“Business is the pursuit to deliver the same results, in an easier fashion, to reduce the friction of performing tasks that have been performed in the past, just in an easier way.” James Clear, Atomic Habits

The above statement is especially true in the case of shared workspaces, which are paving the way for a friction-free office in many ways, improving productivity and task performance, making it easier to find a flexible way to work, and offering many other benefits.

It makes even more sense when we think that platforms like Facebook changed the way we share our photos, and share what we have been up to, instead of inviting people over to look at a photo album (as we did a few years ago). We can post on Facebook, and friends can instantly see our photos and the story attached to the memories. Nothing has changed – we still sharing photos, but in a much easier and more accessible way.

How Shared Workspaces Are Changing the Concept of Offices

This got me thinking about shared workspaces, and how the concept is changing the way people around the world use offices. Firstly we should be cognizant of the fact that people have become far more flexible. It is easy to live in one place and have your primary work or income generated in another location altogether. Global digitisation has allowed for this, but probably what is gaining popularity again, is that people generally like a destination to go to work. Nothing is stopping you from living in Hermanus, even if most of your customers are in Johannesburg or London. But during work hours, it’s just better to be in a place of work.

Most digital nomads and remote workers don’t want to sign into onerous long-term contracts. By the very nature of these types of people, they certainly don’t want to be running an office and looking after office functions such as WiFi, cleaning services, office equipment, and other amenities that increase financial burden. Offices need to be ready, reliable with all the amenities of an A-Grade office, and, in most cases, should be flexible enough that in the event the office only needs to be used for a few days or a month or two, this is all that will be paid to access. This is exactly the concept shared workspaces provide. The experience is effortless, the setup is painless, and the customer focuses on one function – getting their work done.

Usually, a single fixed fee is charged, and the customer simply selects the amount of time and type of space that would be required. Most co-working spaces have a community manager, who will attend to any issues the customer may have or help the customer set up their space. This is a service, not a lease, and the conversion from a traditional lease mentality to Offices as Service has reduced the friction of office use.

There are various figures bouncing around, but it is anticipated that within the next few years, up to 20% of commercial property will be shared or serviced offices. This is likely in line with other global trends in other products, which show growth in services as opposed to products.

As a small shared space in Hermanus, Co.Unity is definitely seeing growth over the past six months in our occupancy, with a large percentage of our members having semi-grated from larger cities in South Africa. Many of our members are expressing that a key reason for using the space is to eliminate the loneliness that often comes from working at home. It is great to be a part of a community and it helps with integrating into the town’s business community. Members also form partnerships through networking, so business growth is an added benefit.

To find out more about working at our shared workspaces, contact Co.Unity today.