At the beginning of the pandemic, it looked like coworking spaces were going to become extinct. With movement restrictions put in place, many users of coworking spaces spent the bulk of 2020 locked away at home or in their hotels.

Some believe the future of coworking spaces is doomed. The recent history of coworking spaces was much like the traditional office – a place where adhering to social distancing is a challenge. But it would seem that most of these coworking space businesses are pivoting and adapting to the new normal.

These places are becoming more sanitized and being re-designed to facilitate social distancing. They are adjusting to handle a post pandemic work environment, and it appears they are doing it well.

Even now, as most employers are directing employees to work from home, an ample coworking space serves as an instantaneous office with the necessary facilities, such as access to a printer, Wi-Fi, and audio-visual conferencing capabilities. These facilities can become expensive to an organisation if needed to be placed in every employee’s home.

Why Co-Working is about to boom

It’s important to acknowledge that working from home doesn’t suit everyone. Coworking spaces often provide more than just a desk and an internet connection. They are a social outlet. As the landscape of work changes and conventional offices are replaced by more remote work, coworking spaces fulfil the essential human needs for social company and a change of scenery. People who don’t want to work from home every day may opt to get human interaction from a coworking space.

Coworking spaces can also provide virtual space to connect with clients without the overheads of traditional corporate offices. And this virtual office infrastructure comes at less of a cost and can be anywhere in the world.

How the pandemic makes Coworking Spaces Even More Important?

With the now cautious approach towards business growth, the future of coworking spaces post COVID pandemic is set to be the new normal for the workforce. These spaces will start to grow beyond freelancers and digital nomads and attract larger corporate businesses.

The work from home culture can’t continue for eternity. Soon organisations will be on the search for a relatively modest workspace that lowers corporate employee concentration and at the same time pulls the employees from the challenging work-from-home model.

We may also find that start-ups will most likely rely on the shared coworking resources and use it as their rescue to sustain themselves in an uncertain market.

Additionally, with millions of people finding themselves unemployed or underemployed, the coworking space gives rise to more professional networking and collaboration, increasing opportunities. It will essentially become the new job search hub of the future.

What does the future hold?

The future of coworking spaces could look very different from what they appear now. There will most likely be a large swell of traditional office space becoming coworking spaces due to the already made transformations enforced upon us all.

There will most likely be a rise in smaller cities’ coworking spaces, giving remote workers opportunities to move outside of the larger, more expensive cities.

You could also see customized coworking spaces dedicated to specific industries. Making them a centre of connection and collaboration by design. Offering industry-specific shared talent, research, and technology to promote overall productivity.

Moving from Work-from-home to work-near-home

The recent pandemic has shown us that we don’t have to do our work in corporate offices to be productive. But there are advantages of working in areas that are shared and offer systems and services that are found in conventional offices.

As more businesses come to this realisation, there will be a deliberate attempt to cut down on transportation between home and the office. People will choose workspaces in close proximity to their residential area but offer the convenience of being in a traditional office.

Walk to work or work near home is going to be the next substantial opportunity for these spaces. Drawing professionals away from the mundane home-work-home cycle. It will also keep employees protected from the risks of a congested conventional corporate office.

The future looks bright for coworking spaces. Companies and organisations, large and small, need alternatives to the regular work from home model. A great coworking space will help companies and individuals to access a traditional range of services remotely and hassle-free, closer to home – a definite win for everybody involved.