Coworking is not the norm yet, but it is headed that direction. In fact, a sign of its success is the fact that it has moved from being labelled a fad to asking if it is a bubble about to burst. Here’s a short answer: it is not going to go pop, fizzle out or run out of steam anytime soon. Why would it? Coworking is not something driven by real estate and developers. It reflects how our society is changing.
Coworking is developing as a model for how we use workspaces in parallel with the concept of Never have the lines around how we work, where live and how we each co-exist been so blurred. It is not a generation thing either – we are all adapting to new ways of working and living and therefore, people and not organisations are driving a change in social, psychological and physical needs.
Does the property market understand this? The market might not grasp the detail around behaviours, but it has understood that the coworking concept is booming, shows no sign of slowing and is trying to adapt as quickly as possible to meet the demand. The operators do get it. But even they need to move fast because the demand is outpacing supply. Hence, they need to be tuned into the reasons for the growing demand for coworking.
How we use technology, how we interact is having an impact on society and therefore the workplace too. The media is full of programmes, podcasts, articles, research and reports about loneliness, depression an anxiety being linked to social media, how we work and issues around wellbeing. It’s no coincidence that there is a rise of depression and anxiety within younger people in particular – it has been referred to as a symptom of ‘modern loneliness’. It is not unique to the UK, but we have been dubbed the loneliest country in Europe. And it is not good for us either. Research by Julianne Holt-Lunstad at Brigham Young University in the US suggests people that feel a sense of belonging and trust in their community have a better health, while those that feel isolated are at risk of increased blood pressure, higher cholesterol and depression