Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
Cat Johnson – Coworking Marketing Maven
Angela Howard – Culture Expert
Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
Andrea Pirrotti-Dranchak – Competitive Advantage
Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
Jeremy Fennema – Tech Innovation Alchemist
- Since September 2019, Cat Johnson’s Coworking Convos has connected 6,582 people in the coworking industry.
- Coworking Convos brings together not only coworking space operators but anyone enthusiastic about the industry in the spirit of community, collaboration, and connection.
- The milestone fiftieth Coworking Convo invites her favorite community builders, who understand the power of “co,” to join her for a fantastic conversation about the coworking movement.
Industry-leading Cat Johnson is a brand community coach for global coworking space operators. She runs Coworking Convos and The Lab marketing club for indie coworking spaces, and writes about coworking, content, and community in her weekly emails and blog posts on catjohnson.co. She’s also a Future of Work Voice for Allwork.Space, and shares her insights regularly.
On Friday, January 26, Johnson is hosting the fiftieth Coworking Convo, inviting her “favorite community builders” to celebrate the “co” in coworking. In the lead-up to the milestone event, we spoke to Cat about her journey connecting 6,582 people in the coworking industry since 2019.
Allwork.Space: Coworking Convos has reached Convo 50! What’s the story behind Coworking Convos?
Cat Johnson: In September 2019, I had an idea of bringing coworking space operators together to problem-solve and discuss specific topics. It goes back to the earliest days of coworking where operators were collaborative and shared resources, tips, and lessons. I wanted to create that in a digital space.
We started with a tiny Convo and it went well, so we invited more people in. I’m shocked and thrilled that we’ve had 49 Convos behind us and we’re creeping up on number 50.
Allwork.Space: Coworking Convos is all about bringing people together. What’s your take on the growth of the coworking industry, and what role has Convos played in that growth?
Cat Johnson: I love the evolution of coworking. It was once very DIY and informal — where people would pull out a pop-up table and chairs in a space that had WIFI and work together. Coworking has since grown, and now we’re in this environment where the spaces are amazing.
As coworking has evolved, so have the people inside coworking spaces. For example, as a freelancer writing about the music industry, I would pop into coworking spaces on my breaks and weekends. I needed a whole different set of amenities than I do now. As people inside coworking spaces evolve from scrappy freelancers and startups into business owners and empire builders, so does coworking. The expectation of what’s in a workspace is much higher than where we can just sit and work together. I love that part of the evolution.
JLL predicts there will be five times as many shared workspaces by 2030 as there were a year ago. Every workspace has desks, fast WIFI, and meeting rooms, so it becomes a matter of who are you serving, what type of people you want to attract, and what’s the vibe going to be like in your space. Coworking companies have to get super clear on figuring out your brand, vision, value, and vibe.
Allwork.Space: You’ve built a community through Coworking Convos. What’s been the impact on their communities?
Cat Johnson: Community is the driving thing for me. At the second coworking space I joined, I got dropped into a fully formed coworking community where it was a mutually supportive network. I might need help with a contract or getting something trademarked, but that same person might come to me for a headline suggestion for a blog post or to proof an email. I learned first-hand the power of the community within coworking. I went from working in a record store, and through coworking, I’ve grown into a whole business. I’m a product of coworking.
My thing is supporting coworking space operators in understanding the power and transformation that can happen in their space because I’ve experienced that. With Convos, an informal community has formed where there’s no barrier to entry — it’s free, it’s supported by our amazing sponsors so people can drop in whenever they want.
A lot of community builders in coworking are isolated. It’s important that we get together, learn from each other, and have fun. Protecting the integrity of that community is my highest priority in Convos. The driving goal is to help operators learn, share, and connect.
There have been so many stories and laugh-out-loud moments during Convos. Carlito [Smith from Hunt Street Station] — who’s a guest this month — once put a bounce house in their parking lot. The thing I love about that story is there’s a flavor of coworking for everyone, and members have to find their best fit.
I once dropped out of Zoom and was panicking that everyone was just sitting there, waiting for me wondering what was going on. When I finally got back in, they had just continued the conversation, people stepped in and kept going from where we were. And that was the biggest example of trusting the community. I have a unique role as the community builder, it’s a “we” thing, not a “me” thing.
One of my driving principles is to trust the community. I line the guests up, but we just go where the conversation goes. It’s very much an exercise in just stepping into the moment, and showing up with a collaborative mindset.
Allwork.Space: Can you tell us more about your community?
Cat Johnson: 6,582 people have participated in Coworking Convos – we’ve grown from a little seed into something bigger.
We intentionally talk about Convos as an event for coworking space operators. We get people from spaces of all sizes, but the people who vibe with me and what I talk about tend to be the indies. The sweet spot is growth-minded indies, who have gotten past that first stage of just paying the rent and are looking at scaling their brand and their spaces.
Convos is definitely for everyone. We always have a handful of industry pros, who are involved, connected, and come to all the events. In terms of geography, my guess is we have 80% from North America, but we have people joining us from everywhere.
I absolutely love watching people grow on their coworking journey. No other industry is this collaborative, generous, open, fun, and community-minded. There are so many new people coming into coworking, and I love welcoming them. One of the intentions with Convos is that we keep that spirit alive. It’s about keeping the early values of coworking remaining.
Allwork.Space: What have you got lined up to mark the milestone Coworking Convo 50 on Friday, January 26?
Cat Johnson: It’s amazing to me that we’re hitting 50. The topic is “Celebrating the ‘Co’ in Coworking,” and it’s intentionally open because everyone has a different sense of community. I’m gathering people’s feedback and input to find out what that means to them.
I’ve reached out to my favorite community builders, who understand and hold on to that “co.” Our guest lineup includes: Rebecca Pan from Trellis, Anne Kirby from The Candy Factory, Odeen Domingo from CO+HOOTS, Iris Kavanagh from Women Who Cowork, Carlito Smith from Hunt Street Station, and Liz Elam from GCUC.
I know it’s going to be a fantastic conversation. I wanted to bring in people who have a big vision about the impact and the specialness of coworking.
Allwork.Space: What does the future of Coworking Convos look like?
Cat Johnson: It took 4+ years to hit 50, and I’m so curious about where coworking will be when we hit 100. I think that Coworking Convos is well-positioned to bring the community together, and I just want to keep bringing people in, from the huge brands to the tiny brands, even brand-new space operators have a valuable and unique perspective to share.
There are so many amazing operators just quietly doing their work. I’d love to connect with more of them and bring them into the Convo circle. I’m a big fan of just showing up and trusting the moment and the community.
50 is a nice milestone. Behind the scenes, Karina Patel and Amanda Leffew have been helping me for years. It’s a testament to our vision, teamwork, and collaboration that we’re still going. During the pandemic, we had 280+ people showing up. Now, the average number of people signing up is 125-150, we still have a good turnout even though everyone is busy, back in their spaces, and building their communities. A virtual Convo opens it up to the entire world — people can join on their phone, or on a bus. There are no limitations, and I love that.
Join Cat Johnson in celebrating the “co” in coworking at Coworking Convo #50 on Friday, January 26.
