Personal & Professional Growth in Coworking

Coworking, and personal and professional growth have always been closely linked. However, what remains of all this in the flexible workspace industry? Before getting into the subject, we should reflect on the importance of personal and professional growth in coworking spaces today.

In a context where the return to the office represents a challenge that even challenges the almighty real estate industry, we consider it essential to promote policies or strategies that make the office a more attractive place for people.

In the post-pandemic era, we have observed how some companies are turning to flexible workspace operators to create dynamics that motivate their employees to return to the office. It has become clear that many tasks do not require a specific physical space, so workers need compelling reasons to choose to go to the office, especially if they face long commutes.

This situation highlights the importance of promoting activities in the work environment to facilitate the return to work, or at least make it more bearable. However, companies must demonstrate to their employees that the workspace offers more than just a desk and chair if they want them to return willingly.

In this environment, understanding what topics, activities and motivations move the members of your space is key to promoting activities that interest your members. 

Why personal and professional growth in a coworking space?

A coworking, or flexible workspace, is a professional community in which people interact in an environment of trust, which facilitates the creation of relationships spontaneously and allows them to continue organically once initiated. However, not only this but the fact that professional activities take place in the space facilities means that work - and improvement of soft skills - are always in focus. It is not unusual to start a work conversation with someone with whom you have never spoken before, which in some instances may not be suitable within a conventional environment.

Networking.

Networking, however, does not come naturally to everyone and workspace providers will need to generate not only spaces but also moments in which to initiate interactions that lead to conversations: without this, when two people who are reserved meet, no matter how much they share a workspace they will not strike up a conversation. However, if this is an ice-breaking conversation you have promoted at an event when these people meet again the conversation will happen naturally.

What events work? The answer is as broad as the industry is broad. However, there are a few usual suspects that never fail: casual events where you share a casual moment over a bite to eat tend to work every time.

If you are looking for something with a specific theme, to not only foster personal relationships but also achieve professional growth, our advice is to look for things that all your members share to a greater or lesser degree: if you choose too niche a theme, you reduce your target audience. 

It is essential in generalist spaces, which have audiences from different sectors, to rely on activities that promote soft skills, or personal activities that lead people to get to know each other better and share hobbies. In this sense, you can look for inspiration in activities carried out by some independent spaces, but your offer can be as varied as an annual ski trip, monthly bike rides, or a running club, depending on the interests of your audience. Offer courses aligned with the interests of the people who are part of the community.

However, throughout this process it is important not to confuse our interests with those of our community: remember that they will not always be aligned.

If people know each other outside the space, doing sports together or any other activity that promotes interaction, it will make conversation and networking happen naturally within the space in a way that leads to the exchange of ideas and collaboration.

Another strategy to reach the same goal is to research what skills your space members would like to develop and try to find out if there is a person in your community who can give a workshop on this very thing (or look for one externally). 

The knowledge of the people in your community is certainly wide: take advantage of it. Sharing knowledge is something that most people are passionate about.

Schedules and formats.

When something doesn't work, content may not be the problem. Keep in mind the format and schedule. Every space is different but to give you an example, in a space with local people with family responsibilities, a weekly after-work may not work too well while networking over an aperitif before lunch on a Friday may be easier to combine. The same goes for early morning networking if children need to be taken to school.

For a space with a lot of people passing through or with very young members an afterwork will work much better. However, there are other factors, such as whether or not a member has decided to join the space, that impact member participation.

Creativity.

Create an environment that fosters creativity.

Encouraging members to start sharing with others can be a major challenge for them, especially when it is something that will occur regularly. You must understand this and although you are not in charge of the training itself, do not underestimate the work that will be involved in managing and maintaining an agenda of events and make them feel accompanied and empowered in the process.

Frequency.

Finding the right frequency is another challenge in itself. If the events are excessive or the frequency of events is too high, you run the risk of members getting scattered among so many events, causing attendance to drop. We are big proponents of of setting up different events, with a reduced frequency and increasing them or adding more events based on feedback and attendance.

Ask for regular feedback.

Always look at attendance: it's your best indicator. 

Keeping track of what works in terms of formats, timings, and content will help you create better proposals for events and activities that encourage your members' growth. It is also interesting to identify those people who become catalysts for the rest of the community as they will be great allies for you.

Adding value to your members is a process of trial and error, of learning to understand your community and the people who are part of it until you find the best recipe to create a positive impact that will be, like all intangibles, very, very difficult for your competitors to copy.

At Nexudus, we’re passionate about creating fully customisable, easy-to-integrate software that manages your entire space - from reception to rooftop. For over 11 years, our award-winning tech has helped workspace owners and operators be more efficient, provide users with an unforgettable experience and gather advanced analytics for better decision-making. Discover how we can help you today.