By Margaret Maccoll
Co-working spaces are popping up across Noosa as the pandemic has forever changed the way people work.
This is the first time in human history you can be living in Noosa and working for a Fortune 100 company, Peregian Beach Digital Hub director Chris Boden said.
The technology has enabled people to work remotely for years but only since people were forced to work from home due to COVID has it been tested and proven, he said.
The Digital Hub is a clear example of the changes happening worldwide in the working environment. Its diverse group of members are working for companies around the world including those listed in the top 100 and 500 in the US in jobs that were previously only available to people living in places like New York.
“If you have the right skills you can get jobs with these companies living in Noosa,” he said.
It’s a new socio-economic factor that will change things, he said.
“Mobility is the key impacter that is shaping the future of work and co-working spaces are a symptom of that mobility,” he said.
“COVID has exacerbated what was becoming obvious, that work could be done technically and people can be highly productive in remote settings.
“People can shift to where they want to live and take on jobs never available before.
“There were never offers of decent jobs in places like Noosa but now people can bring their work with them moving to Noosa is a different proposition.“
Not only are people bringing their high flying jobs to Noosa, they are gaining them without leaving town.
“People are applying and gaining jobs through video-conferencing. This situation would never have occurred pre-COVID but the pandemic has really forced this to occur and it’s becoming increasingly more acceptable,” Chris said.
Now the opportunity to work from home has been realised a lot of people are finding that there are aspects of work people miss in a home office and co-working spaces are filling that void.
Facilities such as fast wifi and printing are practical benefits of co-working spaces but it’s the human factor – HR, supportive management, aspirational colleagues, going to lunch with friends, that people crave, Chris said.
Parts of the corporate experience people are happy to leave behind include long commutes to the office in heavy traffic, unpleasant office politics or having to wear a uniform.
But it’s the social aspect of work and learning from colleagues that people want.
Chats at the water cooler, a shared lunch and the inspiration gained from discussion with people in a workplace are elements of work not available in a home office, Chris said.
And in any workplace, even in a large corporation, people are regularly working on different projects at neighbouring desks, which is little different from the situation in a co-working space.
“We’ve got people doing the best work without the management they had,” Chris said.
This new style of work space still has a few challenges to meet with practices such as video conferencing and phone calls not being conducive to working in an open office.
“It can be quite annoying to have people near you on a 45 minute conference call,” Chris said.
While the Peregian Beach Digital Hub is at capacity and has been for some time with a waiting list of people wanting to move in, more co-working spaces are permeating Noosa or growing in response to the increasing demand.
Junction 2 owner Carly Reeves said while co-working spaces had existed for some time and the industry had long claimed the rise of co-working was imminent she agreed it was really the pandemic that forced the hand of large organisations to fold it into their businesses.
Carly said the influx of professionals from Sydney and Melbourne to Noosa became obvious to her when the sea changers or tree changers came to Junction 2 looking for temporary work spaces while they searched for property to make their move permanent. Many of those have since sought permanent co-working spaces after making the move and realising they still needed a professional environment in which to work, she said.
Carly said she had seen a big increase in demand for professional workspaces with facilities such as video conferencing on the rise as it becomes the preferred way of communicating for remote workers.Aimee Sherriff of The Space Noosa has been inundated with interest from people working from home wanting to move to a co-working space.
The Noosaville work place offers work facilities including receptionist services and the human factor.
“It’s the opportunity to get out of the mundane working from home. There’s the social aspect, you can get more work down then you’re around creative people,” she said.
Aimee said having people with different skills in one place can also be helpful with people sharing their knowledge.
The Space Noosa has a full house of members, each with a dedicated desk who come and go as they choose and occasionally a transient worker will drop in for a day to use the services provided.
Aimee said the variety of co-working spaces appearing in Noosa was providing choice for people to find a place that best met their needs.
Some have more of a community feel and others are more corporate, she said.
