How do you choose the right technology solution for your coworking?
Technology is a catalyst for coworking spaces because it streamlines the functioning of processes and operations that consume valuable time in coworking spaces. It also provides a significantly improved user experience and facilitates interactions between members of the coworking space community.
Since a little over a decade ago, when we at HWL started developing coworking businesses, coworking tech tools have evolved a lot, providing a competitive advantage to companies by attracting and retaining talent, adapting to the unique needs of each person, and generating a remarkable impact on the work of each professional.
High-speed Internet, the implementation of smart access controls, and the facilitation of booking slots through specific portals and applications are some of the benefits of coworking tech tools in terms of convenience and efficiency. Choosing the right technology solution is vital to managing the space, the business and the community efficiently and intelligently. However, with so many applications and tools, figuring out where to start can take time. That’s why today we explain how to choose the best technology solution and what aspects of your business you need to consider to do so. We also provide you with this technology guide for coworking and coliving businesses, where you will find a list of the best management software and integrations on the market.
Identify your business needs
Every business is unique; we first must identify the company’s needs to find the best solution with the features and integrations that best fit our requirements and objectives.
Before choosing management software, we first need to identify the needs within the space, the business and the community; three main dimensions where we will implement the technology:
Facility
Building management to automate building processes: we are talking about access control, smart lockers, energy saving, security, etc.
Operations
Business management of operations to improve the performance and results of the company: this refers to operations such as finance, accounting or marketing, as well as the services we offer to the client (print management, room reservations, view management, etc.).
Community
Community management to improve user experience and community interactions: chats and other applications that connect members and facilitate communication, member directory, perks management, notifications and contacts between the management team and the community, etc.
Once you have identified your coworking company’s needs, you have to check which tools (software and integrations) offer you the solutions that best adapt to the objectives and requirements of your coworking.
Remember that in most cases, choosing the wrong software results from not correctly identifying your business needs and pain points; it can be damaging and costly.
Management software and integrations for intelligent coworking management
For intelligent management of the coworking space and the coworking business, it is necessary to have management software that acts as an intermediary for all the applications you will use; that is to say, a single tool centralises the management by integrating the other tools.
The choice of the tools and functionalities needed, as we have just explained, will depend on the needs of the business. The most essential in coworking are:
- IoT solutions: different providers contribute to efficient energy use and air conditioning.
- Access control: provide automatic control of entry and exit of users to and from the building or rooms.
- Booking system: allows members to easily book and manage their workspaces, enhancing the overall coworking experience.
- Wifi network/check-in and check-out: it is essential to have a high-speed internet connection and accessible and secure wifi. It is essential to safeguard the security of your users’ data. It also allows you to automatically check in when visitors or guests log on, making it easy to track who enters or leaves the building.
- Reporting and Big Data: Data analysis and reporting are of great importance to understanding your users’ behaviour when they use your services. They help you take a strategic approach to sales and member retention.
- Visitor management: having a system that efficiently manages the registration of visits and complies with the LOPD is relevant, especially for tracking and tracing COVID-19 or any other contagious disease.
- Community: Creating a community is undoubtedly better in situ, but technological tools help generate interactions between members.
- Payment platform: it is vital to facilitate payments to your members by credit card, bank transfer, and having an on-site card payment processor.
- Cloud-based print management systems that allow users to print from their mobile phones and save you the hassle of operational monitoring.
- Collaborative tools: project management platforms, communication and messaging applications, cloud-based tools for sharing and editing documents, virtual whiteboards, brainstorming tools and many others.
