• Marketplace
  • Resources
  • Business Directory
  • Events
  • Advertise
  • Brand Pulse
  • Publish a Press Release
  • Get the Newsletter
  • Contact
  • About Us
The FUTURE OF WORK® since 2003
Allwork.Space
No Result
View All Result
Subscribe
  • More
    • Columnists
      • Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
      • Nirit Cohen – WorkFutures
      • Angela Howard – Culture Expert
      • Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
      • Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
    • Get the Newsletter
    • Events
    • Advertise With Us
    • Publish a Press Release
    • Brand PulseNew
    • Partner Portal
  • Latest News
  • Business
  • Leadership
  • Work-life
  • Career Growth
  • Tech
  • Design
  • Workforce
  • Coworking
  • CRE
  • Podcast
  • More
    • Columnists
      • Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
      • Nirit Cohen – WorkFutures
      • Angela Howard – Culture Expert
      • Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
      • Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
    • Get the Newsletter
    • Events
    • Advertise With Us
    • Publish a Press Release
    • Brand PulseNew
    • Partner Portal
  • Latest News
  • Business
  • Leadership
  • Work-life
  • Career Growth
  • Tech
  • Design
  • Workforce
  • Coworking
  • CRE
  • Podcast
No Result
View All Result
Subscribe
Allwork.Space
No Result
View All Result
Advertisements
Kube Suite - TL
Home Business

14 Takeaways from GCUC 2017 in New York City

Cat JohnsonbyCat Johnson
May 8, 2017
in Business
Reading Time: 5 mins read
A A
GCUC New York Coworking

Spending time with coworking space operators and professionals is the best way to go from being in the weeds about the day-to-day details of running a space or business to getting a bird’s eye view of the global coworking movement. Gathering in the same space reminds us where the movement has been and forges new pathways for where it’s going.

The Global Coworking Unconference Conference (GCUC USA), which took place in New York City this past weekend dug deep into the heart of coworking and the extraordinary power it has to connect people, accelerate purpose and careers, and transform communities.

Advertisements
Envoy - Workplace ROI

The event featured presentations by Greg Lindsay from the New Cities Foundation, Casper ter Kuile and Angie Thurston from Harvard Divinity School, Amrit Dhir from Google for Entrepreneurs and more.

It also had all-star panels of shared workspace pioneers and visionaries, talks by industry leaders, and a day of unconference sessions, where participants decided on the topics to be discussed.

Advertisements
Nexudus - Tech Stack Lovers
GCUC Unconference Session

Here are 14 takeaways from GCUC USA 2017.

1. Collaborations between cities and coworking spaces have remarkable opportunities and potential to revitalize cities and towns of all sizes.

2. Reimagining unused or underutilized local buildings as coworking spaces can strengthen local economies and breathe new life into struggling areas. Two examples of this are 312 Main in Vancouver, Canada, which has transformed a police station and jail into a massive innovation center, and American Underground in Durham, North Carolina, which transformed the basement of the American Tobacco factory into a coworking space.

3. Coworking goes far beyond providing workspace. One in four Americans doesn’t have anyone to talk to, and that includes family members. Coworking provides people a network of professional and personal support.

Advertisements
Envoy - Workplace ROI

4. Religious institutions, at large, face an existential crisis as decreasing numbers of people turn to religion to satisfy their spiritual needs. Others struggle to create genuine community among members of the congregation. Some of these institutions are looking to coworking—in particular how spaces are building tight networks of mutual support and friendship in cities and towns across the globe—as models for how they might evolve and address challenges.

5. There seems to be a merging of the shared office industry, at large. While last year’s GCUC USA event felt like a head-on collision between coworking and commercial real estate development—with the latter getting the better end of the bargain—this year’s event felt like the industry has taken a collective step forward.

Rather than being two polarized entities, it’s a continuum of spaces, business models and communities ranging from small but mighty spaces of fewer than 50 members, all the way up to scaled corporate brands.

6. There’s growing demand for child care in coworking spaces, as well as women-friendly features, such as lactation rooms, and gender inclusive design, such as gender neutral restrooms. A number of space operators are working these features into their design and strategy.

More stories for you

From Cells To Startups Will Former Prisons Be The Next Hot Coworking Spaces

From Cells To Startups: Will Former Prisons Be The Next Hot Coworking Spaces?

20 hours ago
How AI Agents Are Streamlining Coworking Operations

How AI Agents Are Streamlining Coworking Operations

2 days ago
Africa Surpasses 500 Coworking Spaces As Remote Work And Startups Drive Surge

Africa Surpasses 500 Coworking Spaces As Remote Work And Startups Drive Surge

3 days ago
IWG Sets Sights on India as Its Third-Biggest Coworking Hub

IWG Sets Sights on India as Its Third-Biggest Coworking Hub

6 days ago

7. The niching of the industry continues. There are now coworking spaces for artists, knitters, makers, writers, architects, builders, musicians, wellness professionals, students, and much more.

8. Coworking spaces don’t necessarily need to be “tech hubs” if that’s not what the local community wants or needs. Collaborative spaces have to be relevant to the communities they serve. The idea is to be part of the solution, whatever that looks like for your community.

9. Suburban office parks facing low occupancy rates can—and have been—transformed into coworking spaces to serve suburban professionals.

10. Diversity is a hot topic. Among the areas covered at the event, both formally and informally, were the fact that diverse companies are strong companies; niche spaces are important and empowering; companies need to demand diversity; and the best companies are often the most diverse.

Advertisements
Yardi Kube automates flex and coworking operations

11. The economic impact coworking provides can be game-changing for small cities and towns.

12. Creating regional alliances of coworking spaces is a powerful way to raise awareness of coworking in your community, create a network of support among space operators and establish a culture of collaboration in your local coworking ecosystem.

13. Sharing the stories of what makes your space unique is a good way to differentiate your space in a growing industry. Bring those things that make your space unique to the surface, don’t hide them or downplay them.

14. One of the most-Tweeted quotes from the event was from Ryan Simonetti, cofounder of Convene, who said, “A good plan executed today is better than a great plan executed tomorrow.”

Advertisements
Maximize Flexible Space Revenue

GCUC has reestablished itself as a game-changing opportunity for coworking space operators and professionals looking, not to simply create a business, but to transform the way we work, live and connect with each other. As GCUC executive producer Liz Elam put it, “We do this because we believe it is a human revolution. So go ahead and go change the world.”

If you were at GCUC and would like to share what you learned or found the most interesting, feel free to contact us or give us a shoutout on Facebook or Twitter.

*All photos taken by Cat Johnson

Advertisements
Subscribe to the Future of Work Newsletter
Tags: Coworking
Share5Tweet3Share1
Cat Johnson

Cat Johnson

Cat Johnson is an industry-leading brand community coach for coworking space operators around the world. She runs Coworking Convos and The Lab marketing club for indie coworking spaces. She writes about coworking, content and community in her weekly emails and blog posts at catjohnson.co

Other Stories Recommended For You

From Cells To Startups Will Former Prisons Be The Next Hot Coworking Spaces
Coworking

From Cells To Startups: Will Former Prisons Be The Next Hot Coworking Spaces?

byEmma Ascott
20 hours ago

Former prisons could become future coworking hubs through bold, adaptive reuse concepts.

Read more
How AI Agents Are Streamlining Coworking Operations

How AI Agents Are Streamlining Coworking Operations

2 days ago
Africa Surpasses 500 Coworking Spaces As Remote Work And Startups Drive Surge

Africa Surpasses 500 Coworking Spaces As Remote Work And Startups Drive Surge

3 days ago
IWG Sets Sights on India as Its Third-Biggest Coworking Hub

IWG Sets Sights on India as Its Third-Biggest Coworking Hub

6 days ago
Advertisements
Envoy - Workplace ROI
Advertisements
Envoy - Workplace ROI

Unlock your competitive edge in tomorrow's workplace.

Join a community of forward-thinking professionals who get exclusive access to the latest news, trends, and innovations that are shaping the future of work.

©2024 Allwork.Space News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Exploring the Future Of Work® since 2003.

Advertise   Newsletters   Privacy Policy   Terms Of Use   About Us   Contact   Submit a Press Release   Brand Pulse   Podcast   Events   

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Latest News
  • Topics
    • Business
    • Leadership
    • Work-life
    • Workforce
    • Career Growth
    • Design
    • Tech
    • Coworking
    • Marketing
    • CRE
  • Podcast
  • Events
  • About Us
  • Solutions
    • Advertise | Media Kit
    • Publish a Press Release
    • Brand Pulse
Subscribe

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
-
00:00
00:00

Queue

Update Required Flash plugin
-
00:00
00:00