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Infosys recently announced permanent Work From Home for 33% to 55% of its employees. On similar lines, TCS too claimed that by 2025, only 25% of its workforce will be coming its offices. As traditional workplaces decentralise, and WFH fatigue kicks in, coworking spaces will be in their best position to showcase themselves as ad-hoc solutions.
Aren’t we convinced already that work from home cannot be a permanent set-up for India? Coworking units will now act as ad-hoc spaces while enterprises try to figure out the new normal.
What will businesses look out for in a coworking space post COVID-19?
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- The Need for an Office
Take the example of Chennai-based Karya Spaces for example. Karya Spaces opened a new centre in Nungambakkam in January. Instead of making the most of the booming commercial real estate industry, witnessed a massive downfall as client base dropped by 30% in March.
However, since the lockdown restrictions have been eased in May, nearly 100 enquiries to rent desks are flooding in. For any company to develop and thrive, real-life interaction of the workforce is essential. And that’s where the importance of offices, or rather coworking spaces kicks in.
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- The Need for a Community
We did some research and most employees when given a choice between an office and a coworking space, would choose the latter. Unlike traditional offices, a coworking space encourages people to interact with those from similar and different businesses.
It’s like an informal collaboration of sorts because you can exchange fresh ideas, perspectives, and contacts.
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- The Need for Safe Spaces
Before the pandemic, coworking spaces that offered 450 seats are cutting it down to say 240 seats to maintain social distancing. They are also providing safety equipments, setting new hygiene protocols, handsfree entries, etc.
To attract businesses and ensure the safety of the workforce, coworking spaces are moving from a rental model to a hospitality set-up. In addition to infrastructure and safety measures, they are also providing new services, software, etc.
Landlords and property owners that meet and exceed these new expectations can greatly benefit from the coworking boom that’s already upon us. As JLL predicts, corporate demand will grow significantly after the pandemic, as many major companies like Starbucks, Microsoft, and Facebook are already on the lookout for coworking spaces.