September 20, 2009 at 14:33Coworking: 18 months later
One and a half years have passed since the opening of the Tower Tower Coworking Club.
Earlier I published on Habré my experience and feelings “6 months later” . Then a crisis began in Russia, in the “Tower” - a boom of the form “Let's start a business, it's time!”, And the memorable date “First Year” somehow passed by. But now, at the end of September, Russian coworking is 1.5 years old. I wonder what has changed during this time.
Disclaimer: not wanting to distort information, I will limit myself only to our experience - “Towers”, “INCA” and “Polygon”. Other coworking clubs most likely have a different story.
POPULATION
The guys who have passed through us over the past year and a half — around 60-70 people somewhere — gave a completely accurate portrait of the target audience of the coworking. In professional terms, these are strong technicians, people of creative near-technical professions, as well as small or novice entrepreneurs in the service sector or b2c. In personal terms, these are young people with a psychological age of 20-30 years (biological age may differ; we have people in their 40s, but it’s very easy to communicate and work with them). These are mostly guys or couples.
Now 15 people live in the Tower: the JetDog web development team (3 people), the 66bit freelancers team (2 people out of ... 4?), The ALW biometrics development team (3 people), the business project laboratory “INC” (4 people) and several participants of the Polygon, which appear periodically. About 6-7 business projects are associated with the guys, about the problems and successes of which I will discuss below. They left the “Tower”, but another 5 people hold contact - also mainly IT and business. As you can see, the average portrait of a coworker (VERY simplified) is an IT entrepreneur.
Separately, it should be said about designers, lawyers, journalists, salespeople and other professions who also potentially have a craving for “co-work”. No guys. Does not work. Perhaps these are exclusively problems of the Tower, but somehow it turned out that people of the humanitarian mindset (and here I include journalists and lawyers - I allow myself such liberties) do not get along at all in the team. They are all the same loners. And techies, entrepreneurs and economists get along well. Perhaps, because for them, business is objectively more important than personal desires and emotions.
IMHO, of course. I do not want to offend anyone - just explaining the situation, as I see it.
ATMOSPHERE
I think everything is clear here since the time of the NYTimes article and the debate of that time. The atmosphere is our everything. This is the soul and essence of coworking. Without an atmosphere of community and support - which, globally, depends solely on the goals of the organizer - coworking becomes a common sublease of space, at best. Or degenerates into a commercial organization.
I constantly monitor in RuNet everything related to the word “coworking” and have observed a sufficient number of various perversions. Some pathos pocket offices created more for the self-satisfaction of the organizer than for teamwork. Realtor agencies that try to call “coworking” their awkward attempts at foiling illiquid premises. Small companies willing to give up their seats for the time being in the expectation of lower costs. Novice entrepreneurs who, from ignorance or hopelessness, are trying to squeeze a penny from any come up idea. Look around: which of them survived?
You have to love your people. They came to you in anticipation of support and cooperation, and not to give you money. They are not somewhere far away - here they are, next to you. Is it really so difficult to try to build your life, your business, your dreams with the help of those who are with you, and not at the expense of them?
By the way, this is the main thing that coworking turned out to be useful for me: this philosophy (if I may say so) AUTOMATICALLY filters out those who do not agree or are not ready to invest in business. I know: many of us are looking for some kind of magical thing in the world that would be able to protect from scammers, divorce, theft, trash and just unpleasant people. Well, good news, everyone: it looks like there is such a thing :)
After a year and a half, we have changed quite a bit. The atmosphere is still democratic and businesslike. Communication in the club is still on “you”. And each of the guys, I think, during this time at least once tried to work with the others, identifying the area of opportunity: it is not by chance that we have formed a business incubator here :)
The only thing that became more noticeable during the crisis was that people became more severe and collected . Today, few allow themselves to “spit on the ceiling” or spend several hours discussing another “brilliant” idea. However, since I myself am not a fan of empty talk, I even like it. In the end, they didn’t gather to rest - it’s up to the business
Do not think, the “Tower” is not office slavery :) If you want to sleep, choose any sofa. If you want to receive a feedback on some problem - freely throw a cry, no one will refuse to help. And even in the refrigerator you can dig if you chew a hunt.
PROBLEMS
Of course, not everything is so smooth. Coworking is not a magic wand, and in order to get the result, you still have to follow some rules. Specifically, with us it is obligatory changing shoes into slippers and taking out the garbage along with you. You will laugh, but it turned out that even such a trifle is a powerful dropout factor. In fact, a person who sees a bunch of shoes and slippers at the entrance, but walks indifferently in shoes, is unlikely to care about the desires of others in more serious situations ...
The most serious issue that constantly has to be addressed is the issue of relations. Roughly speaking, what is convenient for one is far from always convenient for another; and if it’s not so important in work, in everyday life people will not get along so easily. Every hidden discontent, every little thing is a potential source of conflict. But conflicts, as you yourself understand, should not be allowed in principle. It’s bad for karma, you know.
That is, in summary: managing a coworking community is pure psychology. If someone still believes that to open a coworking office you just need to find a room and equip it ... he is right :) But for the EXISTENCE of the office this is clearly not enough.
I’ll keep silent about other problems. For a year and a half, there were a lot of inconsistencies, of course. But a business man cannot consider himself as such if the slightest jamb knocks him out of a rut; therefore, all these inconsistencies were either decided by the guys themselves (for which they have unlimited thanks), or simply went unnoticed.
Yes, you yourself understand. Is “painting the ceiling” really such a problem, compared to finding a customer for a new product?
FAILURES
To failures, unfortunately, I attribute most of the projects that have ever been started inside the Tower. Perhaps the guys will not agree with me, but IMHO, a successful project is a project that generates income; everything else that he brings has only intrinsic value. And of the 7 projects that we are conducting, at least only two generate income.
Now in more detail.
1. Biometric access control
system Idea: security and access control system based on fingerprints
USP: proprietary patented device and scalable software architecture.
Problem: the investor interrupted the financing due to the crisis, and the development of the project without the purchase of raw materials for the pilot batch is impossible.
Result: the project is frozen.
2. Interface for the Internet provider.
Idea: a service management system for the Internet provider.
USP: a modular architecture that combines many services in one application (office, chat, iptv, telephony, forex, ...).
Problem: Launch at the pilot site is delayed by a lot of indistinct approvals, and without testing sales cannot be started.
Result: the project hung in the air.
3. Water filtration systems.
Idea: vending machines for water purification.
USP: water is 3 times cheaper than purchased and better in quality.
Problem: In connection with the crisis, the management of higher educational institutions raised the rent, but this cannot be included in the price of the product.
Result: The zero exit point is shifted by 6-8 months.
4. Prefabricated wall panels
Idea: typical wall panels-constructor
UTP: the ability to form arbitrary contours and easily increase / decrease the area of warehouse / production / office premises.
Problem: the author of the idea has lost interest in the project.
Bottom line: the project hung in the air.
5. Projection advertising on mobile media
Idea: projection advertising in Yekaterinburg. Walls, billboards, billboards, party services.
USP: animated advertising, portable technology, a wide selection of areas.
Problem: when searching for customers, it turned out that the team did not have a person who could do this.
Bottom line: the project hung in the air.
About profitable projects - I’m silent. Sorry :)
What conclusions can be drawn from here?
1. Obvious: there is still a fear of the crisis, and it impedes the work.
2. Important: the ideologist and the project team are KEY figures, without which nothing will work.
3. Summarizing: coworking alone does not eliminate the probability of failure, but greatly mitigates the consequences.
PROSPECTS
Despite this, the prospects are great.
Firstly, 2 out of 7 projects are still the result. Many, excuse me, do not even have this: as a rule, no business incubator can boast of good statistics. And the well-known percentage (20% of investments will work to zero, 10% will fire, the remaining 70% will die) - we seem to be ahead of the curve.
Secondly, nothing has ended. Most of the projects hung, thank God, not because the team let down or the idea turned out to be full of holes, but because the crisis killed investors' desire to invest, buyers - to spend, and all without exception - to act. Everything moves very, VERY slowly. I think you noticed this too.
This is a task whose solution costs 18 months of live practice. Does coworking ideology help collaborate on startups? Does a freelancer or entrepreneur make fewer mistakes when asking for the opinion of a collective mind? Does the project develop more successfully if it comes to a coworking club, and not to the parents' garage or a budget technology park?
IMHO, yes. There's something about it.
***
Do you have a different opinion? Have questions? Please comment.
Sincerely, Alexey Glazkov.
Earlier I published on Habré my experience and feelings “6 months later” . Then a crisis began in Russia, in the “Tower” - a boom of the form “Let's start a business, it's time!”, And the memorable date “First Year” somehow passed by. But now, at the end of September, Russian coworking is 1.5 years old. I wonder what has changed during this time.
Disclaimer: not wanting to distort information, I will limit myself only to our experience - “Towers”, “INCA” and “Polygon”. Other coworking clubs most likely have a different story.
POPULATION
The guys who have passed through us over the past year and a half — around 60-70 people somewhere — gave a completely accurate portrait of the target audience of the coworking. In professional terms, these are strong technicians, people of creative near-technical professions, as well as small or novice entrepreneurs in the service sector or b2c. In personal terms, these are young people with a psychological age of 20-30 years (biological age may differ; we have people in their 40s, but it’s very easy to communicate and work with them). These are mostly guys or couples.
Now 15 people live in the Tower: the JetDog web development team (3 people), the 66bit freelancers team (2 people out of ... 4?), The ALW biometrics development team (3 people), the business project laboratory “INC” (4 people) and several participants of the Polygon, which appear periodically. About 6-7 business projects are associated with the guys, about the problems and successes of which I will discuss below. They left the “Tower”, but another 5 people hold contact - also mainly IT and business. As you can see, the average portrait of a coworker (VERY simplified) is an IT entrepreneur.
Separately, it should be said about designers, lawyers, journalists, salespeople and other professions who also potentially have a craving for “co-work”. No guys. Does not work. Perhaps these are exclusively problems of the Tower, but somehow it turned out that people of the humanitarian mindset (and here I include journalists and lawyers - I allow myself such liberties) do not get along at all in the team. They are all the same loners. And techies, entrepreneurs and economists get along well. Perhaps, because for them, business is objectively more important than personal desires and emotions.
IMHO, of course. I do not want to offend anyone - just explaining the situation, as I see it.
ATMOSPHERE
I think everything is clear here since the time of the NYTimes article and the debate of that time. The atmosphere is our everything. This is the soul and essence of coworking. Without an atmosphere of community and support - which, globally, depends solely on the goals of the organizer - coworking becomes a common sublease of space, at best. Or degenerates into a commercial organization.
I constantly monitor in RuNet everything related to the word “coworking” and have observed a sufficient number of various perversions. Some pathos pocket offices created more for the self-satisfaction of the organizer than for teamwork. Realtor agencies that try to call “coworking” their awkward attempts at foiling illiquid premises. Small companies willing to give up their seats for the time being in the expectation of lower costs. Novice entrepreneurs who, from ignorance or hopelessness, are trying to squeeze a penny from any come up idea. Look around: which of them survived?
You have to love your people. They came to you in anticipation of support and cooperation, and not to give you money. They are not somewhere far away - here they are, next to you. Is it really so difficult to try to build your life, your business, your dreams with the help of those who are with you, and not at the expense of them?
By the way, this is the main thing that coworking turned out to be useful for me: this philosophy (if I may say so) AUTOMATICALLY filters out those who do not agree or are not ready to invest in business. I know: many of us are looking for some kind of magical thing in the world that would be able to protect from scammers, divorce, theft, trash and just unpleasant people. Well, good news, everyone: it looks like there is such a thing :)
After a year and a half, we have changed quite a bit. The atmosphere is still democratic and businesslike. Communication in the club is still on “you”. And each of the guys, I think, during this time at least once tried to work with the others, identifying the area of opportunity: it is not by chance that we have formed a business incubator here :)
The only thing that became more noticeable during the crisis was that people became more severe and collected . Today, few allow themselves to “spit on the ceiling” or spend several hours discussing another “brilliant” idea. However, since I myself am not a fan of empty talk, I even like it. In the end, they didn’t gather to rest - it’s up to the business
Do not think, the “Tower” is not office slavery :) If you want to sleep, choose any sofa. If you want to receive a feedback on some problem - freely throw a cry, no one will refuse to help. And even in the refrigerator you can dig if you chew a hunt.
PROBLEMS
Of course, not everything is so smooth. Coworking is not a magic wand, and in order to get the result, you still have to follow some rules. Specifically, with us it is obligatory changing shoes into slippers and taking out the garbage along with you. You will laugh, but it turned out that even such a trifle is a powerful dropout factor. In fact, a person who sees a bunch of shoes and slippers at the entrance, but walks indifferently in shoes, is unlikely to care about the desires of others in more serious situations ...
The most serious issue that constantly has to be addressed is the issue of relations. Roughly speaking, what is convenient for one is far from always convenient for another; and if it’s not so important in work, in everyday life people will not get along so easily. Every hidden discontent, every little thing is a potential source of conflict. But conflicts, as you yourself understand, should not be allowed in principle. It’s bad for karma, you know.
That is, in summary: managing a coworking community is pure psychology. If someone still believes that to open a coworking office you just need to find a room and equip it ... he is right :) But for the EXISTENCE of the office this is clearly not enough.
I’ll keep silent about other problems. For a year and a half, there were a lot of inconsistencies, of course. But a business man cannot consider himself as such if the slightest jamb knocks him out of a rut; therefore, all these inconsistencies were either decided by the guys themselves (for which they have unlimited thanks), or simply went unnoticed.
Yes, you yourself understand. Is “painting the ceiling” really such a problem, compared to finding a customer for a new product?
FAILURES
To failures, unfortunately, I attribute most of the projects that have ever been started inside the Tower. Perhaps the guys will not agree with me, but IMHO, a successful project is a project that generates income; everything else that he brings has only intrinsic value. And of the 7 projects that we are conducting, at least only two generate income.
Now in more detail.
1. Biometric access control
system Idea: security and access control system based on fingerprints
USP: proprietary patented device and scalable software architecture.
Problem: the investor interrupted the financing due to the crisis, and the development of the project without the purchase of raw materials for the pilot batch is impossible.
Result: the project is frozen.
2. Interface for the Internet provider.
Idea: a service management system for the Internet provider.
USP: a modular architecture that combines many services in one application (office, chat, iptv, telephony, forex, ...).
Problem: Launch at the pilot site is delayed by a lot of indistinct approvals, and without testing sales cannot be started.
Result: the project hung in the air.
3. Water filtration systems.
Idea: vending machines for water purification.
USP: water is 3 times cheaper than purchased and better in quality.
Problem: In connection with the crisis, the management of higher educational institutions raised the rent, but this cannot be included in the price of the product.
Result: The zero exit point is shifted by 6-8 months.
4. Prefabricated wall panels
Idea: typical wall panels-constructor
UTP: the ability to form arbitrary contours and easily increase / decrease the area of warehouse / production / office premises.
Problem: the author of the idea has lost interest in the project.
Bottom line: the project hung in the air.
5. Projection advertising on mobile media
Idea: projection advertising in Yekaterinburg. Walls, billboards, billboards, party services.
USP: animated advertising, portable technology, a wide selection of areas.
Problem: when searching for customers, it turned out that the team did not have a person who could do this.
Bottom line: the project hung in the air.
About profitable projects - I’m silent. Sorry :)
What conclusions can be drawn from here?
1. Obvious: there is still a fear of the crisis, and it impedes the work.
2. Important: the ideologist and the project team are KEY figures, without which nothing will work.
3. Summarizing: coworking alone does not eliminate the probability of failure, but greatly mitigates the consequences.
PROSPECTS
Despite this, the prospects are great.
Firstly, 2 out of 7 projects are still the result. Many, excuse me, do not even have this: as a rule, no business incubator can boast of good statistics. And the well-known percentage (20% of investments will work to zero, 10% will fire, the remaining 70% will die) - we seem to be ahead of the curve.
Secondly, nothing has ended. Most of the projects hung, thank God, not because the team let down or the idea turned out to be full of holes, but because the crisis killed investors' desire to invest, buyers - to spend, and all without exception - to act. Everything moves very, VERY slowly. I think you noticed this too.
This is a task whose solution costs 18 months of live practice. Does coworking ideology help collaborate on startups? Does a freelancer or entrepreneur make fewer mistakes when asking for the opinion of a collective mind? Does the project develop more successfully if it comes to a coworking club, and not to the parents' garage or a budget technology park?
IMHO, yes. There's something about it.
***
Do you have a different opinion? Have questions? Please comment.
Sincerely, Alexey Glazkov.