Category: Industry

As human-centric workspaces are rise, so are workplace management tools.

Nexudus Spaces co-founder, Carlos Almansa has recognized the need for optimizing everyday tasks in the workplace.  

Technology as a compliment, not a replacement

Some might be sceptical of running operations digitally, out of fear that it might take away from the human experience. But that just depends how we look at it. Technology can help, but not without a strong management team at the core of the coworking space. Tools such as Slack, Facebook groups or  WhatsApp are not enough.

“Indeed, these tools, including our Nexudus platform, help people communicate with one another, says Carlos, but ultimately if the management team doesn’t work on a day-to-day basis to bring people to these tools and encourage them to post content, it won’t work”

Better understanding member needs through automation

Take an example of a good synchronization between automation and human interaction : check-ins.

Automatic check-in technology can help you better understand your member’s needs. “It  provides operators with a considerable number of detailed reports on how you space is used, so they can discover useful information, i.e. the most active members, peak hours in the space, busiest day of the week, etc”, says Carlos.

Kisi Access Control for coworking spaces

That way, you can monitor when the space is most used.

Knowing who is coming and going can create a sense of ease for space managers, which plays into how operators choose to secure their coworking space.

If space operators choose to automate physical access to the space, they also can do so by implementing “access control systems, such as Kisi or DoorFlow”.

Such tools allow both operators and members to enhance their coworking needs, by tracking hours of operation and providing flexible use of the space, adds Carlos Almansa. As a result, the human driven operation will just come out better. 

Community Building : again, online AND in person

While it would be nice to offer a personalized experience to each and every member each day, the tasks pile up, and most likely members will be more disappointed rather than satisfied with the results.

Remember, you can’t please all of the people all of the time.

Take the booking process :  “Allowing your space members to book resources and rooms online makes day-to-day space management a lot simpler.”  

That way, you can focus on building better relationships with your members, rather than waste time with manual low adding value tasks.

And tomorrow will be taken over by A.I. ?

Having an active blog running for your coworking community also plays an important role in shared workspaces. As coworking evolves, the community aspect has gone beyond the walls of the coworking space and has become an all encompassing world.

We are not there, yet, but let’s think about A.I, in a not to distant future, which may be the running mate for atomizing the workplace.

Sure, but at the moment, it hasn’t quite got the human touch so vitally needed for human-based communication. 

However, when it comes to the future, we know that we haven’t even seen the beginning of the level of advancement from technology. For Carlos, the interaction between community members and coworking spaces is going to escalate in coming years. “The technology behind these spaces  should be there to foster such change, such as providing tools that encourage people to work together”.

The Deskmag Global Coworking Survey 2017  is out. 

The first results where presented at Coworking Europe 2016 (Brussels, Nov 28-30).

Download the worldwide data and statistics here below.

As of today, there is close to 1 million coworkers worldwide.

Download Deskmag Global Coworking Survey 2017

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After many years of working around the world, Joe Griston joined freelancer.com as the Director of People & Talent. For the last 3 and a half years, Joe has been responsible for all HR and Recruitment operations globally at one of the biggest job finding portals for freelancers. In this time, Freelancer.com has grown to have 500 staff in 7 offices across the globe.

After moving back to his hometown of London earlier this year, Joe is now focusing on the growing user numbers and operations in Europe. We spoke with Joe about how freelancer.com is changing the way freelancers find work, but also about how these digital platforms will greatly contribute to overall innovation and growth in Europe’s professional landscape.

Hi, Joe. Many freelancers today use online platforms to find work. Since there are so many out there, how does Feelancer.com provide results and also protection for independent workers?

Our freelancer profile pages act as an effective CV, but one that provides thorough and detailed metrics to promote the freelancer’s skills, abilities and past successes to potential employers. Traditionally, a freelancer’s CV will say they are ‘hard working’, ‘dynamic’ and ‘good at solving problems’, but these words actually prove nothing. But, our metrics do. It is up to the freelancer to make sure these metrics are as strong as possible, which in turn allows for greater results in being hired.

We also have similar metrics for employers, ensuring security in every way possible. Our desktop app tracks hours worked and we also recommend using our Milestone Payment System, which gives payments to freelancers throughout their work rather than just upon completion of the project.

You are based in London. Why do you think that the freelance community in London is not only growing but also thriving when compared to less successful communities around Europe?

The gig economy is upon us and England and London are very expensive places to live. However, average salaries in these areas have not increased in the same way rent and living costs have. Therefore, we have a number of freelancers also in full-time employment who earn money to supplement their existing income. We also have a number of freelancers who started this way and quickly realised that they can earn more money than provided by their regular traditional employment. They also saw that earning money in this way and being your own boss was a far better lifestyle for them when compared to the 9-5 grind.

This is one of many reasons why London and the UK and growing in numbers, however, I do not think there are any unsuccessful freelancer communities in Europe. This is a solution for everyone and growing in all regions. We facilitate the connection to employers from all over the planet, this greater choice of work benefits everyone.

Do you believe freelancers need a community, like a coworking space, to help them grow? 

It depends on the freelancer. We have many who are working remotely, with the likes of companies like Udacity, etc. Thus the wealth of the world’s knowledge is now online, allowing anyone to learn and up-skill themselves. Their social situation or cultural background may prohibit any other form of work. However, teams of freelancers can be very happy physically working together and that is why coworking spaces are now all over every major city around the world.

Joe Griston

Also, many communities in London support themselves, not only in working together but in how to grow a successful business and then become employers of freelancers themselves. Barely a day goes by where I am not visiting a coworking space and the communities here are very supportive to one another. The choice of how to work has never been greater. Studies vary, most claim 50% of all workers should be completing some form of freelance work by 2020.

What does this mean for the future of work?

It means that platforms like freelancer.com are the future of work. How do you get a job by sending in a text CV that sits in a pile of 300 other CV’s on someone’s desk? Trying to get a job in a big corporation in a big city is far harder than trying to get a job on freelancer.com. Technology allows us to work together in a far greater capacity than ever before.

Do you believe that an increase in freelance workers overall is better for innovation and professional progress? If so, why?

Yes. Imagine that you are a small business and you would like a logo designed. Do you employ a full-time graphic designer permanently that you can’t really afford? Do you allow yourself to be pitched by a design agency for enormous amounts of money? No, it would be better for you to  post a contest on freelancer.com and have greater choice and knowledge about with who and how you want to collaborate. Working together with freelancers in this way allows business to grow and makes room for greater flexibility on how to spend your revenue.

Also, we have seen a number of businesses now totally operate on freelancer.com. The product is designed, the website created, the SEO and sales all arranged and completed online. The only limit to work in this way is your imagination. You mentioned professional progress, and this is an example of how to help both the employer and freelancer to work in a far greater capacity. To illustrate the scale of working successfully, we, for example, partner with NASA, who use us to aid in space exploration. So, freelance platforms are not just for low-paying small job. High quality and well-paying work is everywhere. This is the absolute future of work.

It’s no surprise that there are now several active coworking spaces in the Canary Islands. The combination of scenic beauty and the relaxed and warm local culture is not only perfect for a vacation but attracts more and more digital nomads and freelance professionals. One of the most international spaces is CoworkingC, based in Las Palmas. The small yet vibrant space aims to build an international community while also changing work culture in the region.

CEO and local, Nacho Rodriguez is working to create positive change in the community via CoworkingC as well as strengthening the position of the Canary Islands as an international hotspot.

Hi, Nacho. Can you please tell us a bit about your history with coworking and also about CWC’s history?

CoworkingC  started two years ago, first as an office space to host a spin-off of the IT department from one of our companies. Eventually, it turned out to become an international workspace, which currently hosts local entrepreneurs and digital nomads that are working remotely from Las Palmas. We pivoted heavily during the process and keep learning and trying to improve every day.

You are very involved in the coworking community. As the moment has developed substantially over the years, what observations have you made? 

In my opinion, the coworking market is starting to mature. After some years of substantial growth, it is now starting to become more sustainable and at the same time it keeps growing. It’s remarkable, the fact that some administrations start regulating their public offer in order to avoid unfair competition with the private sector, which has been a problem in the past.

What are some of the most exciting and novel directions you see coworking moving?

I am very enthusiastic about all the transcendent changes that go along with the coworking movement. Remote Work, Distributed companies, Coliving, and Digital Nomads are all changing the way we understand work, collaboration, and human interaction.

From these observations do you see coworking as a viable option for the standard office space, or do you think it’s better to have coworking remain as an alternative option, in order to preserve more community-oriented models?

In my opinion, coworking must be part of the DNA of a company or business. But, I don’t see this work philosophy in many sectors just yet. While it is rapidly evolving as more and more people realize the benefits of coworking, some sectors will most likely remain traditional.

We all know the Canary Islands are beautiful and are also rapidly attracting digital nomads. What percentage of your community is comprised of nomadic workers?

70% of our community are digtal nomads that arrive attracted by the weather and beauty of the Canary Islands. They also decide to stay longer when they realize that we have much more to offer than just the beach and sunshine.

How do you accommodate their needs and help them integrate?

The official language at CWC is English, although we encourage our visitors to learn Spanish, which helps long-term visitors to fully integrate with that local community.

Nacho Rodriguez

We also recently activated a coliving center to help facilitate our visitors integrate, and also help in finding them affordable housing in an efficient and flexible way. We also organize Meetups and events to accelerate the generation of value within our community.

What impact does a more internationalized community have on the locals, and is coworking responsible for this international wave?

Our market is fairly small, and opportunities for locals scarce. Having an international community allows locals to have a broader perspective on the global market and also gives them the chance to access new opportunities, while also helping them to improve their English skills.

Currently, some of our local members are working abroad with other international coworkers, taking advantage of the Erasmus+ programs and enjoying a great personal experience.

You describe your space as intimate and personal.

Intimacy allows us to cover the personal needs of our visitors, offering a much better value proposition than bigger networks. As long as we manage to provide effective networking and opportunities to our members, we believe we provide a better service than larger spaces .

Our maximum capacity is 25 people. We believe that there are many advantages of having a small space. Although we do understand that smaller in size makes is more difficult to become profitable. Currently, we are planning to expand, not in size, but rather in the number of spaces across the Canary Islands. We are also thinking to expand internationally as well.

Finding a place to work in a major metropolis like New York City can be a challenge and an expensive one at that. At first glance, options may seem limited, but if you look a little closer, maybe the perfect place to work was there all along. Preston Pesek, co-founder of Spacious Coworking, saw past property challenges and found that there was actually plenty of space, depending on how you look at it.

Setting up coworking spaces the City’s restaurants during the day, Spacious takes a novel approach to how we get the most out of urban landscapes. Realizing that many of these top eateries are pretty much empty until 5PM, until the after work rush, Spacious aims to combine business and pleasure.

Hi, Preston. What inspired you to start Spacious?

I have a background in commercial real estate. It was through this lens that I began to realize that beautifully furnished, street-level retail space, which often stays closed until 5:00pm or later, is actually some of the highest value property that has been programmed the least efficiently.

With the rise of an independent workforce, in the context of a technological culture where people can stay productive and connected from anywhere, the opportunity to tap into the potential of these under-used spaces quickly became obvious.

Does the coworking element offer any specific benefits to the restaurants, such as financial incentives?

Not only do we share our profits with our restaurant partners, but they also benefit from greater visibility through our digital marketing efforts. In addition to more exposure, the restaurants can also serve food and drinks to our members during the day as well if they want. In most cases, our partners are very excited about the opportunity to serve small plates during the day, and our members love it too.

How long do you occupy each restaurant? And, does the offer change after a certain time, or do you have a set network of restaurants ?

We open at 9:00am, and for anyone who lingers after the restaurant opens, can simply choose to stay and order from the menu, or from the bar. Most of our restaurant partners like to have a few early customers to jumpstart the evening.

When we add a new partner, we expect that it remains in the network through the remainder of the restaurant partner’s lease. The network grows over time, so we will be continually adding new locations, resulting in increasing network coverage in each city where we operate.

Coworking communities rely on their hosts to help members integrate and build community. Since your hosts aren’t with the coworkers for an extended period of time, is it harder for them to connect with members?

On the contrary, the hosts who greet and  help to check-in our members are dedicated Spacious employees, so they are there every day. They get to know our members quite well, and as they are with them throughout the day, they act as a friendly concierge and reception for both our members and their guests. All of our hosts know almost everyone by name, creating a friendly and hospitable experience.

Are these hosts already experienced coworkers or are they also new to the concept?

The Spacious hosts are a diverse mix of independent freelancers, theater and film actors, designers, etc. who understand the need for an affordable place to meet and work that also acts as a social space. Some of them are new to Spacious, of course (because we are new), but everyone already has previous knowledge and experience with coworking.

Who are your typical members? What are their professions? 

We have a diverse membership. We have independent designers, makers, and developers, as well as members of small to startup teams. We even have employees coming from larger organizations who have a “work from anywhere” corporate policy, who enjoy the fact that Spacious offers an experience that is more hospitable than the typical office.

Do they work from home, or are they also experienced coworkers?

Many of our members have also worked out of other coworking communities before joining us. The value of what we can offer, because of our unique business model, matched with high-touch quality experience, is something that sets us apart from many others in the space. Not many other coworking spaces can say that they are connected to a Michelin star kitchen.

What are some of the things that professionals in NYC need but doesn’t have access to through the established coworking networks?

Objectively, we solve the problem of finding a reliable network of places to host face-to-face meetings. While we don’t offer a permanent workstation where you can leave your computer overnight, we do offer a network of places where you can meet with others in a space suitable for any client, colleague, or friend. At Spacious you can choose to stay quietly productive at a table of your own, or engage in collaborative conversations in a space that is designed for social interaction.

Of course, you can also choose to stay quietly productive at a table of your own, or engage in collaborative conversations as we create an atmosphere designed for social interaction.

NYC has a lot of coworking spaces already, what did it take for you to realize a concept that would stand out and ultimately thrive amongst the competition?

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As a global movement, Coworking has taken roots in India the last years.

A couple of hundreds of coworking spaces are now in operation in India.

Mentioning coworking space means we don’t take into account, here, basic shared spaces environments without services and (semi-)open access. Well workspaces associated with an identity and a community, mainly dedicated to digital workers of any kinds.

About one third took part in the Coworking India Survey 2016 produced by SocialWorkplaces.com prior to the Coworking India conference, on September 9-10th, 2016. Here are some key data disclosed during the event which gathered close to 120 coworking operators and pundits from the whole country.

Bigger on average in size, though still limited in number

So far, there is less coworking spaces in India than coworking spaces operating in the London area alone.

That said, though, on average, coworking spaces operating in India seemed wider in space than the average noticed in Europe, for instance. More than one third of the interviewed coworking spaces manage a facility more than 1.000 m2 wide.

Likewise, the average size of coworking tenants each coworking deals with seems to be wider than the average observed in Europe, although the number of operating coworking spaces is much higher over there.  According to the data, one third of the surveyed coworking spaces caters between 100 and 200 members at least.

Acceleration and startup programs often provided

India wants to put itself as a startup nation.

No surprise that a big deal of the coworking spaces who replied to the survey are targeting startups and digital entrepreneurs. So, it is not amazing that more than 50% of the interviewed spaces described not only themselves as coworking spaces but also as Incubation/Acceleration program providers or sometimes TechHubs.

Contentwise, the community building activity is definitily as critical for the Indian coworking scene as it is elsewhere, show the data collected for the Survey. More than 2/3 of the Indian coworking spaces organize in house events at least once a week.

The Coworking industry in India seems for sure ready to take off confirmed attendees at the first Coworking India conference.

Download more facts & data from the Coworking India 2016 Survey providing your information here below.

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An expert in marketing in branding for the last 15 years, Katie Lance currently explores the impact of social media can have when building a more transparent company culture. As a consultant, Katie helps companies utilize social media on a myriad of levels, from engaging with employees, to assisting clients and users.

We spoke with Katie about the potential impact “smart” social media can have on business today, and how it can carve out space for more human engagement in the workplace.

Your specialty is social media. How do you see the role of social media in workplace culture today?

It’s important for companies to understand that their social media presence isn’t just what is posted via their corporate social media directors. Employees have, in many ways, just a big of a voice and can be some of the biggest brand ambassadors.

How do you think that the real estate industry will utilize social media to improve the way that they interact with customers, etc.?

For many people, buying and selling a home is an intensely personal and emotional experience, and I can think of no better industry than real estate to use social media to celebrate those moments and connect with their clients on a personal level. The real estate industry has a unique opportunity to use social media to keep in touch with their clients, as well as an opportunity to share what it feels like to work with them and what their communities are all about.

Can you tell us a bit about these changes that you see taking place in the real estate industry from this experience?

I think we are getting a bit away from all of the “shiny objects” that overshadowed the industry a few years back. As technology gets better and better, I see opportunities that help agents to tell their story and build their brand. I particularly see opportunities with

I particularly see opportunities with live video like Facebook Live, Snapchat and Periscope, which allow agents to create content quickly and allow consumers to ask questions and interact in real time. I see this as a huge opportunity for agents to build trust and build their business.

What challenges are ahead for office providers, coworking space etc.?

I do see more companies letting their employees work remotely and offering more flexible work schedules. Ultimately it comes down to trust; trust in the employees that they know how they work best, whether it’s in an office, at a coffee shop or at a home office. I think many companies still fear not having an office space because they feel their culture will be affected.

Katie Lance

I personally run a virtual company with a relatively small virtual team for nearly four years and I can tell you first-hand that you don’t need to be all in the same room to build culture. We create culture through our Skype calls, our Voxer voice messages, our iPhones, and the various other ways that we keep in touch and on task through technology tools.

How do you imagine the role of the office in the future? Will will be all being working remotely in due time?

The workplace has changed dramatically in the last few years in part because of technology and in part because how so many of us have previously worked has also changed. For many of us, we no longer need to be in the same building at the same time of day  to get a job done. I don’t think offices will ever disappear forever but I think we will only continue to see more and more people working remotely.

Grzegorz Drozd is a policy officer at the European Commission, DG GROW, focusing on topics such as internal markets, industry, entrepreneurship, and SMEs. Grzegorz is currently exploring the issue of industrial modernization in regards to new business models and the future of work in Europe. As coworking is increasingly taken seriously by local municipalities and governments, we wanted to see what the movement looks like through the lens of these initiatives, not just space owners and operators.

We caught up with Grzegorz to speak about the future of work in Europe and what some of the numbers tell us about the freelancing and coworking today.

Hi, Grzegorz. Can you please tell us about your work and some of your current projects?

In addition to working as a policy officer at the European Commission, I also explore non-technological innovations, concentrating on workplace innovation. I am in charge of the European Workplace Innovation Network, also know as EUWIN. Prior to working for the EU Commission, I worked in the Polish Ministry of Economy, focusing on innovation support systems, industrial & SME policy.

European Workplace Innovation Network (EUWIN) aims to animate and sustain workplace innovation within the EU. How exactly does the program focus their efforts?

EUWIN was launched in 2013 to improve the performance of organizations as well as the quality of jobs in a sustainable way. Today we are connected with more than 10,000 companies and other stakeholders, such as policymakers, trade unions, academic experts, al with whom we are sharing know-how and experience.

And what steps does EUWIN take towards increasing innovation in the workplace?

Some of the key elements of EUWIN:

• Distributes evidence on the benefits of modernizing the workplace and working conditions.
• Focuses on raising awareness via dedicated regional workshops and social media.
• Provides a valuable resource for managers and employee representatives through the Knowledge Bank.
• Is open to practitioners, social partners, policymakers, representatives of intermediary organizations, and others with an interest in the workplace.

As the concept of coworking is spreading, a majority of these networks are now located in Europe. Does the European Commission also consider coworking to be revolutionizing the workplace?

Coworking spaces can be a part of the solution aimed at making the best use of employee potential. In this context, they are part of the wider concept of workplace innovation.

In addition, workplace innovation can mean many things, such as a change in business structure, human resources management, relationships with clients and suppliers, or even the work environment itself. It improves motivation and working conditions for employees, which leads to an increase in labor productivity, innovation capability, market resilience, and overall business competitiveness.

All enterprises, no matter their size, can benefit from workplace innovation.

In addition to coworking spaces cropping up, the number of freelancers in Europe has dramatically increased in recent years. Does EUWIN, or the EC, look at ways to assist and protect remote workers?

New technologies have changed the way we live, consume and meet people. As the internet has changed our lives, the industrial internet is now transforming the way we work and produce. The digital revolution is happening, which of course affects employment.

In this context, the European Pillar of Social Rights was announced by President Juncker in 2015. The Commission put forward a first preliminary outline of the Pillar in March this year and a public consultation is open until 31 December 2016. The results will inform the final proposal, which will be presented early in 2017.

One of the main aims of the consultation is to reflect and propose answers to these new trends we are now seeing in work patterns, as well as our societies. It also looks at the challenges that they pose to employment and the welfare state, due to the impact of demographic changes, innovation, technological change and digitization.

What might be some of the ways that workplaces in the EU could accommodate the rising number of freelancers without taking advantage?

Alternative work arrangements, such as telecommuting or telework, freelance or independent professional (iPro) work, crowdsourcing and employment in the shared economy ultimately create jobs and new opportunities for the self-employed. By lowering entry barriers to service provision and to new forms of employment or activities this can be achieved.

However, there is a tension between new and emerging types of occupations and business models and the existing contractual arrangements that question the current definition of workers, both statistically and economically as well as legally. For instance, the dividing line between “worker” and “self-employed” is becoming more blurred, particularly in platforms within the collaborative economy. Platform work questions the identity and responsibilities of the platform/employer in triangular relationships with the service provider/employee and the customer. It questions the definitions of contracts and relationships, and their impact on undeclared labor.

Today there are many questions regarding this topic, such as the volume or duration of work, the capacity to identify the employers as well as the associated level of social protection, notably in terms sickness, unemployment, and pension benefits. This can raise legal uncertainty and insufficient information on the applicable regulations and rights. Almost one in two employees on permanent contracts receive training compared to 32% of employees with fixed-term contracts and 19% of self-employed.

All of those aforementioned issues need to be addressed in order to make a full use of the potential offered by alternative working arrangements.

Have freelancers and coworking spaces played a noticeable role in helping the EU become more professionally dynamic?

Under alternative work arrangements, workers are gaining more autonomy and improved work-life balance, but also inherit more responsibility to optimize their career paths. Decentralised, self-organised forms of work can also boost business development.

In addition, more strain and faster pace of change are likely to lead to higher stress levels, as well as psychological and mental health risks. In the future, work stress could be a major occupational health and safety. In order to counterbalance stress in strained work environments, increased worker autonomy and flexibility are key.

In general, what have been some of the changes you have seen in the current workforce, such as job growth etc. and what has been the biggest catalyst for positive change?

The employment situation in the EU is improving. We observe an increase of the overall employment rates, for both the EU and the Euro area, which is an increase representing 3 million more employed people in the EU than in 2015. Yet, the overall long-term unemployment rate has decreased by 0.6 pp compared to a year before and now makes up 4.3% of the labour force. This is the largest reduction since the first decline in long-term unemployment observed in 2014. In addition to these number, for the first time since the start of the economic recovery, the number of very long-term unemployed (unemployed over two years) dropped more drastically than the number of people long-term unemployed for less than two years.

Finally, there is also a continuous improvement and convergence amongst Member States regarding youth unemployment, which has also strongly decreased in the countries most affected by the crisis.

On the same note, what are some of the major issues that still need to be overcome? And do you think that coworking, for example, could act as a solution to these challenges?

The new industrial revolution will have a serious impact on our current social models. Automation and artificial intelligence will transform the way we work and produce. New types of employment are emerging. They impact standard job patterns, they transform the relationship between employers and employees, they revisit work organisation.

The overall impact of automation and artificial intelligence in regards to job quantity is unclear. Studies show that the net effect is expected to be positive, with more new jobs being created than being replaced. However, a reallocation of human resources to more productive uses will not happen automatically. The new jobs created will require different skills and competencies over those jobs that will eventually disappear. Without complementary action to prepare the workforce for the future, there is a risk of unsuitable skills, unemployment, and social tensions.

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You may have already heard about Blogfabrik, the Berlin-based coworking space that gives you a desk in exchange for your writing skills. The innovative concept behind this German coworking space has already garnered significant media attention, in addition to inspiring new ways of imagining coworking spaces, as not just based on traditional fees, but as service based platforms fueled by creative exchanges.

Recently celebrating it’s one year anniversary, we caught up with Blogfabrik’s lead project manager, Maria Ebbinghaus, to find out what it takes to build a community of trust and collaboration.

Hi, Maria. Can you please give us some details on how Blogfabrik operates as a space and also how it meets the needs of members?

Blogfabrik is a coworking space for content creators who are working and living in Berlin. The focus of our space is within digital publishing. The people who work at Blogfabrik pay for their desk in the form of various content, such as texts, photos, videos, etc. This content is then published in our online magazine DailyBreadMag, which is a result of our collective effort.

Overall, our goal is to create a strong network of media influencers by creating a new networking hub and think tank for media creation and distribution.

How do you manage to be self-sufficient without charging traditional memberships?

Fortunately, we are part of the powerful Melo Group, a Munich- based group specializing in media distribution, which both invested and supported us. They strongly believe in the future of digital publishing, so we are encouraged to experiment and try out different things. As a result, our creative agency has a very strong collaborative aspect. For different types of projects, we are able to combine various skill-sets and talents ultimately offering very creative solutions when it comes to content marketing.

What do you think that coworking could do for industries that focus heavily on social media and digital media?

Our coworking space gives passionate freelancers from the media a new home. We work with bloggers, Instagrammers and journalists who have a high media reach and strong communities in their following. To work side by side with a community of talented and innovative individuals has many advantages. For example, we can develop advertising campaigns, brainstorm on brand cooperations and a multitude of social media projects.

How could coworking help the media industry grow, become more interactive and overcome challenges?

Our space is ideal when it comes to deep networking. People exchange knowledge about their businesses all the time. Before, the blogging community was mostly meeting on roof-top brand parties. Today, they can meet each other in a professional working environment at Blogfabrik, where we really work to empower them and their business.

Maria Ebbinghaus, lead project manager at Blogfabrik

We also found that everybody faces similar challenges, so we focus on collaboration, rather than competition. I think that professional potential can be found within coworking and partnering in general.

What are the biggest challenges facing those working in media today? 

Of course, low pay is still an issue and having enough projects available in order to make a living is also a constant struggle. Apart from daily hassles, we think there is a big challenge in the actual distribution of content and for those in media to be seen and recognized amongst the vast landscape of other media producers. Today, nearly everyone is fighting for the same thing, as the majority of people working in the online media industry depends on Google and Facebook when it comes to distribution of their content to their audience.

How does Blogfabrik work to overcome these challenges?

We try to empower content creators here at Blogfabrik and we truly believe in our coworkers. Through our agency, we offer them as many jobs as possible and by giving them a professional work environment they can learn to present themselves as qualified and skilled freelancers in order to attract more clients. Through close contact and many discussions amongst our community, we consistently aim to educate ourselves about the future of content and distribution, which is helping all of us to succeed.

What is the function of Blogfabrik’s in-house magazine? 

For us, DailyBreadMag is the portfolio of the Blogfabrik community. One can find interesting information about the media industry and useful tips there.

Based on your experience, what could in-house publications do for other communities?

DailyBreadMag is not only a portfolio, it’s also our common working ground. We try to bring people together through projects, thus we make an effort to combine different members for articles or content projects, where they often work together for the first time. It’s the ultimate networking tool for the concept of Blogfabrik, and it also functions as our testing ground where we can experiment with different models of collaboration.

Overall, our magazine has a lot of very important functions for us and it is also an interesting case for our clients, which shows our expertise in content creation.

The coworking space model is evolving, from corporate spaces to coliving spaces, what direction do you see coworking going in from the perspective of a place like Blogfabrik?

The future of coworking is bright. We strongly believe in the creative power of freelancers and we know how important it is to love your working environment and your colleagues. To create a community like this is challenging but also very rewarding. People spend their vacation days at Blogfabrik which is a sign for us that they love to spend their free time with us and their coworkers. Perfect!

How could other niche spaces create a model like yours to encourage knowledge sharing?

I think that question is not so easy because we are a very special coworking space. I think the easiest way would be to create a common project that everyone benefits from with knowledge, networking, and of course, love!

Did you already registered for Coworking Europe 2016 (Brussels, Nov 28-29-30) ?