Ten years ago, the goal was to get the job, work your way up Madmen-style to an office in a high rise, functioning along on the 9-5 routine. However, now, with the emergence of a new breed of professionals, people on average — not just millennials — stay at their jobs for less than a decade. As the generation redefines their goals from the corner office to autonomy, you can only bet on the drastic change the landscape of the office has witnessed.
The sharing economy has taken off globally and India is no exception. This development is evident across a multitude of industries and products — including taxis, hospitality and even, cars. With an estimated 15 million freelancers operating within India, the country is second only to the United States with regard to the amount of active independent workers worldwide, making it the perfect environment for a new co-working industry to blossom.
Foreseeing the augmentation in this sector led Bengaluru-based RMZ Corp’s Siddharth Menda to kick-start CoWrks, a shared incubating space for start-ups and freelancers. “Traditional office spaces have seen a dramatic transformation in recent years due to the rapid evolution of the modern workforce. CoWrks recognised the need to redefine workspaces to cater to the needs of the hyper connected and community-minded millennial worker. Doing away with obsolete concepts such as ‘the cubicle’ that focused only on effective space utilisation, the model opted for open spaces that, in addition to optimised spaces, stimulated a culture of inspiration and collaboration,” explains Menda, CoWrks founder and CEO.
The journey so far…
Founded in September 2016, CoWrks currently operates out of three centres, two in Bengaluru and one in Chennai. With a network of over 3,500 members, the company is well on its way to consolidating its member base to 15,000 members across 12 centres, spread over 750,000 sqft in four major metropolitan cities — Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi-NCR and Chennai. The sprawling 1.6 lakh sqft flagship centre situated in RMZ Ecoworld is Asia’s largest co-working space, within one of the hottest micro markets in Bengaluru. CoWrks took its first step in establishing a national footprint with the recent launch of its Chennai chapter, giving the city its first co-working space. Located at One Paramount, the facility is spread across 64,400 sqft with a capacity of 900 members. The imminent launch of its second centre at RMZ Millenia Business Park, will make it Chennai’s largest co-working space at 88,000 sqft, with a seating capacity of approximately 1,500 members. CoWrks is set to expand globally with the goal of establishing 200 centres within the next four years.
The spatial formula
CoWrks has formulated a strong and robust infrastructure that is at the crux of its services. Each centre nests in prime business districts of the respective cities and does not have the typical “selling the Y” corporate feel common among most current workplaces.
The brand has established itself as a vibrant ecosystem with impeccably designed workspaces, plush seating options, infectious energy and an ingenious network of professionals. Cutting across a spectrum of amenities and services, the centres offer 24×7 access, a combination of work zones, uninterrupted Wi-Fi, etc, to ensure members are able to prioritise work and focus on idea generation and productivity and not expend unnecessary energy over infrastructure.
“CoWrks is home to a carefully curated pool of dynamic, creative thinkers. Our spaces are designed to cater to all working styles — whether members intend to engage in focused teamwork, collaborative effort or brainstorming. Members can choose from ergonomic desks, private all-glass enclosures, comfortable lounge seating, uniquely designed meeting rooms and prime event space. Our spaces also include fuel bars, complete with gourmet coffee and bar-style seating to encourage conversation. Our spaces are infused with natural light and our aesthetic is engaging and modern, with bold and inspirational artwork on our walls,” adds Menda.
Providing the leverage
The best aspect of operating out of a co-working space is that companies can focus on their core product or service and completely outsource their responsibility of designing, building and managing office infrastructure. Given this, the centres are equipped with platforms to manage operations like lockers, print station, mail and package handling, virtual receptionist, conference rooms, security, housekeeping and much more. CoWrks also caters to businesses that don’t have the need for physical offices by providing a virtual office service, complete with virtual receptionist and mail handling.
Co-working spaces typically house a multitude of industries and skill sets that can come in handy when you need assistance, and entrepreneurs are more likely to offer free or heavily discounted assistance to others in the same workplace. Recognising this, CoWrks has designed an app to transition physical connections that members make into the digital realm. ‘Connect’ is CoWrks’ very own private social network that enables members to connect with each other based on their likes, interests and services provided. Menda adds, “As a tech-first company, we understand the role that technology plays in bringing people together, making them more productive and enhancing their experience. By integrating AI and predictive data, we’re doing just that. CoWrks Connect is being used to build a digital social network that mirrors the physical social network that can be generated from having employees across firms present in a single space. Members can get to know each other by viewing their profiles, offer their services to each other and broadcast messages on a centralised newsfeed. Members may use these features for collaboration, whether seeking others with particular skills or other tasks such as setting up carpooling groups.”
AI at its best
In addition to its app, CoWrks is also in the process of developing artificially intelligent chatbots to assist members with simple tasks such as planning meetups with other members. “An AI-powered personal assistant gives an employee more time to focus on more productive work,” asserts Menda. He adds that if employees need to report an issue or ask a question, they can simply post their query to a chatbot, who will forward queries to a real human office manager (a community manager), only if a machine response does not suffice.
“When members across firms are on a common technology platform — such as a mobile application and access card system — sensors can be utilised to track the movement of people, allowing co-working providers to gather data on how people are interacting with and moving through their workspace. This data can be secured to protect privacy and then utilised to further optimise the layout and arrangement of office spaces. Vending machines and coffee dispensers powered by IoT (Internet of Things) can communicate with centralised servers, whenever the vending machine needs to be restocked or the coffee dispenser has run out of coffee beans,” he elaborates.
The way forward
On a concluding note, Menda opines, “With millennials at its core, the modern workforce looks at work very differently when compared to its predecessors. There is a large influx of creative professionals while the current workforce gravitates towards independence.”
He adds, “The start-up ecosystem is rapidly growing across all metro cities. Government initiatives have also contributed significantly to fuel this upsurge. Most tier 1 cities see a demand-supply gap of grade-A offices. Given the plug and play format that shared workspaces follow, CoWrks not only serves as a great alternative to traditional office spaces but also as transitional, swing space. As tier 1 and 2 cities continue to show a great potential for entrepreneurship and innovation, the need for an open and flexible workspace that matches their creative wavelength will continue to exist.”