Why Corporate Coworking is Becoming a Thing

Published on July 27, 2016 - By Cecilia Amador de San José

Benjamin Dyett, co-founder of Grind, recently wrote about the driving force behind corporate coworking.

Dyett began by drawing attention to the undeniable shift in workers’ priorities and overall mentality when it comes to their work lives. He’s right in doing so, as it is this shift that’s driving new visions of the future of work and modern workplaces–giving rise to the popularity of coworking spaces on a global scale.

But coworking has evolved since its beginnings– while in the past coworking was mainly targeted for freelancers and startups, its market today has expanded to include large companies and transnationals. Some companies that are now using coworking spaces include KPMG, Pepsi, Heineken, and Microsoft.

The coworking market has evolved further than that, however. While some companies have opted to buy memberships in coworking spaces, some have decided instead to implement coworking spaces within their own offices.  

“This culture of independence and collaboration is now being adopted by more and more larger corporations looking to encourage innovation, engage new partners, and build stronger cultures to meet the demands and needs of today’s workforce,” Dyett writes.

Dyett sees 6 main trends driving this change in corporate offices towards a coworking design approach.

1. Freelance economy is on the upswing
2. Millennials work differently
3. Millennials think differently
4. Coworking is booming
5. Collaboration is critical
6. Coworking builds community

The last two reasons (collaboration and community) are two of the founding tenets of coworking, and it’s here that companies have seen the true value and potential that coworking spaces hold.

Like we recently stated in an article, coworking spaces have taught corporates that the more collaboration and the stronger the community, the more successful a company can be. Instead of alienating staff by department, coworking inspired areas in an office help foster collaboration and a sense of company culture — giving way to more genuine interactions and innovation within the company.