Coworking - what it is, its tasks and goals. What is coworking in simple words - from its history to opening your own business center

From this publication you will learn what is coworking, what is it for, how do they work coworking centers, what are their main advantages and disadvantages.

As you know, one of the most significant costs is the cost of renting or, especially, purchasing premises. A new entrepreneur does not always have the financial ability to rent premises. He can work at home, but this is also not always convenient. To solve such problems, coworking arose. What it is - more on that later.

What is coworking?

The term coworking is borrowed from English language(co-working) and literally translated means “working together.”

– it is equipped with everything necessary workplace for doing business or a specific job, which anyone can rent for any period (from 1 day to 1 year or more).

Coworking workplaces are located in the so-called. coworking centers - office premises specifically designed for this type of activity. Coworking services are in demand, first of all, and.

Essentially, coworking is something between working from home and working in your own/rented office. Coworking centers are equipped with office furniture, furniture for negotiating with clients, computer and office equipment, high-speed Internet, they have water coolers and coffee machines, that is, everything is like in a traditional office center. The only difference is that completely different people work and conduct business in a coworking center at the same time, whose activities are in no way connected with each other.

The history of coworking began just 10 years ago, in 2005, when one American programmer organized the first coworking center together with like-minded freelancers. Since then, this phenomenon has become increasingly popular; today coworking centers are open in most major cities of the world, including many cities in Russia.

Coworking prices.

Surely many people are interested in how much coworking space costs and the prices that coworking centers offer in our conditions. The cost of renting a space in a coworking center greatly depends on the rental period: the shorter it is, the higher the price of coworking space per day. If we take monthly prices, then prices for coworking spaces range from 50 to 500 dollars per month, depending on the city, the specific coworking center, and its equipment.

The cheapest ones are the so-called. “dynamic places” are when a person comes to a coworking center with his laptop and takes any space there free space. The most expensive are separate rooms for confidential meetings with clients, with additional services(for example, legal and accounting support for business, secretarial services, courier services, etc.).

Benefits of coworking.

Probably many thought: “Why do we need a coworking space if you can work from home in the same way, which is completely free?” This is not entirely true: there are a number of benefits to be found in coworking spaces.

1. At home, “household chores” are always distracting, and for many people they prevent them from concentrating on the work process, and as a result they suffer. The coworking center creates a working environment with no distractions, which further motivates you to perform your tasks well.

2. If your business involves the need to receive visitors, then doing this at home is not only inconvenient, but also dangerous: you never know who will come.

3. When working in a coworking center, there is no need to buy and refill a printer, copier, scanner, fax and other office equipment - there the use of it is included in the cost of renting a space or is paid separately, but it is still cheaper than even using such services in other places.

4. Remote communication is by no means free: a person has to pay, at a minimum, for electricity and Internet services. In a coworking center, this is also included in the cost of services.

5. Coworking is interesting because a person does not remain alone, but works among other people. He can communicate with them, look for like-minded people, and look for joint solutions to problems. Coworking is an excellent environment for acquiring useful business contacts and connections.

The main disadvantage of working in a coworking center is, of course, that this service is paid. However, compared to renting and maintaining a separate similar office, space in a coworking space is always significantly cheaper.

Now you know what coworking is, and you can independently conclude whether this form of workspace organization is right for you or not. Or maybe you will go further and want to build a business by opening a coworking center, who knows...

In any case, I wish you success in all your endeavors. Come to where you will always find interesting ideas to earn money and invest, learn how to competently build relationships with banks, manage a family budget and manage personal finances. See you again!

Coworking

Coworking(English) co-working, working together) is a work model in which participants, while remaining independent and free, use a common space for their activities. In particular, coworking is popular among freelancers, remote workers, translators, programmers, designers and aspiring entrepreneurs. Coworking space occupies an intermediate position between working from home and using a separate office.

Coworking also refers to each individual space for collaborative work.

Description

History of creation

In 2005, young programmer Brad Newberg was in the process of career growth faced with modern and actual problem choice. “Now my choice is either office work with its certainty and communication with employees, or freelancing (“freelance artist”) with its freedom and independence. But why can’t I have both?” - he began to think - and combined both options. Having rented a large space in an office building, he offered to use it for work by “free artists” like himself. New scheme He called the organization of workplaces coworking (joint work) - a number of freelancers and startup teams work in parallel in a shared office.

Model

As a rule, shared offices are large premises with a kitchen, one or more meeting rooms and are equipped with the necessary office infrastructure - from Wi-Fi Internet to printers and scanners. Everyone who uses such an area on an ongoing basis pays a certain amount monthly, the amount of which depends on whether he is assigned a workplace, an entire table, or whether he uses a table or sofa, which at the moment free. Many coworking offices offer a free trial day.

Audience

Coworking offices are convenient for freelancers, as well as companies whose employees are scattered across different cities or countries. In particular, joint offices can become optimal solution for those who are just entering a new market (in an unfamiliar city or country) and do not have enough budget to rent a full-fledged office.

Coworking culture

Coworking does not impose any special restrictions on the profession, the status of the participant, or the parameters of the premises and community. Members of the coworking movement are acting in the same spirit as their coworking counterparts, sharing their experiences and ideas on shared websites.

Advantages

Community. Communication with other people is a high value in our computerized society. A shared office facilitates the establishment of new business contacts and the constant exchange of ideas and experiences.
Professional development. Many coworking spaces organize a regular program of educational events.
Mutual assistance and acceleration of projects. Assemble a team under big project in such an office it is much easier than doing it yourself. The coworking community allows you to find mentorship on a variety of aspects of work.
Comfortable atmosphere. A work-oriented attitude, lack of control from above, and a community united by interests creates a comfortable working environment.

Flaws

Road. Compared to working from home, it takes time and money to travel to and from a coworking center.
Safety. IN public place It's worth keeping an eye on your things.
Noise and distractions. It's harder to concentrate in a coworking space than in a separate office.

Notes

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

See what “Coworking” is in other dictionaries:

- (from the English Mini small, Office office) a scheme for leasing office space, which consists of providing the tenant not with a separate office, but with an equipped workplace for a long period. The essence of this scheme is that... ... Wikipedia

The style of this article is non-encyclopedic or violates the norms of the Russian language. The article should be corrected according to the stylistic rules of Wikipedia... Wikipedia

The request "Freelance" is redirected here. A separate article is needed on this topic. Freelancer (English freelancer - free spearman, free spearman, mercenary; in figurative meaning free artist) person, ... ... Wikipedia

Wikinomics Genre: Business edition

Freelancer (English freelancer, free spearman, free shooter; in a figurative sense, free artist) a person who performs work without concluding a long-term contract with an employer, hired only to perform a certain list ... Wikipedia

Innovative service for office business processes for the purpose of optimization, concentrated in one place (mainly in Matrix centers) and offered to entrepreneurs/companies in the required combination. Matrixes decomposed, office centers based ... ... Wikipedia

This term has other meanings, see Seliger (meanings). All-Russian youth educational forum (camp) SELIGER International youth educational forum (camp) SELIGER ... Wikipedia

Russian Academy national economy and public service under the President of the Russian Federation (RANEPA) / InCube ANE one of the first Russian business incubators, opened in 2010 as a non-profit platform on the basis of the Academy of National Economy... ... Wikipedia

- (from the English co marketing) or joint marketing is the joint management of the creation of services and goods, as well as the mechanisms for their sale on the market, which is a single integrated process with common goals and tasks. In a narrower... ... Wikipedia

Studio Turbomilk Year of foundation... Wikipedia

Books

Home office, loft, coworking, mini-office, nano-office - it's simple. Rent, purchase - pros, cons, mistakes, Valery Zimin. The book will discuss options for organizing work and placing employees in the office: pros, cons, considerations. The author has extensive experience working in both large and compact offices…

The purpose of coworking is not only to provide restless specialists with a table and chair, but also to create an inviting, productive environment that will solve all the problems of any freelancer.

People around you can give you new ideas

Typically, coworking spaces have long tables where people working in different fields sit at the same time. In addition to the work space, they share a common kitchen and recreation areas. As a result, designers, lawyers, programmers and many other professions spend a lot of time in the same room, which encourages a flow of interaction with new areas of knowledge, as well as the exchange of experience. In a regular office, different specialists rarely intersect.

Working in a coworking space is less sedentary

If the building has gym or a sports corner, this means that you can take a break from your work process more often to lift weights rather than drink coffee and cookies. The key point is that physical exercise contribute better work brain. The blood gets pumped, and so does your creativity! Numerous studies show that regular physical activity and meditation lead to greater productivity and more alert thinking, and reduce stress. Increases stamina and concentration, which helps you solve problems faster. Even if there are no workout areas in the room, you still move more from place to place, alternately giving preference to common rooms, meeting rooms or a reception area with a sofa, because you are not limited to one office.

Coworking offers more freedom in choosing where and when to work

Those who work remotely do not need a traditional office, but from time to time they need to work outside the walls of their own home. A change of environment undoubtedly has a positive effect on productivity, which is why more and more freelancers are now renting coworking spaces. In addition, it gives you more flexibility in your work schedule, since it is usually open longer than a regular office.

Coworking is needed for those who do not have an office

Just like most offices, most coworking spaces offer free tea, coffee, cookies, candy and, of course, Wi-Fi, which allows you to focus on work without being distracted by everyday trifles. Some coworking spaces also include a shared receptionist service—useful if you plan to invite clients to meetings.

To date large number Freelancers, online employees, businessmen, including founders of startup projects, do not have the opportunity to rent office space. But this does not mean that you need to stay at home within four walls. For free and forward-thinking people who do not want to overpay for workspace, quite new and advantageous offer– work in a coworking center.

What does the word coworking mean?

Coworking (from the English “co-working” - working together) is a space equipped with everything necessary for labor activity person. This is a new fashionable trend, a whole mentality, way of thinking. Working in the same space (not at home or in the office), translators, programmers, designers, content authors remain independent and receive everything they need to support their work process.

Coworking is an innovative scheme for organizing work activities, in which different, dissimilar types of activities are carried out in one room. Such a workplace is rented for any period - hour, day, week or month.

The social role of coworking is great, since each of us needs communication with colleagues. A rented workplace makes it possible to soak up a creative team atmosphere, feel like an expert in a certain field, and unite to achieve maximum results.

Coworking center: what is it?

Not so long ago, futurologists said that very soon working in an office would become irrelevant. Colleagues will be able to communicate via Skype, and it is also very easy to transfer all data online. The Internet has already developed enough, it’s time for the forecasts to start coming true, but it turned out that many people do not know how to work at home (there are many temptations, and their relatives do not always understand, imposing household responsibilities in “ working hours"). As an alternative to working from home, coworking centers have appeared - places where you can work over a cup of coffee outside the home and noisy office. Such places stimulate groupthink and increase work efficiency.

Coworking centers are real estate objects of a radically new format, target audience of which are IT sector workers, marketers, startupers, and freelancers. Coworking centers are distinguished by flexibility and mobility - these are spacious halls that can easily be converted from a collection of workstations into an auditorium for discussions, speakers, and master classes. Advanced centers consist not only of a work space, but also an entertainment area.

They are equipped with office furniture, office equipment, internet, most have water coolers and coffee machines. In other words, just like in a regular office. The only difference is that different people work here with different goals, unrelated to each other.

The history of coworking centers begins in the USA in 2005. Then an ordinary programmer Brad Newberg was going to rent an office for work, but the cost of such real estate seemed to him unreasonably high. Therefore, he decided to combine “business with pleasure” by combining his own activities with entrepreneurship. He rented large area half the price of an office, combining the work of freelancers like myself. The result paid off and gave birth to a new direction called coworking.

Cost of coworking space

Prices for renting a workplace in a coworking center depend on many factors - region, location, equipment and pricing policy landlord company. The cost is affected by the rental period - the longer it is, the cheaper the price per day will be. If you take a monthly rental, prices range from $50 to $500.

The least expensive “dynamic seat” is when a person comes with his laptop and takes up any free space. The most expensive are separate, presentable offices with luxurious furniture for negotiations with partners and confidential meetings. For example, you are planning and looking for investors. Renting an office for such a meeting with them for a few hours is a great idea.

Types of coworking spaces

There is no specialized classification of such centers. But the space for remote work may differ in size, level of technical equipment and provision of related services.

They are conventionally divided into three types:

To implement a joint project, freelancers unite and rent suitable real estate. This could be a small office or an ordinary apartment. Costs for rent, utilities and food purchases are divided equally. Office equipment is brought from home.
The entrepreneur offers an already equipped office for everyone to visit. For this, an hourly fee is charged or a visit subscription is purchased. Anyone who wants to work in it pays a fixed amount; all costs for equipping and maintaining such an office are borne by the entrepreneur. The premises may be owned or rented.
The company opens a coworking center only to organize work freelancers. There they perform their duties on a remote work basis or under a contract agreement. All expenses are borne by the employing company.

In addition to coworking, there are similar areas - time cafe, anti-cafe, time club and many others. All these establishments are socially oriented. And if in ordinary cafes long gatherings with a laptop are not welcome (for example, for this purpose, McDonald's removes sockets), then new types of premises are created for work or communication of the most different people. There are many differences between them, but also a lot in common. Coworking centers are most often positioned for work, where the availability of free tea and cookies is a bonus. The anti-cafe was created for gatherings with friends and having a good time. Here snacks and hot drinks are available great value, although not the key one.

Three cases when you need to resort to the services of a coworking center

Some do not understand the essence of creating such centers, especially since they have to pay money for such extraordinary conditions. Who needs a coworking space anyway?

Office for one day

Are you a freelancer and would like to meet with a client to discuss issues or a new order? This is not always convenient in a cafe, especially if you talked about the seriousness and prestige of your company. In this case, you need to call the selected center and reserve an office for a day or even several hours. This way you can meet with the client and discuss everything organizational issues, receive payment for services rendered or sign a partnership agreement. If you do this in a presentable office in the city center, the customer will draw positive conclusions about your reputation.

Self-realization and optimization of work processes

Disadvantages of coworking

There are many benefits of coworking. But there are also disadvantages that are worth considering.

Secondly, not every office will provide you with a quiet and exclusive atmosphere. Office neighbors may be nice and calm people, or maybe vice versa. In any case, even a coworking space will not give you 100% freedom; you will still have to negotiate with your neighbors.

AND main drawback- this is payment. Many freelancers agree with the benefits, but don't understand the point of giving away the money. What kind of “free” are we even talking about then? Proponents of coworking at the same time point to high returns, sometimes efficient work it's worth it.

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Not everyone can concentrate on work at home, and as a result, productivity decreases. The solution in this situation is to visit a coworking center - a specially equipped space in which you can immerse yourself in the work process. Coworking has become a real find for freelancers and businessmen; it offers all the conditions for negotiating with partners and organizing master classes.

As business develops, the number of small, narrowly specialized organizations grows. However, they buy or rent several premises for their office. To reduce costs and maintain budgets, some companies take risks and occupy the same premises for employees of different specializations. To minimize risk consequences, it is necessary to think carefully about the organization of work. The way out of this situation is coworking centers, which allow optimizing the work process of specialists.

Coworking in simple words

Let's look at what coworking is. Coworking literally translates as “to work together”, i.e. when people of different profiles work in the same building. In other words, everything that unites people is a room

Such an organization of work activity provides additional communication and exchange of experience. Often, an unusual work model is chosen by freelancers who find working at home monotonous.

Coworking space was created for the development of social initiatives, the formation of team projects and their implementation. In addition, social business projects and projects for the development of small and medium-sized businesses are being developed. There are clear rules on the premises. It is necessary to take care of furniture, not disturb the work atmosphere, and treat others politely.

Coworking space was created for the development of social initiatives, the formation of team projects and their implementation. In addition, social business projects and projects for the development of small and medium-sized businesses are being developed. There are clear rules on the premises. It is necessary to take care of furniture, not disturb the work atmosphere, and treat others politely.

Coworking centers

Coworking centers are office spaces consisting of several large rooms. A coworking center must have:

Modern office equipment
Comfortable office furniture
Negotiation room
High speed internet
Area for relaxation and eating

Benefits of coworking

Due to the fact that coworking brings together visitors with different work profiles, it appears good opportunity get good business contacts, find business partners and diversify your social circle;
Create a joint project;
Creative, flexible atmosphere;
Some coworking centers conduct training sessions that allow participants to improve their professional competencies;
The lack of guidance makes you feel comfortable;
Unlike working at home, where everyday life is all around, coworking centers are an imitation of an office with a working atmosphere that can increase work productivity;
Lack of distractions;
Those who are forced to receive clients at home can use the meeting rooms of the coworking center;
All necessary office equipment: office furniture, printers, computers, faxes, etc.;
If difficulties arise, you can ask for help;

Disadvantages of coworking

Any labor organization has its drawbacks. Analyzing what coworking means, we can note that getting to the workplace also takes time, in addition to this:

Cost of time and money to come to a coworking space;
If the center is far from your home, then during rush hour you may get stuck in traffic jams;
As the number of people increases, the noise also increases;
Some people cannot concentrate in the presence of strangers;
Payment for stay;

Who uses coworking space

The article mentioned that freelancers or creative people become clients of coworking centers, but that’s not all. People come to the centers:

Sprogrammers;
Webmasters;
Business trainers;
Startups;
Entrepreneur;
Those people who do not depend on an office or workshop space.

Types of coworking centers

There are several types of coworking centers; below we present the most common ones:

For industrial and office activities. One of the most popular types of coworking spaces. Representatives become clients various professions. Since people spend a significant part of their time in this center, in addition to the work space, there are also rooms for relaxation, negotiations and meals.

For creative visitors. Here you can find a minimum of office equipment and a maximum of boards, flipcharts, projectors, in general, everything that is necessary for creativity.

For Hand made. A heavenly place for connoisseurs of creating something with their own hands. In this case, the center focuses on graphics programs and 3D printers. In addition, they regularly conduct master classes.

For children. In Europe, children's coworking centers have already become the norm, but in Russia similar look The coworking space is only gaining momentum. You can find a large number of educational games for children, as well as communicate with other parents.