise of freedom, but it can end up delivering the exact opposite.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133989/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dave Cook does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>COVID-19 has forced many of us to do the daily shift from home. An anthropologist who observed a group of remote workers raises some concerns and shares some tips.Dave Cook, PhD Researcher, Anthropology, UCLLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1257852019-10-25T12:33:02Z2019-10-25T12:33:02ZWeWork debacle exposes why investing in a charismatic founder can be dangerous<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298579/original/file-20191024-170484-6foi43.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">WeWork wanted to be a lot more than a shared workspace. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/new-york-nyusamay-10-2018-wework-1278091729?src=9xiaJ5BmEePlhpkb52WWiA-1-12">rblfmr/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>WeWork went from <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-fall-of-wework-how-a-startup-darling-came-unglued-11571946003">unicorn darling</a> with a nearly US$50 billion valuation to a cautionary tale for gullible investors <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/softbank-to-take-control-of-wework-11571746483?mod=hp_lead_pos2">worth just $8 billion</a> in a matter of months. It did so in part by wrapping its real estate sublet business in the cloak of a tech startup destined to “change the world.”</p>
<p>Were investors like SoftBank and JPMorgan duped by the hype of a charismatic founder, as happened with <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/20/hbos-the-inventor-how-elizabeth-holmes-fooled-people-about-theranos.html">Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos</a>? </p>
<p>As a <a href="https://csbapp.uncw.edu/data/fs/vita.aspx?id=25472">lecturer in finance</a> and someone who managed investments for 20 years, I believe that there was some of that, coupled with <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/050813/4-behavioral-biases-and-how-avoid-them.asp">behavioral biases</a> that lead people to make bad decisions. But I also think something else was going on that should give investors pause the next time they stumble across a visionary founder promoting a “change the world” branding strategy. </p>
<h2>‘We’ will change the world</h2>
<p>WeWork was founded in 2011 as a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-founding-story-of-wework-2015-10">co-working venture</a>. </p>
<p>But Adam Neumann crafted and pitched a vision for his company that went well beyond office sharing and real estate. He said the “we” culture he was building would change the world.</p>
<p>“The influence and impact that we are going to have on this Earth is going to be so big,” <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/this-is-not-the-way-everybody-behaves-how-adam-neumanns-over-the-top-style-built-wework-11568823827?shareToken=st3fcd4c5c55d94ffc80b5721a8aa6ffa2">he told staff</a> during a music festival-like retreat, where he suggested the company could “solve the problem of children without parents” and even eradicate world hunger. </p>
<p>Such statements weren’t uncommon from him. But moreover, they fit neatly in the messianic-like Silicon Valley tech world, where companies believe their inventions can actually <a href="https://www.gq.com/story/the-most-bullshit-motivational-slogans-in-silicon-valley">“free the world.”</a> </p>
<p>Neumann’s ambitious plans hit reality recently as <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-22/neumann-clings-to-billionaire-status-after-wework-gets-a-bailout">investors soured on the company</a> in the runup to a planned initial public offering. On Oct. 23, existing investor SoftBank agreed to rescue the embattled company with <a href="https://group.softbank/en/corp/set/data/news/press/sb/2019/20191023_01/pdf/20191023_01.pdf">billions in additional capital</a> in exchange for increasing its ownership stake to 80%. The deal pushed out Neumann, who will get US$1.7 billion despite burning through earlier investments. </p>
<p>Neumann’s “exit” package may be unusual in its scale, but otherwise similar fates have befallen numerous other founders, such as Theranos’ Holmes and <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/09/30/inside-new-uber-weak-coffee-vanishing-perks-fast-deflating-morale/">Uber’s Travis Kalanick</a>. Even Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and founder of SpaceX, often seems to be <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-shocking-quotes-tweets-2018-10">one outrageous tweet</a> away from his own ignominious end. </p>
<p>Each of these leaders embodied varying traits that <a href="https://www.salon.com/2017/05/20/silicon-valleys-ceo-worship-problem/">inspired almost cult-like followings</a> among investors who forked over billions to be a part of their rise. In cases like Tesla and Uber, the companies have managed to become successful despite their CEOs’ shortcomings. Theranos and WeWork are examples of what can go wrong when the founder is both owner and executive in a venture capital-backed startup.</p>
<h2>Principals and agents</h2>
<p>Finance scholars like myself think about this in terms of the <a href="https://www.cfainstitute.org/en/research/foundation/2014/the-principalagent-problem-in-finance">principal-agent relationship</a>, an issue that is crucial to the management of almost every business and organization. </p>
<p>The principal is a party or group that enlists the agent to manage some asset or process in their best interest.</p>
<p>In a healthy corporate structure, the alignment of principal and agent is accomplished through governance and executive compensation policies that provide management incentives to act in the best interest of owners. For example, the CEO’s compensation might include stock in the company that vests over some period of years and is dependent upon specific performance targets. </p>
<p>In the case of WeWork, Neumann was acting in both roles: He was principal as the investor with the controlling stake and agent as the executive tasked with running the company. Even the <a href="https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1533523/000119312519220499/d781982ds1.htm#toc781982_1">prospectus</a> for the company’s ill-fated IPO included language that would have given him <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-08-19/we-looks-out-for-our-selves">control for life</a>.</p>
<h2>Why it’s a problem</h2>
<p>You might wonder what the problem is with this arrangement given that it’s common for managers to be owners, as is the case with small businesses and family-owned companies. </p>
<p>When it’s their own money at stake, surely they’ll be looking out for their own best interests, right? In those situations, yes, and the downside risk is assumed by the owner-managers. </p>
<p>The difference between those types of companies and the likes of WeWork and Theranos is that startups typically have significant outside investment capital. SoftBank, for one, was also a principal in WeWork. In such situations, the interest of a founder like Neumann may not necessarily align with those of the company itself and its other investors. </p>
<p>During WeWork’s buildup, for example, Neumann borrowed hundreds of millions of dollars <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/softbank-to-take-control-of-wework-11571746483?mod=hp_lead_pos2%20%22%22">against his stock in the company</a>, leaving himself and WeWork exposed depending on the shares’ future valuation. He also charged his own company $5.9 million for trademark rights to the word “we” – <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wework-ceo-gives-back-millions-from-we-trademark-after-criticism-2019-9">a sum he gave back</a> after intense criticism.</p>
<p>Even in leaving the company, he was able to <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-10-23/how-do-you-like-we-now">negotiate a generous go-away package</a>, including the ability to cash out almost $1 billion in stock and receive a $185 million consulting fee. This at the same time that the company’s future is uncertain and it’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/oct/15/wework-sack-staff-workers-adam-neumann">laying off 2,000 workers</a> – which it delayed doing because <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/softbank-offers-to-put-6-5b-into-wework-including-5b-loan-11571687872">it couldn’t afford their severance</a>. </p>
<p>Unemployed workers and wasted capital are the collateral damage when investors fall prey to the principal-agent problem. And unfortunately, I don’t think this will be the last time.</p>
<p>[ <em>You respect facts and expertise. So do The Conversation’s authors and editors.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=yourespect">You can read us daily by subscribing to our newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/125785/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Greg Putnam does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Adam Neumann both controlled and managed the co-working company he founded in 2011. A finance scholar explains why that can be a serious problem in venture capital-backed startups.Greg Putnam, Lecturer in Finance, University of North Carolina WilmingtonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/984402018-06-26T20:14:56Z2018-06-26T20:14:56ZWhat should be the EU policy for Mediterranean ‘third places’?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/223398/original/file-20180615-85849-8lj0vm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C24%2C1497%2C862&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Finale of the projet COWORKMed in Zagreb, April 2018.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">COWORKMed</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://coworkmed.interreg-med.eu/">COWORKMed</a> project is a multidisciplinary European research partnership aimed at understanding the challenges and potential benefits of coworking spaces in territories across five European countries: France (PACA region), Spain (Catalonia), Italy (<a href="https://coworkmed.interreg-med.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/Sites/Social_and_Creative/Projects/COWORKMED/2.2.2_Tuscany.pdf">Tuscany</a> region), <a href="https://coworkmed.interreg-med.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/Sites/Social_and_Creative/Projects/COWORKMED/2.2.2_Greece.pdf">Greece</a> and <a href="https://coworkmed.interreg-med.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/Sites/Social_and_Creative/Projects/COWORKMED/2.2.2_Croatia.pdf">Croati</a>a. The project began in December 2016 and ran until April 2018. The final presentation of the COWORKMed project took place in Zagreb on April 2018_</p>
<h2>Defining, counting and mapping</h2>
<p>Led by the <a href="https://www.avitem.org/fr/projet/coworkmed-recherche-sur-l%E2%80%99innovation-sociale-des-clusters-de-coworking">Agency for Sustainable Mediterranean Cities and Territories</a> (AVITEM) and several European partners – the Institute of Entrepreneurship Development (Greece), Barcelona Activa SA SPM (Spain), IRIS Research Institute s.r.l (Italy), Conseil Régional Sud Provence-Alpes-Côte-D’Azur (France), Zagreb Development Agency (Croatia), Barcelona International Business Incubator (Spain).), the project’s primary goal was to define the concept of coworking spaces. After discussions, which considered the importance of the idea of territories, in particular, partners agreed on the following <a href="https://ied.eu/what-about-coworking-spaces/">definition</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“A coworking space is a physical space aiming to build and implement a dynamic community of users sharing a propensity to foster collaborative, open and sustainable relationships. Coworking spaces are actively managed to promote these goals, also by organising events and activities supporting mutual learning and exchanges and by developing new functional typologies and interactions with other services or centres.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Using this definition, the partners sought to compile a <a href="https://coworkmed.interreg-med.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/Sites/Social_and_Creative/Projects/COWORKMED/3-3-1_-_Coworkmed_Census.pdf">census</a> of coworking spaces through <a href="https://livemap.getwemap.com/iframe.php?emmid=6326&token=JOQ39BO9ZT34EQAI4TVUH9ULS">collaborative mapping</a>. More than 320 coworking spaces were identified across the territories of the COWORKMed project, with heavy concentration in Catalonia (more than 150 spaces). The spaces are all of recent creation (since 2012) and most (66.7%) are privately run. These spaces account for 2.3% of the world’s coworking spaces (COWORKMed, 2018).</p>
<p>This census showed the extreme diversity of coworking spaces, which take many forms: fab labs, maker spaces, living labs, third places, business factories, public innovation laboratories, etc. Bearing this in mind, the project’s partners decided not to stick to a static understanding of coworking spaces so as to remain open to new opportunities, especially relating to the development of third places. The number of third places is expected to rise over the coming years along with the continued growth of independent operators, the transformation of economies (knowledge economy, collaborative economy, digital economy and so on) and the emergence of a regulatory and incentive framework that encourages <a href="http://www.lemonde.fr/emploi/article/2017/09/12/la-reforme-du-code-du-travail-favorise-le-teletravail_5184562_1698637.html">remote working</a>.</p>
<iframe width="100%" height="600" src="https://livemap.getwemap.com/iframe.php?emmid=6326&token=JOQ39BO9ZT34EQAI4TVUH9ULS#/search@43.72552940054183,9.552607327980922,6)" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<h2>Identifying third places’ externalities and needs</h2>
<p>The study’s second goal involved identifying the socio-economic, environmental and territorial benefits of coworking spaces. Reports were produced showing the capacity of third places to increase the productivity and performances of companies, employees and workers. These spaces also enhance quality of life while stimulating changes in the labour market and collaboration and innovation processes (read the reports at coworkmed.interreg-med.eu). Other reports aimed to establish details about the extent to which third places reduce commuting distances, greenhouse gas emissions and the numbers of people on public transport at peak times.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hvCFQ09nCD0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>In order to increase this impact on territories, the COWORKMed study also highlighted the need to structure public action in a way that helps to create and develop third places. The project leads often expressed this requirement in terms of regulation, networking and financial and methodological support. With regard to methods, managers of coworking spaces and public actors appear to be insufficiently equipped to assess third places’ externalities. Studies on externalities are still based more on assumptions than on qualitative and quantitative data that could be used to evaluate and establish objective facts about observed phenomena. Moreover, it became clear that more is needed in terms of structuring networks for third places in order to pool resources and increase the visibility and attractiveness of coworking spaces. It seems essential to support the development of third places’ networks like <a href="http://www.cowocat.cat/">Cowocat</a> (Associació Coworking de Catalunya), <a href="https://arize-leze-europe.org/coworking-pyrenees-en-cours/">Cowopy</a> (Coworking Pyrénées) or the <a href="https://fr-fr.facebook.com/eucoworknet/">European Coworking Network</a>.</p>
<p>Lastly, the study demonstrated the need to make third places more firmly and deeply rooted in their territorial and innovation ecosystems. Performances of third places are, according to the economist <a href="https://www.cairn.info/revue-reseaux-2016-2-p-81.htm">Raphaël Suire</a>, heavily dependent on their capacity to become well embedded in territories. This view has to be taken into consideration along with the need to build mutually beneficial ties between territories and develop third places in low density areas (rural and outer-urban zones). With the exception of the PACA (Provence, Alpes, Côte d’Azur) region, third places in CoWorkmed regions are mostly (more than 80%) based in urban areas.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/219735/original/file-20180521-14987-y5hpsb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/219735/original/file-20180521-14987-y5hpsb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219735/original/file-20180521-14987-y5hpsb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219735/original/file-20180521-14987-y5hpsb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219735/original/file-20180521-14987-y5hpsb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219735/original/file-20180521-14987-y5hpsb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219735/original/file-20180521-14987-y5hpsb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Conclusion of the COWORKMed project in Zagreb, April 2018.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Paving the way for European public action</h2>
<p>Workshops were held in Zagreb, Florence, Marseille and Barcelona to pursue a third goal of the COWORKMed project: to design a European public policy conducive to third places. What public policy should be put in place to support multifunctional and intermediary spaces that often operate with horizontal organisational systems? Four main strands of action were identified:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Support the creation and development of coworking spaces in low-density territories (support with initiating projects, subsidise investment allocated after calls for proposals and on top of regional development support, etc.). The leverage effect that coworking spaces can have on development in these territories could be decisive, especially by cutting down commuting and by revitalising fringe areas and village centres (boosting local services by retaining/attracting independent workers, employees or new country dwellers to these territories).</p></li>
<li><p>Support the creation and development of networks of coworking spaces and third places across the Mediterranean so as to improve these spaces’ connections with each other and with their territorial and innovation ecosystems, make them better equipped (by pooling methods), better understood and more visible through combined and targeted publicity and, lastly, to stimulate demand through lobbying (e.g. raising employers’ awareness of the benefits of remote working). It may also be worth holding discussions at a later date about creating a “Mediterranean third places” label.</p></li>
<li><p>Use third places to support more agile European public policies that are closer to territories and citizens. third places can become special areas for jointly forming and testing new European public policies. Furthermore, discussions could be held about the staff of the European Union and its partners using coworking spaces in order to help inculcate a third places culture within EU administrations (collaborative work, horizontal government, digital culture, etc.).</p></li>
<li><p>Launch a European call for proposals for projects aimed at supporting coworking spaces and third places by directly impacting economic, digital, ecological, organisational and/or territorial transitions.</p></li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/219737/original/file-20180521-14957-8srxk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/219737/original/file-20180521-14957-8srxk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219737/original/file-20180521-14957-8srxk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219737/original/file-20180521-14957-8srxk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219737/original/file-20180521-14957-8srxk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219737/original/file-20180521-14957-8srxk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219737/original/file-20180521-14957-8srxk4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Workshop organised in Marseille on February 20, 2018, at the Mars Medialab.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Obviously, the intention is for these strands to help shape a facilitating, non-prescriptive European public policy. The mindset of third places hardly seems compatible with a vertical, top-down public policy in which a public authority plays the central role as driver, coordinator, approver, financer and arbitrator. It is less about setting out a top-down planning policy for coworking spaces, more to do with introducing a public policy capable of creating conditions that encourage the emergence and development of coworking spaces, performing what Michael Foucault would call an “environmental-type intervention”. </p>
<p>Alongside this, issues of social and organisational innovation within the EU must be addressed, alongside those that the EU promotes in territories through public policies. With this in mind, the regular use of third places by EU staff could help the European Union to transform the positions it takes and the way it works.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/98440/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Raphaël Besson is Director of the Villes Innovations agency, Associate researcher at the PACTE laboratory (University of Grenoble), Grenoble Alpes University</span></em></p>More than 320 coworking spaces were identified in the regions studied during the COWORKMed project.Raphaël Besson, Directeur de l'agence Villes Innovations, Chercheur associé au laboratoire PACTE (Université de Grenoble), Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA)Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/896702018-01-14T20:43:44Z2018-01-14T20:43:44ZIs the future of work necessarily glamorous? Digital nomads and ‘van life’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201005/original/file-20180105-26160-471bia.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">On the road again...</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="http://www.konbini.com/fr/tendances-2/digital-nomad-les-cles-pour-passer-du-mythe-a-la-realite/">Digital nomadism</a> continues its steady rise in most western countries. It consists of a mobile lifestyle that encompasses corporate remote workers, freelancers and entrepreneurs. Laptops, smartphones, wi-fi connections, coworking spaces, coffee shops and public libraries are some of the key components of this new work culture.</p>
<p>Increasingly at the heart of this new way of living and working is “van life”, which is an aesthetic in itself – as demonstrated by the high use of the hashtag <a href="https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/vanlife/">#vanlife on Instagram</a>. The website <a href="https://nomadlist.com/">Nomad List</a>, which has more than 10,000 members, is one platform among many that helps users locate fellow digital nomads and to get a glimpse of the digital-nomad community of a given city. Facebook also hosts numerous groups of digital nomads who use the platform to share events and practices. Digital nomadism has then become a form of culture on its own, with individuals clearly identifying themselves as digital nomads, actively participating in the digital-nomad life of the cities where they temporarily reside.</p>
<p>Beyond these collective platforms, many nomads broadcast their lives on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Medium and other social networks. In that sense, they are as much bloggers as they are entrepreneurs. Combining work with enticing sceneries – white sandy beaches in Bali, a sunset in the Death Valley, a coworking space in Berlin – is absolutely central to how they portray their daily lives. TV reports or documentaries (such as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjf8Qxo_tXk"><em>I tried living as a digital nomad</em></a> on CNBC) showcase mobile work, nomad entrepreneurs and these new connected ways of life.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201011/original/file-20180105-26172-1arqn13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201011/original/file-20180105-26172-1arqn13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201011/original/file-20180105-26172-1arqn13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201011/original/file-20180105-26172-1arqn13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=408&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201011/original/file-20180105-26172-1arqn13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=513&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201011/original/file-20180105-26172-1arqn13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=513&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/201011/original/file-20180105-26172-1arqn13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=513&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Working in a hacker space.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/blgrssby/10936703806/in/photolist-2LwVFi-2LwZJP-4WNYx6-6wP6e8-7qtezt-7nrgw9-e6d4SM-2LwSLv-nPA4pn-2LBBjo-2Lxh16-6BpgXM-agDDuR-5pDTj2-axdou4-dhHcsx-4TvVsS-56mLrA-7qxcf3-bVkjqi-2LwXat-6BtszU-6Bphoc-2LBhzS-dhHc1Q-hErt1J-5Go3Si-nMwCwf-4WTfK9-ecyipV-8LAUNK-2LBvVu-8LDYsb-giMVxd-2LByzb-nx4J4Z-8LDYw3-agGs13-6Btrm9-7HEcWe-7HEcHT-eemV9i-2LBqFj-8NJet4-dhHd3C-6robm-hErQn9-8LAUKB-jACKYe-fYr3cd">blgrssby/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Entrepreneurship at large</h2>
<p>As academics, we are often surprised to notice that our own students dream more and more of “entrepreneurship at large”, and this mobile form of entrepreneurship seems particularly enticing and popular.</p>
<p>An on-going project by the research network <a href="https://collaborativespacesstudy.wordpress.com/a-propos/">RGCS</a> created an opportunity to travel all over the world and to meet many young entrepreneurs and digital nomads. Most of these encounters occurred in Paris, Berlin, San Francisco, New York, Barcelona, London, Singapore, Tel Aviv, Tokyo and Montreal during residence period and visits of coworking spaces, maker spaces, hacker spaces and incubators.</p>
<p>These young entrepreneurs and digital nomads were often involved in all sorts of digital ventures. When opportunities for discussions arose, many confessed that their activity was (until now) not really profitable, with their activities being financed through personal savings, family support or gift exchanges. Furthermore, it also appeared that few countries have a legal status for nomads and nomadism – and once a company is “anchored” somewhere, it is really difficult to change its location. We were also surprised to hear that some nomad workers spend a large proportion of their earnings (or savings) on clothes and accessories. Blogging not only requires showing beautiful and exotic settings, but also broadcasting a trendy and desirable image of oneself. Designer clothes, fancy equipment and a “hipster” style clearly have a cost.</p>
<p>In our exploration of digital platforms, we were also surprised to discover that many of the people registered on digital-nomad platforms were still in the development phase of their entrepreneurial lives (even those having long-time registrations), were unemployed or were regular employees (e.g. <a href="https://theconversation.com/leconomie-numerique-va-t-elle-nous-transformer-en-slashers-71728">slashers</a>). As such, they were not quite digital nomads. The reality might thus be quite different from the glamorous portrayals of digital nomads’ lives. While a minority may manage to achieve this sort of life, for many this remains an illusion or a far-away dream.</p>
<h2>Adventures and experiments</h2>
<p>This is not necessarily an issue for many young people interested in digital nomadism. Many highlighted how this constitutes a great one-year adventure, a transition between university life and the job market, an opportunity for self-discovery or simply a fun and enjoyable experience. Some mentioned that this is an occasion to experiment with something different before joining a large corporation and being simply “one of many”. In other words, being a digital nomad even for a short period can be seen as a way of highlighting one’s individuality and an attempt to “stray from the herd”. Philosophical works stressing the importance of embodiment and inter-corporeity (e.g., <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Merleau-Ponty">Merleau-Ponty</a>) and movements or nomadism (for example, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilles_Deleuze">Gilles Deleuze</a>) could be an opportunity to better understand these phenomena.</p>
<p>Beyond the case of digital nomadism itself, an important dimension of new work practices is their aesthetic. Freelancing, coworking, do-it-yourself (DIY) movements, mobile work, working at home and hacking appear as glamorous undertakings. Certaintly, the visions that <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Winslow_Taylor">Frederick Taylor</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Ford">Henry Ford</a> had of work were very different from these new practices, which break through the idea that there are codes devoted to work and others to home. They’re clearly interpenetrated by the logic of “third places”, as elaborated by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Oldenburg">Ray Oldenburg</a> in 1989. They create a sense of something emotionally between home and work; it is as fun as leisure and as personal and potentially self-fulfilling as private life and home activities, while also being as economic, utilitarian and public-space-oriented as work.</p>
<p>Should we advise university and high-school students to become digital nomads? As part of the apprenticeship of the new world of work, probably yes. As part of a transition period before the world of work? Definitely.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/89670/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>François-Xavier de Vaujany is the president of the academic network and think tank RGCS (<a href="https://collaborativespacesstudy.wordpress.com/">https://collaborativespacesstudy.wordpress.com/</a>). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeremy Aroles ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>Digital nomadism and van life lie at the heart of today’s work aesthetics. These trends may create liminal experiences within job marketsFrançois-Xavier de Vaujany, Professeur en management & théories des organisations, Université Paris Dauphine – PSLJeremy Aroles, Assistant professor in organisation studies, Durham UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/794972017-07-19T20:03:08Z2017-07-19T20:03:08ZAustralian coworking spaces cater to a more diverse crowd than just young tech entrepreneurs<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/178545/original/file-20170718-21762-1a4eek5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Most coworking spaces target small-business workers who tend to be in professional services and technical or knowledge-based work.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Josh Hallett/Flickr</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The phrase “coworking spaces” may conjure up images of tech-savvy millennials working for startups in converted warehouses. Add in the obligatory ping-pong tables, bean bags and beer on tap. </p>
<p>But our <a href="http://sbi.sydney.edu.au">report on the Australian coworking industry</a> shows much more is going on in these spaces than this cliché. We found more than 300 coworking spaces are operating across Australia, up from only <a href="https://theconversation.com/quitting-the-cubicle-farm-for-coworking-19517">60 spaces</a> in 2013.</p>
<p>Rather than just catering to one type of worker, coworking spaces are used by people from different backgrounds, professions and ages. We also found the majority (53%) of Australia’s coworking spaces are in or around the CBD of our major cities. Sydney and Melbourne take the lion’s share overall, where our coworking industry first started out. </p>
<p>Most coworking spaces target small-business workers, who tend to be in professional services and creative or knowledge-based work. They are also more likely to be living in our major cities. </p>
<p>However, newer coworking spaces are emerging on city fringes (7%) and in our regional towns (15%). These spaces focus on supporting local employment opportunities and bringing businesses together for economic development. </p>
<p>The form and function of these regional spaces are often inspired by city-based models. As an example, <a href="http://www.thecreativefringe.com.au/">The Creative Fringe</a> in Penrith, on the outskirts of Sydney, seeks to drive local innovation and collaboration.</p>
<h2>Beyond the tech start-up hub</h2>
<p>There’s a trend we found where coworking spaces are popping up in locations geared towards supporting lifestyle choices of professionals who want a “sea change”. </p>
<p>The Gold and Sunshine Coasts in Queensland and the Central Coast in New South Wales have a surprisingly high number of coworking spaces. Other popular seaside locations include Byron Bay and the South Coast of NSW.</p>
<p>One example of this type of space is <a href="http://www.cowsnearthecoast.com.au/">Cows Near the Coast</a>. It’s on the main street in Bega, South Coast NSW, and actively encourages “sea-changers” to join their community. </p>
<p>We also found certain recurring types of spaces. One type focuses specifically on high-end professionals wanting to work in style and impress their corporate clients, often located on the top floors of CBD high-rises. <a href="https://www.gravitycoworking.com.au/?">Gravity</a> coworking spaces are a good example of this type.</p>
<p>In contrast to this corporate atmosphere, we found some coworking spaces are also the home of social enterprises. These spaces support typically younger people to combine business know-how with their passion for community impact, specialising in supporting their altruistic visions. </p>
<p>These spaces have none of the gloss of many other coworking spaces. You’ll find recycled furniture and inspiring quotes emblazened on the walls in these spaces. The Common Room at <a href="http://www.vibewire.org/">Vibewire</a> in Sydney epitomises this type.</p>
<p>For many smaller towns and regions, coworking spaces are where fiercely proud locals go to take action around the future of their community. <a href="https://www.bizbuddyhub.com.au/">BizBuddyHub</a> in Point Cook, Victoria, is an example of this. This coworking community was set up with a campaign advocating for a space for locals who would otherwise have to commute into Melbourne. </p>
<h2>Who owns and runs coworking spaces?</h2>
<p>Around 75% of coworking spaces in Australia are owned and run as private businesses. The majority of these (54%) are run as a separate business, for profit, under private ownership. </p>
<p>Small-business owners are also enhancing their appeal to existing and future clients by starting up these coworking spaces. In our research, we found 21% of all Australian coworking spaces are run as ancillary to an operator’s regular small-business activities. </p>
<p>Not-for-profit coworking spaces make up 8% of Australian
spaces, usually established to pursue a social causes, such as reducing youth unemployment. Some of the most well-established coworking spaces in Australia are set up as non-profit organisations.</p>
<p>A small numbers of coworking spaces are state or local government funded (6%) with an aim to support economic development in that region.</p>
<p>Recently a number of corporate-owned coworking spaces (7%) have emerged, which are primarily set up to support their own customers, such as small business customers, who use these spaces to grow their business. Good examples of these include <a href="https://www.nab.com.au/business/the-village">The Village</a> at National Australia Bank, and Australia Post’s <a href="https://businessconversation.auspost.com.au/smallbusinesshive">Small Business Hive</a> at Geelong.</p>
<p>Commercial real estate operators are also exploring coworking as a way to facilitate a sense of community in multi-tenanted office towers, such as <a href="https://www.dexusplace.com/">Dexus Place</a>.</p>
<p>Coworking spaces operated by universities (4%) are the latest addition
to the industry, supporting alternative career choices for students, and deeper engagement with industry. </p>
<h2>The future of coworking</h2>
<p>Coworking spaces are now found in at least 89 countries, spanning six continents. Best guesses indicate that by the end of this year there will be over <a href="http://www.deskmag.com/en/the-complete-2017-coworking-forecast-more-than-one-million-people-work-from-14000-coworking-spaces-s">14,000</a> spaces worldwide. </p>
<p>Coworking spaces facilitate work in ways that other workplaces can learn from.
They go beyond simple “hot-desking” and the open plan work settings which many of us have become familiar with. They are places where people are welcomed and hosted, with regular social and learning events that engage members and their guests. This creates a real sense of community and belonging. </p>
<p>This is something that larger organisations are starting to look for inspiration. Recently, WeWork, the world’s largest coworking operator, has <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-property-wework-idUSKBN17L2DM">started designing workplaces</a> on behalf of large corporations. Many Australian corporates are engaged in partnerships or sponsorship of coworking spaces, with some simply supporting their employees to work flexibly from them. </p>
<p>The diversity of coworking spaces we found in this study means that these spaces can cater to a variety of workers, allowing them to collaborate with other interesting businesses and professionals from all walks of life. </p>
<p>These coworking spaces offer examples of how work can be transformed to have a greater focus on community and belonging. The humanity we found in our coworking spaces offers us hope for the future of work which, under constant threat of disruption and automation, will no doubt continue to play an important role in our lives and in forming our work identities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/79497/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Tim Mahlberg Sie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Rather than just catering to one stereotype of worker, people who use coworking spaces actually come from different backgrounds, professions and ages.Dr Tim Mahlberg Sie, PhD Researcher, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/804992017-07-06T19:39:16Z2017-07-06T19:39:16ZFrom communities to territories: towards a Mediterranean coworking network<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/176778/original/file-20170704-23217-ish9o3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Coworking space Make it Marseille.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Studiolartisan</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>This article was written with Léonard Lévêque, director of the Pôle Coopération of <a href="http://avitem.org/">AVITEM</a> and Charlotte Yelnik, a consultant for <a href="http://adhocverbis.com/">AdHocVerbis</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<p>In the last few years there has been a growing number of what are known as “coworking” spaces in the world. While they first appeared in the United States, half are now located in Europe. Given the growth of freelancers and teleworking practices, their emergence corresponds to a certain need. Beyond a transformation of the world of work, with fewer salaried employees and localized businesses, they also show another form of management, an alternative production, territory and governance management model – even a new economic and democratic model.</p>
<p>That is the context of the European project <a href="https://ied.eu/what-we-do/projects/coworkmed/">CoWorkMed</a> led by the Agency for Sustainable Mediterranean Cities and Territories (AVITEM). Co-financed by the <a href="https://interreg-med.eu/">Interreg MED</a> programme, the project involves French, Greek, Italian, Croatian and Spanish partners. It aims at providing an inventory of coworking spaces in these five partner countries and at creating tools adapted to cross-border networking between these third places.</p>
<p>A first study carried out in the framework of this project enables us to examine the emergence of these new ways of working and social construction methods. What do these new places tell us about the transformations of our professional, social and political world? What are they witnessing? How can we turn them into springboards for territorial development?</p>
<h2>The community</h2>
<p>The first coworking spaces started out in 2006 in the United States and were directly related to the development of knowledge-based and digital economy – they were created for freelancers who wanted to share a workplace in a community of needs, constraints and values, as well as through the will to create an active network to trigger professional opportunities. The first principle of coworking is therefore a place and a community, a network of shared skills and assets, often animated by social events whose aim is forging links between coworkers on both the social and professional aspect. It is a direct emanation of the concept of the “third place”, between private and public place, home and work, with an informal meeting place that creates opportunities.</p>
<p>Over the following decade, the concept spread to other sectors, resulting in the creation of collaborative production sites, in particular in innovation and research sectors, especially with “fab labs” (for <em>fabrication laboratories</em>). Then the social, cultural and public-service sectors seized them, producing shared spaces adapted to their needs, with a desire to involve stakeholders and users to develop services through a co-construction logic. Fifteen years later, there is a strong and direct impact on the territories.</p>
<h2>The territory</h2>
<p>Following the logic of pollination, acceleration, incubation and other processes of transformation of ideas involving a community, these places have become true hubs of local innovation. Bringing together a range of actors in a spontaneous way, they’re epicenters of creativity at the scale of a territory, a city or a city center. Thus they activate local economic dynamics and combine them with the unique features of a territory, creating a genuine regenerative ecosystem.</p>
<p>In addition to the direct effects of economic growth, coworking spaces also have indirect impacts on land management. For example, users of these places place an emphasis on proximity between living places and work, they influence mobility and transport. They thus act against urban congestion, reducing commuting and decreasing the environmental and economic costs linked to transport.</p>
<p>These meeting and interaction points between professionals and users also contribute to restoring the wealth of a territory in its geographical coherence. By creating a concrete and driving network between the inhabitants, citizens, users, workers, who are concerned by the same issues, especially local ones, they value the territory as an integral capital, converging its strengths towards common objectives.</p>
<h2>The governance</h2>
<p>These third places were designed as spaces for sharing knowledge and building collective dynamics. They are built on values of sustainable development, including in terms of management and governance. Through the development of teleworking, big companies improved their employees’ working and living conditions, giving them more autonomy and making them more creative and productive. Entrepreneurs can boost their territories through related projects. Communities are inspired by this trend, seeking to revitalize declining territories through the impulse of third places in the social and public-service sectors.</p>
<p>Groups and stakeholders that were formerly less open are now creating links. Indeed, from the first “coworking spaces” where professionals from various sectors formed “opportunistic” partnerships (optimising the opportunities offered by the circumstances) to the new forms of innovative, social and cultural third places, real public-private-citizens partnerships are being formed. Through more or less informal places that help people meet each other, civil society and popular democracy reinvent themselves.</p>
<p>After 18 months of implementation, the CoWorkMed project will provide a global vision of these networks in the partner territories (France, Italy, Spain, Greece and Croatia) to promote their institutional recognition and their transnational structuring as a lever of innovation in the Mediterranean. Through the study of new models, it will provide the basis for the creation of a Mediterranean coworking network.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/80499/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Raphaël Besson ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>What do these new places tell us about the transformations of our professional, social and political world? And how to turn them into springboards for territorial development?Raphaël Besson, Directeur de l'agence Villes Innovations, Chercheur associé au laboratoire PACTE (Université de Grenoble), Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA)Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/633222016-08-19T05:26:26Z2016-08-19T05:26:26ZGaming trends show cities need to rethink how they tap into creative economy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/132914/original/image-20160803-12223-utcsad.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">City policymakers are realising creative workers don't have to be permanently clustered together if they can collaborate as needed.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/stevepurkiss/13945518656/in/photolist-nfjqQQ-dCou8f-ikXbBA-nhCZGi-nhD2RP-nhXFij-nhD5nR-nfSZV3-nhCVvJ-bEzzdt-7xhdHS-7xh13w-65nBfW-FTB7p-65nAUy-4eKahS-qhbHgF-7xdcmz-wFgFRC-7xh1Vd-7xh4jw-ni2QMc-7xh3Nf-hyeB1S-7xh2o1-qf4miE-7xh1wS-368ay3-7xh2YL-9Asmnw-7xdhzM-7MiPFH-7xdgS6-FHsb6q-pknymh-5R6r65-33P8X4-pZWM2M-qT8CUX-quLXkR-qf5yUu-nhV8JH-9TxV9r-nTzH6o-pZMGJE-4SYgYW-4SU4hi-4SYhoJ-qf4hG1-iczfyN">Steve Purkiss/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Various cities in Australia have developed creative economy policies with the aim of diversifying their economy. These policies are about attracting and retaining entrepreneurs and firms from the creative industries sector, such as the music and fashion industries. </p>
<p>Creative economy policies were often based on the <a href="https://hbr.org/1998/11/clusters-and-the-new-economics-of-competition">cluster concept</a> developed by Michael Porter in the 1990s. This was the case for the <a href="https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/sites/default/files/creative_brisbane_creative_economy_2013-2022.pdf">creative city strategy in Brisbane</a> and also for the more recent <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-are-the-secrets-to-being-a-superstar-music-city-50184">music industry policy in Melbourne</a>. </p>
<p>Brisbane has been very active in this area. The objective was to be less dependent on natural resources in the future. </p>
<p>Planning initiatives such the <a href="http://www.kgurbanvillage.com.au/">Kelvin Grove Village</a> are examples of economic development strategies based on the cluster concept that translated into planned projects. But positive steps are being taken to provide <a href="http://www.creativespaces.net.au/about-us/our-network/brisbane-city-council">affordable spaces for creative workers</a>.</p>
<p>Recent <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02723638.2015.1067981#.V5_-lOt97q4%20_">research on the video game industry in Australia</a> has shown that new technologies have greatly influenced the production of games. The industry functions as a “networked community” and not strictly as spatially bounded clusters. The use of new platforms such as the internet enables small companies to produce games from remote areas. </p>
<h2>Industry structures are changing</h2>
<p>The composition of the industry has changed significantly since 2006-07, with the closure of several development studios that focused on console games, such as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krome_Studios">Krome Studios</a>. A variety of platforms – <a href="https://unity3d.com/unity?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=&utm_campaign=demos-showcase-2016-06-21-Global-AdamFulll">Unity 3d</a>, mobile phones etc – is now available to game developers. </p>
<p>With the shift from console games to mobile phone games, the industry has changed dramatically. The nature of the demand has changed too: consumers of video games are now <a href="http://www.lib.umich.edu/blogs/eaten-grue/rise-mobile-games-factors-contributing-their-success">looking for a quick and fast experience</a>. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.disparitygames.com/about/">Disparity Games</a>, operating from Noosa on the Sunshine Coast, is an example of these new successful companies located outside the main cluster. The people behind Disparity Games are two video game developers working from home in an idyllic environment. The map below shows the location of video game firms in Queensland, with some of those companies operating from the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/132689/original/image-20160802-17183-1hrz1wl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/132689/original/image-20160802-17183-1hrz1wl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/132689/original/image-20160802-17183-1hrz1wl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=874&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132689/original/image-20160802-17183-1hrz1wl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=874&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132689/original/image-20160802-17183-1hrz1wl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=874&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132689/original/image-20160802-17183-1hrz1wl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1098&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132689/original/image-20160802-17183-1hrz1wl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1098&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132689/original/image-20160802-17183-1hrz1wl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1098&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Digital connectivity has led to a wider dispersion of video game companies in southeast Queensland.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In an interview with the author, one of the game developers explained why they decided to move their company to Noosa: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>After the collapse of large studios we decided to go indie. With the smaller indie companies, everyone is more supportive. We have meet-ups on marketing, technical issues, game testing. We are exchanging knowledge at those events, [so] we don’t need to be based in the city anymore to be part of the community.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>New technologies enable new ways of working</h2>
<p>These studios have demonstrated that self-publishing is a viable business model in Australia. Independent developers can now bypass traditional international publishers. </p>
<p>New technologies have thus had the effect of <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02723638.2015.1067981">reducing the size of video game companies and increasing their number</a>. This is verified in Queensland, which has become specialised in developing mobile phone games.</p>
<p>New technologies such as the National Broadband Network (NBN) have changed the way video game developers produce games and where they produce them. With the NBN, a small video game company can literally produce a game from anywhere.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/132911/original/image-20160803-12201-1blciey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/132911/original/image-20160803-12201-1blciey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/132911/original/image-20160803-12201-1blciey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132911/original/image-20160803-12201-1blciey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132911/original/image-20160803-12201-1blciey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132911/original/image-20160803-12201-1blciey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=755&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132911/original/image-20160803-12201-1blciey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=755&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/132911/original/image-20160803-12201-1blciey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=755&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Co-working spaces allow creative workers to get together only when they need to.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/janelleorsi/12897062203/in/photolist-kDEPgr-9Apr26-a2KK9g-9ApqXv-ikWRxA-ikYcbZ-njFCnP-92jnme-nhXdYL-nhCzUE-nfjqQQ-dCou8f-ikXbBA-nhCZGi-nhD2RP-nhXFij-nhD5nR-nfSZV3-nhCVvJ-bEzzdt-7xhdHS-7xh13w-65nBfW-FTB7p-65nAUy-4eKahS-qhbHgF-7xdcmz-wFgFRC-7xh1Vd-7xh4jw-ni2QMc-7xh3Nf-hyeB1S-7xh2o1-qf4miE-7xh1wS-368ay3-7xh2YL-9Asmnw-7xdhzM-7MiPFH-7xdgS6-FHsb6q-pknymh-5R6r65-33P8X4-pZWM2M-qT8CUX-quLXkR">janelleorsi/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If they already have the professional connections, developers can work on the same game with different experts located in different cities. Face-to-face interactions are important, but this does not mean anymore that video game developers need to be located in the city at all times. </p>
<p>In that sense, creative economy policies should think about flexible ways to accommodate creative workers in the city. The opening of co-working spaces in <a href="https://www.littletokyotwo.com/">South Bank</a> or the <a href="http://www.rivercitylabs.net/">River City labs</a> are good examples in Brisbane.</p>
<p>This research shows it is time to go beyond the cluster type of economic development policies to attract and retain creative workers and firms in cities like Brisbane. </p>
<p>Instead of planning creative neighbourhoods or districts, which are often not affordable for start-up companies, policies should aim for flexible solutions such as co-working spaces. Those are more adapted to an era in which new technologies are to a certain extent changing the geography of creative industries based on technological innovation such as the video game industry.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/63322/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sebastien Darchen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Cities seeking to attract creative industries have relied heavily on the cluster concept. New research suggests a technology-driven transformation of how the sector works calls for a new approach.Sebastien Darchen, Lecturer in Planning, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/606142016-07-06T20:05:48Z2016-07-06T20:05:48ZCo-living is demolishing the line between work and life<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/128561/original/image-20160628-7832-ydtaew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Today's 'office' for many is anywhere with a reliable internet connection.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Myles Tan/Flickr</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In the past two weeks I’ve met two people who introduced themselves as global nomads. By “nomads” they mean someone who moves from place to place with no fixed address, other than their email address. They consult wherever they go, and are enabled through technology to live and work from anywhere.</p>
<p>This new thinking about what and where work is performed is starting to influence thinking on where we live, offering an entirely new take on work-life balance.</p>
<p>Earlier generations had a job for life and lived close to the factory or office; work and life supported each other symbiotically. Today, while many people still co-locate near their primary employer, for others the “office” is anywhere with a reliable internet connection. </p>
<p>Working differently allows us to live differently. This thinking is what’s behind the “co-living” trend. Combined work and residential space is aimed at the flexible worker, the itinerant entrepreneur, the tech-fuelled millennial. </p>
<h2>How it works</h2>
<p>The idea is simple enough. A network of residential offerings provides semi-independent living across multiple locations; be it in one country or across many. Members pay a subscription and register in advance to secure a place, usually for at least a month at a time. In the early days, many operators are also allowing more short-term access of a few days at a time.</p>
<p><a href="http://base.life/">BASE</a>, operating in Melbourne, Australia, aims to bring together young creatives in a co-living experiment. It incorporates a co-working space and regular events. </p>
<p>There are plenty of other co-living examples across the US in particular. Many appear to be driven by millennials eager to find new ways of bringing their work and life together. There is a theme of purpose-driven living that most if not all share. </p>
<p>While the majority of these offerings are centred on bringing together smaller communities, the emerging larger operators in this space include <a href="http://www.roam.co/">roam.co</a> (previously Caravanserai). It has offerings in the US, Spain and Bali, with the UK and Argentina imminent. <a href="https://nomadhouse.io/">Nomadhouse.io</a> boasts 18 locations across Europe, Morocco, Southeast Asia, the US and Colombia. </p>
<h2>A new way of living</h2>
<p>Recently, the world’s largest co-working space operator, <a href="https://www.wework.com/">WeWork</a> (last year valued at US$10 billion), launched a new co-living spinoff, <a href="https://www.welive.com/">WeLive</a>. It has two spaces in New York and Washington DC co-located above existing WeWork sites. </p>
<p>WeLive operates on a monthly subscription basis. It provides everything that you would expect from an Airbnb, with a dose of community that co-working members come to expect from WeWork, including its famous “unlimited beer and coffee”. </p>
<p>WeWork is betting big that its co-living model will be a hit. <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/nitashatiku/how-wework-convinced-investors-its-worth-billions">Leaked financials</a> late last year reveal WeWork was expecting demand for WeLive to coincide with increasing co-working membership demand. In fact, WeWork expects income from WeLive memberships to increase to more than US$600 million in 2018, representing 21% of the company’s total revenue. </p>
<p>WeWork is opening its doors in two locations in Sydney shortly, but we don’t yet know if it has plans for WeLive in Australia. In an increasingly saturated local co-working market, the first challenge will be for it to gain traction in co-working.</p>
<h2>Working alone together</h2>
<p>Australia has seen rapid growth in <a href="https://theconversation.com/quitting-the-cubicle-farm-for-coworking-19517">co-working spaces</a>, with more than 160 now operating. These cater to growing numbers of entrepreneurs, small business owners and, increasingly, corporate commuters looking for a change from the standard office environment.</p>
<p>Increasingly, too, these spaces are being recognised for their innovative potential by corporations interested in and working with emerging startups, such as Fin-tech hub <a href="http://www.stoneandchalk.com.au/">Stone & Chalk</a> in Sydney, or in building deeper relationships with customers, like <a href="http://www.nabvillage.com.au/">The Village</a> by NAB in Melbourne.</p>
<h2>Seeking a tribe? Enquire within</h2>
<p>Living in share communities is nothing new. We’ve been co-living in various forms for a long time. </p>
<p>Many of the communes of the 1960s and 70s are still with us, albeit segregated from mainstream society. Kibbutzim have formed an important part of modern Jewish history. Share houses, dorms and fraternities have been rites of passage for many through university and early professional life. And the final co-living destination for many is the retirement village. </p>
<p>Are recent co-living “experiments” only for millennials who want to live an Airbnb lifestyle, or is this the start of a bigger shift in the way we live and work, and the continued blurring of any remaining line between them? </p>
<p>If recent research on the impact of co-working spaces is anything to go by, being part of a co-living community appears to have clear benefits. One recent <a href="http://www.deskmag.com/en/first-results-of-the-new-global-coworking-survey-2015-16">global co-working survey</a> found 70% of co-workers felt they had become physically healthier as a result of their membership; 70% strongly felt a sense of belonging and 74% experienced greater productivity in their work life. </p>
<p>It is this last statistic that may reveal the dark side of co-living projects such as WeLive, warning that the line between life and work may be all but gone for younger generations who pursue “efficiency in life” at all costs.</p>
<p>In a world where life and work continue to dance around each other, our need for purpose and belonging remains. Co-living ventures like WeLive may inspire us to rethink our relationship with work, and refocus on becoming a part of our local community. Or, perhaps, the gloss of the startup and entrepreneur life will start to fade, and we’ll realise there really is no place like home.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/60614/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Tim Mahlberg Sie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>If you could work from anywhere, where and how might you live?Dr Tim Mahlberg Sie, PhD Candidate, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/433682015-06-26T05:11:07Z2015-06-26T05:11:07ZThe rise of the coworking space – sign of the times or flash in the pan?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86410/original/image-20150625-12984-1wai4gp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A coworking paradise.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/thehub/12913907324/in/photolist-kFa9Jy-7cPygR-7cPzD6-7cPxvK-7cTtBQ-8TReJh-8TNbUz-8TNbhv-7cPzgF-7cTtHQ-7cTtYJ-7cPzvK-kFdHZK-7cPxix-7cPxqv-8NbeLV-8NejxE-8Nbexx-7cPy96-7cTsCb-7CnAVj-qsjQSH-5kX22K-2aYRtv-cuBFMC-cT8WNs-7cTuey-cT8W7y-cT8W5b-cT8WLq-7cPxRH-cT8Wyu-7KEi2e-J6YdD-daLHLv-9C155P-uNcCqH-v3kjV9-8u1oxj-fr4Ha8-4SYhJq-4SYhEL-4SU4s2-4SYhKQ-4SU4tt-gAGj6-7cPyur-bCPa3X-a3B6Tr-pgkwWh">Impact Hub</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Back in 1980 Alvin Toffler coined the concept of the <a href="http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/179102/the-third-wave-by-alvin-toffler/">Electronic Cottage</a>. While this might sound like a feature from Tomorrow’s World, it was essentially the idea that people, particularly those engaged in “knowledge work” – using their brains – would in the future be less bound to a traditional workplace. Technology would increasingly make working from home possible.</p>
<p>Thirty-five years later, there is evidence that teleworking is not as ubiquitous <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21588760">as Toffler might have envisaged</a>. But data from the Office for National Statistics does show that there are now <a href="http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-371749">more than 4.5m self-employed workers in the UK</a>. While we should keep in mind that there are still 25m people in “normal” employment, an increase in self-employment of more than 1m since the turn of the millennium (and 15% since the beginning of the economic crisis in 2008) suggests that something significant is happening when it comes to employment. </p>
<p>The two occupational categories with the highest increases in self-employment during this period have been “managers, directors and senior officials” and “professional occupations”. So perhaps this is where the inhabitants of the electronic cottage are to be found – not working remotely for someone else, but for themselves.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86281/original/image-20150624-31504-1fx0hzs.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86281/original/image-20150624-31504-1fx0hzs.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=245&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86281/original/image-20150624-31504-1fx0hzs.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=245&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86281/original/image-20150624-31504-1fx0hzs.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=245&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86281/original/image-20150624-31504-1fx0hzs.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=307&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86281/original/image-20150624-31504-1fx0hzs.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=307&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86281/original/image-20150624-31504-1fx0hzs.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=307&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The rise in self-employment since 1992.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-371749">Nick Clifton | Data: ONS</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Following the recession of the early 1990s, the chart above shows self-employment declined as firms began to take on workers again. But though the UK economy is <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/nov/25/uk-economic-recovery-continue-2016-oecd">now in recovery</a>, self-employment is still rising. This may indicate a more fundamental shift to new ways of working. </p>
<p>These trends are by no means restricted to the UK. For example <a href="http://www.ephemerajournal.org/contribution/coworking-city">recent research</a> has shown that almost one third of the total US workforce is engaged in some form of “contingent” labour, which means it is largely project-based.</p>
<p>This in turn of course begs the question as to where these activities are being carried out. As a freelancer you can either rent your own office – which will be expensive and for many tasks probably not necessary. Or you can <a href="http://www.fsb.org.uk/policy/rpu/scotland/assets/home%20truths%20-%20final.pdf">work at home</a> – with the various distractions and disadvantages that entails. One other option might be to use “third places”, your local coffee shop, perhaps. Although often convenient these will inevitably have drawbacks of their own, not least the somewhat random set of encounters to be found therein. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86421/original/image-20150625-29066-hfoq31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86421/original/image-20150625-29066-hfoq31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86421/original/image-20150625-29066-hfoq31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86421/original/image-20150625-29066-hfoq31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86421/original/image-20150625-29066-hfoq31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86421/original/image-20150625-29066-hfoq31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86421/original/image-20150625-29066-hfoq31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The self-employed freelancer’s dream.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock.com</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>And so the idea of “coworking” has arisen. Different from co-working, coworking is about working independently but in the presence of <a href="http://jbt.sagepub.com/content/26/4/399">others</a>. </p>
<p>If one person can be identified as the pioneer of the coworking movement it would be Brad Neuberg, who founded Spiral Muse in San Francisco back in 2005. Neuberg <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=-rIQAwAAQBAJ&pg=PP6&lpg=PP6&dq=%22Not+an+MBA+Press%22&source=bl&ots=zwSr26FkuI&sig=KEZ3c1rd0DDYo8Yak6CC4iv-0Yc&hl=en&sa=X&ei=SR-MVZ75EIqj7Aam7IC4Bg&ved=0CCEQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22Not%20an%20MBA%20Press%22&f=false">sums up</a> how coworking solves one of the central tensions of the working at home versus working in an office dichotomy:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Traditionally, society forces us to choose between working at home for ourselves or working at an office for a company. If we work at a traditional nine-to-five company job, we get community and structure, but lose freedom and the ability to control our own lives. If we work for ourselves at home, we gain independence but suffer loneliness and bad habits from not being surrounded by a work community. </p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Individual preference</h2>
<p>The rise of coworking has provoked much debate on whether or not is it a good thing. Coinciding as it does with the rise in self-employment, <a href="http://www.ephemerajournal.org/contribution/rise-coworking-spaces-literature-review">critics</a> have objected to the lack of security, sometimes lower wages and benefits that freelancers who cowork have compared to their employed counterparts. </p>
<p>Champions of coworking, meanwhile, have celebrated the creative flexibility that it brings. Coworking spaces have been touted as <a href="http://www.deskmag.com/en/1st-results-of-the-3rd-global-coworking-survey-2012">hotbeds of collaboration, interaction</a>, and <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263298239_New_in-house_organizational_spaces_that_support_creativity_and_innovation_the_co-working_space">innovation</a>. The <a href="http://www.ephemerajournal.org/contribution/coworking-city">emerging evidence</a> is that this is most likely when interactions are facilitated rather than relying purely on serendipitous encounters between unconnected individuals.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263298239_New_in-house_organizational_spaces_that_support_creativity_and_innovation_the_co-working_space">my research on the issue</a>, I’ve found that individual experiences differ, and as researchers we should be wary of projecting our own world view onto the phenomena we are studying. It’s an emerging concept and we still don’t fully understand people’s motivations for joining coworking spaces – both positive and negative – and whether they really do improve creativity and collaboration, or are just a lot of buzz over nothing.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/43368/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nick Clifton has received funding from Higher Education Funding Council for Wales and Research Councils UK to investigate coworking. He was worked with the Innovation Centre for Enterprise <a href="http://www.welshice.org">http://www.welshice.org</a> during these projects.</span></em></p>Coworking is on the rise, but the jury’s still out on whether or not it’s a good thing.Nick Clifton, Professor of Economic Geography and Regional Development, Cardiff Metropolitan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/274432014-06-04T01:48:21Z2014-06-04T01:48:21ZVIDEO: Coworking – the benefits of collaborative workspaces<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50169/original/twf935n6-1401846581.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> </figcaption></figure><figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XB7zxBHRfho?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
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<p><br></p>
<p>From a single collaborative workspace in San Francisco in 2005, coworking has ballooned into a popular movement, with an estimated 3,000 spaces around the world.</p>
<p>Tim Butcher and Julian Waters-Lynch explain how the principles of coworking also offer advantages for big businesses, as well as for freelancers and individuals.</p>
<p>This video is a co-production between <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/news/">SBS World News</a> and The Conversation.</p>
<p><strong>See also:</strong><br>
<a href="https://theconversation.com/quitting-the-cubicle-farm-for-coworking-19517">Quitting the cubicle farm for coworking</a><br>
<a href="https://theconversation.com/video-how-the-weather-affects-our-mood-27171">VIDEO: How the weather affects our mood</a><br>
<a href="https://theconversation.com/video-what-are-stars-26511">VIDEO: What are stars?</a><br>
<a href="https://theconversation.com/video-how-laser-tattoo-removal-works-25857">VIDEO: How laser tattoo removal works</a><br>
<a href="https://theconversation.com/video-solving-the-worlds-toilet-shortage-25738">VIDEO: Solving the world’s toilet shortage</a><br>
<a href="https://theconversation.com/video-were-the-first-artists-women-25590">VIDEO: Were the first artists women?</a><br>
<a href="https://theconversation.com/video-the-benefits-of-high-intensity-workouts-26326">VIDEO: The benefits of high-intensity workouts</a></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/27443/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julian Waters-Lynch is a member and previous employee of Hub Australia.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tim Butcher is a Hub Melbourne member.</span></em></p>From a single collaborative workspace in San Francisco in 2005, coworking has ballooned into a popular movement, with an estimated 3,000 spaces around the world. Tim Butcher and Julian Waters-Lynch explain…Julian Waters-Lynch, PhD Candidate, RMIT UniversityTim Butcher, Senior Lecturer, School of Management, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/195172013-11-21T01:22:17Z2013-11-21T01:22:17ZQuitting the cubicle farm for coworking<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/35366/original/23qdw3t2-1384487895.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">More workers are ditching the cubicle for a collaborative coworking space.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">madrideducacion.es/Flickr</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>From humble beginnings, the coworking movement has exploded to an estimated 3000 spaces around the world, with hundreds of thousands of people choosing to ditch the home or corporate office in favour of a shared workspace.</p>
<p>Coworking spaces offer sanctuary and solidarity to those escaping the isolation of working at home, and those in search of an alternative to the grind of the office or cubicle farm. The “co” in coworking might possibly be “community”.</p>
<p>Bernie DeKoven is credited with coining the term “coworking” back in 1999 to describe an emerging pattern of people choosing to work on their own projects but in shared physical proximity. As is often the case with zeitgeist “inventions”, several parallel examples of the idea appeared at the same time. Early reports depict coworking as becoming both a recognised social movement and growing form of enterprise.</p>
<h2>Serendipity works</h2>
<p>San Francisco, 2005: Brad Neuberg was facing the dilemma of choosing between the “structure and community” of a nine to five job and the “freedom and independence” of contract work. He opted for the “both-and” option (a phrase in itself that has become emblematic of coworking philosophy). Brad opened one of the first recognised coworking spaces. In his own words:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“I grew up in Texas and it was like a desert. There was no community, no connection. I was like the only geek… so to have a coworking space, that could be really powerful.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>London, the same year: A small group of social entrepreneurs led by Jonathan Robinson opened the first “Hub” on the top floor of an old warehouse in Islington. Their vision was for a new work space structured around serendipitous encounters between “unlikely allies for a radically better world”. The model aimed to meld together the best of a business incubator, think tank, learning lab and a professional membership community.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“We discovered this whole set of people trying to realise good ideas from their bedrooms; lonely, cut off from the world, not really fulfilling the potential of their ideas. So it dawned on us: what if these people could come together in the same physical space and have a place to connect?”</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>By the numbers</h2>
<p>For fans, coworking offers something missing from the home office and lost in the daily grind. And people are drawn to its collaborative potential. Its growth signals this.</p>
<p>The dedicated online coworking magazine Deskmag this year claimed 100,000 people coworked; and a new “space” is estimated to open each day somewhere in the world.</p>
<p>In Australia there are over 60 coworking spaces in operation, and the country boasts both the highest density per capita and, with the majority of spaces opening over the past two years, one of the highest growth rates. While the majority of coworking spaces tend to be single location, founder-owner operated and close to the CBD, we are starting to see forays into regional and suburban areas.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
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<span class="caption">Coworking enables the sharing of knowledge and the breeding of new ideas.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">ZonaCoworking/Flickr</span></span>
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<p>It’s ironic that at the very moment many white collar workers are able and have chosen to “live the dream” of working from home, a model has sprung up to cater to an unmet social need emerging as people spend less time communicating face-to-face. Twenty years after Robert Putnam published <a href="http://bowlingalone.com">Bowling Alone</a> we see the development and growth of a service offering a communal experience akin to a bygone utopia of “village life” amid the competition and anonymity of the CBDs of major cities. The curiosity of coworking, as Clay Spinuzzi puts it, is in people’s desire to be “<em>working alone together</em>”.</p>
<p>But despite the rapid growth rates estimated above, just a small proportion of workers in the economy are engaged in coworking. Indeed, few have the luxury to choose to.</p>
<h2>Here to stay?</h2>
<p>Emotionally, coworking doesn’t necessarily feel right for everyone. The prospect of sharing work spaces with people from other organisations, and the general buzz of the place doesn’t appeal to all. Coworking spaces are unfamiliar to those accustomed to conventional workplaces. Likewise, coworking’s constant stream of activity can be a distraction to those who prefer the silence and stillness of working alone.</p>
<p>Socially, individuals are attracted by the promise of professional connections and a supportive community but, for a variety of reasons, not all are able to realise their promised value and end up leaving. Meanwhile, for large organisations which aim to leverage the innovative potential of coworking by sending their people in, the pull of “community” and the tales of its members can initiate talent drains. People seeking alternatives to the cubicle farm begin easing their transition from employee to free agent.</p>
<p>Is coworking simply a peripheral social movement that will remain at the edge of the mainstream economy, or does it signal the beginning of a wider structural transformation and convergence in the place of work and social engagement?</p>
<p>One argument is that the existing management and institutional models are fundamentally broken. In <a href="http://blogs.hbr.org/2010/04/a-brief-history-of-the-power-o/">The Power of Pull</a>, the authors claim the source and means of value creation is shifting away from knowledge <em>stocks</em> towards <em>flows</em> and as a result the basis of competition is fundamentally changing. </p>
<p>Most organisational structures are framed around protecting existing stocks of knowledge rather than participating in knowledge flows and the creation of new knowledge.</p>
<p>Their suggested remedy for this structural malaise is institutional innovation - not simply conceiving of new approaches within existing organisations but rethinking the relationships between and across many varied independent enterprises. From their perspective larger organisations need to seek out and participate in “creation spaces”, such as those found in coworking, where physical and digital environments whose diversity and density offer fertile ground for the “unlikely creative collisions” that breed new ideas.</p>
<p>If this narrative gains popularity we are likely to see larger organisations shifting towards distributed collaborative work models, indeed there’s already clear evidence of corporate interest in participating in coworking networks.</p>
<p>It’s still too early to determine coworking’s wider social and economic impact, or whether it represents a future of work that will be widely embraced. What is clear now though is that as a social movement and institutional form it is showing no sign of slowing down. </p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/19517/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julian Waters-Lynch is a former employee of Hub Australia.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tim Butcher is a member of Hub Melbourne.</span></em></p>From humble beginnings, the coworking movement has exploded to an estimated 3000 spaces around the world, with hundreds of thousands of people choosing to ditch the home or corporate office in favour of…Julian Waters-Lynch, PhD Candidate, RMIT UniversityTim Butcher, Director - Undergraduate Programs, College of Business, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.