Knowing the best strategies for running a coworking space involves understanding what it takes to manage your team, members, and day-to-day activities.
Coworking spaces are becoming increasingly popular as a way for entrepreneurs and small businesses to save money while still having access to the same amenities that traditional offices offer.
However, managing a coworking space is no easy task. It requires strategic planning, efficient management, and the ability to create a positive environment for all members.
In this article, we will share some must-know tips for managing a successful coworking space. We will look at how to attract and retain members, create an enjoyable atmosphere, and ensure that everyone has access to the resources they need.
By following these tips, you can ensure that your coworking space is run smoothly and efficiently.
There are two key elements of managing a coworking space: people management and operations (or space) management.
Operations management is how you manage the day-to-day business operations. This can include tasks like handling finances, maintaining the physical space, and keeping track of inventory.
People management is how you manage your members and your employees. This includes tasks like member retention, customer service, and human resources.
You may not have the capital to afford to hire an entire team before opening your coworking space, and that’s okay. You can be strategic in your space management and get away with just a few key resources and a solid system in place.
Here are a few tips for running a lean operation:
-Get creative with your space. If you can’t afford to build out a dedicated coworking space, look for other places that can be repurposed,
At the very least, we do recommend hiring a great community manager if and when you can afford to. They can help take care of a lot of the repetitive operational tasks, as well as general member management on the day-to-day.
As a coworking space owner, one of your key priorities is to develop an effective business strategy. This can help you grow your business and attract more customers and retain them. One way to do this is to create a strong brand identity. This includes things like developing a solid name, logo, and tagline. It also means creating an overall look and feel for your coworking space that sets it apart from the competition.
Most people think of managing a coworking space as managing operations. This includes things like:
– Maintaining the space
– Handling finances
– Managing memberships & bookings
– Planning events
– Refilling supplies
However, there’s more to it than that. A successful coworking space manager also needs to be a good communicator, motivator, and problem solver. They need to be able to build relationships and create a community.
Technology is an essential part of efficient space management. If you want to save time and money on your day-to-day operations, you need a solid coworking technology ecosystem.
The most important thing to keep in mind when choosing your workspace management software is to choose technology that will fit your business.
It sounds simple, but here is where many people go wrong: they decide which software they want first and then modify their business model to fit the platform.
The problem with this approach is that it can limit your options and make it difficult to change course if you need to. Instead, start by defining your business model and then look for software that will support it. This will give you more flexibility and make it easier to adapt if your needs change. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to choosing software for your coworking space. Rather, look for a platform and company that aligns with not only how your business is set up, but how you want to run your business.
Technology can help your coworking business in a lot of ways, but it can only do so much. You need to have strong systems and processes in place to manage your operations successfully. There is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of how to best keep track of tasks since it depends on factors like the size and structure of your team, the type of work you’re doing, and your own personal preferences. However, there are a few general tips that can help you get started:
– Use a project management tool: If you’re working on a team, it’s helpful to use a project management tool like Asana, or Trello.
– Following up the upcoming bookings and memberships with a calendar.
– Setting aside a couple of hours during weekends to map out and organise next week’s operations
What do you want to accomplish in your coworking space?
Creating a system that integrates all of these goals together is the key to getting things done.
The modern coworking space is autonomous. Introducing automation into your space will help you to:
-Evaluate your current business practices and make changes where necessary to make things more efficient
-Outsource or automate tasks that are time-consuming or mundane
-Increase security measures to protect your business and customers
-Extend your hours of operation to accommodate more customers/clients
-Offer additional services or products that complement your existing offerings
Start by looking for repetitive tasks in your space like billing, invoicing, and bookings, and see how you can make them more automatic – hint: this is where coworking technology can become hugely beneficial.
Automation is the future of coworking spaces
It’s no secret that automation is changing the workplace. In fact, it’s one of the biggest trends in the coworking industry. And for a good reason! Automation can help you keep your business lean and cost-effective as you expand.
Looking after your physical space is a significant part of managing a coworking space. Not to be outdone, however, is the importance of managing people.
When you are responsible for a coworking space, you are responsible for the people who use it. This means creating and enforcing rules, keeping the area clean and organized, and ensuring everyone feels comfortable and respected
People management in coworking spaces includes:
– Member management: are your members happy and taken care of? Do you know how to handle member disturbances when they occur?
– Employee (team) management: does your team feel supported? Are they set up to do their best work?
Taking care of your members is the building block for a healthy, happy coworking community. Supporting your team means enabling them to do their very best work. Both are essential to creating a healthy business.
Clear rules and expectations
The best thing you can do for member management is set clear rules and expectations from the beginning and communicate them effectively. This is often referred to as your house rules.
House rules is a 1-3 page document that outlines:
– Create a list of house rules
– Determine company values
– Identify basic needs (hours, parking, payments, etc.)
– Create an access system for amenities (printer, access control system, etc.)
When creating this document, make sure it is accessible in multiple places at any given time including on your website, email to your members directly during their onboarding, and in your space itself.
The more information you can include upfront, the more you can avoid confusion and difficulties later on.
The best way to deal with a disturbance is to have a plan. By having a plan, you can take the necessary steps to mitigate the discomfort and make sure that the situation is resolved as quickly as possible.
Follow some general guidelines to handle the disturbance internally as a team. Here are some examples of things that you can include in your action plan;
– Speak to the member about their misbehavior
– If the behavior continues, send a warning letter
– If the behavior still continues, hold a meeting with the member to discuss their membership
– If the member does not change their behavior, they may be asked to leave the membership
– Follow up with the member after they have left to see if they have made any changes
As the host, you are expected to be aware of how your space is operating and how your guests can help contribute to that. When you’re planning that first meetup or event, take some time to think about which situations might arise and see where you can come up with contingency plans.
If you wish to have rules in your home, be sure to outline any consequences in those rules as well. When disturbances occur, enforce those rules and expectations so that all members of the household understand what is expected of them.
In order to provide a member experience that exceeds our expectations, we rely on a continuous feedback loop from our members. A solid coworking member survey allows us to listen closely and make real improvements in the space for all of our members.
By developing a habit of asking your members how they feel about their experience being a member of your space, you will become an effective community manager and can adapt to the needs of your members.
We recommend scheduling surveys at the one, six, and twelve-month membership mark to receive feedback on the employee experience at a variety of stages. To create systems for regular feedback by including a quick link on your website or in your Google Map Listing.”
Before you even begin hiring for your space, think about what you stand for as a company and nail your mission statement. A cohesive team is built in part by a shared value system. It’s not just about how much people produce or what kind of results they deliver; it’s about how they go about doing so.
Here are some examples;
– Women are underrepresented in tech and we want to do something about it.
– If you’re excited by our mission and would like to join us in making a difference.
– We want to support work-life balance for women and help working parents grow their skills, create opportunities, and further their careers.
The key to building a successful coworking brand is a clear and consistent mission and value definition. Once you have done that, everything you do — from employee training to marketing campaigns — should reflect the company’s latest mission statement.
People need structure to understand what they do and how it fits into the wider context. How you communicate that information isn’t too important, but providing clarity in terms of roles and responsibilities will help people get a sense of their position within your team.
For better project management, consider having an org chart listing each person’s name and key responsibilities.
This will make it easy to refer back to when people move on, so it’s also a great resource for onboarding new members of the team.
If you have a bigger project, like building a website or introducing new product features, consider using a RACI chart to map out who is responsible for what. Finally, craft a clear job description for each position so there are no surprises before someone joins your team!
Set boundaries with your employees. Once you have determined their responsibilities and role, it’s important to respect those boundaries.
If you ask employees to take on tasks outside the scope of their jobs, they will become dissatisfied and resentful.
Goals and objectives are an excellent way to keep your team motivated and unified. They provide focus, give a sense of accomplishment and help you ensure your business is staying on track as you hit its targets.
Setting both individual goals (objectives that one single team member is responsible for) and team goals (objectives the entire team contributes towards) is important.
There are a number of frameworks for setting goals in your coworking space. Here are a few that we see the most:
SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely.
OKRs: Objectives (what we want to achieve) and Key Results (how we will achieve it).
BSQ: Big/Small/Quick.
In the fast-paced world of coworking, having effective management is crucial.
Having the right systems in place will help you manage your coworkers, space, and clients so you can focus on what really matters: creating a great working environment for your members and the team.
Whether you’re an existing coworking space looking to refine your operations, or just getting started in the industry, it’s important to think about your coworking space management early on. Operations are critical for ensuring a good user experience, but your people are the driving force behind delivering great service.
Our goal is to be your experienced technology partner and thought partner. We offer a range of services, from coworking technology and learning programs to full-scale consulting engagements.
Explore Beyond and how we can help you to manage your coworking space.
As the trend of remote work continues to grow, virtual office members have become an increasingly important demographic for coworking spaces to attract.
10 Must to Know Tips for Coworking Space Management Knowing the best strategies for running a coworking space involves understanding what it takes to manage
