If you’ve spent the bulk of the last two years working from home, you’ve probably turned your kitchen table into a makeshift office desk. You’re also likely aware of how productivity and efficiency can dip at any time. For all their negatives, traditional office settings gave the average employee a structure and place to focus on work and increase productivity. In the wake of companies closing offices or switching to hybrid working models, people are starting to feel the fatigue of using their homes simultaneously for work and the place to relax and debrief from work.
Coworking Spaces and private offices have entered the chat and, in 2022, are dominating the conversation. The options for coworking are plenty, with offices cropping up across the world to offer inclusive, community-based, cost-effective programs and memberships. If you’re new to coworking or don’t know where to start searching for a coworking office, look for these things as telltale signs that you’re choosing the right place.
The Type of Space
There are four types of coworking spaces that serve different professional communities.
Open workspaces: open to anyone in the community
Private workspaces: office or custom suites built for large teams, usually from the same company
Industry-specific: offices for individuals who share common interests, identities, or career paths
Venture/Incubators: workspaces that bring in newer, smaller companies to fund and give them needed support and resources.
Open workspaces like Ambition Center MKE are the most common and most popular because they allow for inclusivity at the highest rate and a meeting and exchange of truly diverse minds. However, when you’re searching for a coworking office to join, consider which of these would best suit your professional or entrepreneurial needs.
Is there a “Coworking Community?”
Fear not, the shuttering of traditional office settings hasn’t erased the concept of “work friends.” Coworking offices do more than offer a place for work and meetings. Ambition Center MKE is a hotspot for Milwaukee’s young professionals, entrepreneurs, and freelancers to gather and collaborate. With us, you have access to our space, but more importantly, access to the constantly revolving door of talented members adding value to the community through their work and connections.
The people that you work with can often make or break a career. When you join a coworking space that focuses on building a community amongst its members, you get work friends and coworkers that get you excited about “going to work.” When the projects get tough, or the work feels never-ending, your coworkers are a reminder of what makes going to work worth it.
Flexibility
A crucial discovery made during the massive shift to remote and hybrid work is that some employees and professionals don’t do their best work during the traditional workday. Some professionals don’t require eight hours to check off everything on their list. Remote work allows people to work when their productivity and creativity are highest. Many coworking offices are open during and outside regular working hours.
At Ambition Center MKE, dedicated desk members and those who rent private office space with us have 24/7 access to the building. If you’re a night owl who works best while the rest of the world is sleeping, you can still utilize our coworking space. Coworking offices help break the chains that confine you to a regular, eight-hour workday, forty-hour workweek.
Events
Building that community of collaborators and coworkers is easy when you have chances and opportunities to make those connections. Coworking spaces will frequently host and sponsor events for its members and others in the community to network. A good coworking office will have a regular schedule of events for networking, sharing information and resources, and giving members something fun to do.
At Ambition Center MKE, we have The Collaboration Corner. We highlight ambitious Milwaukee professionals by inviting them into our space to share their expertise and resources in a workshop or seminar. In addition, we’ve hosted Free Coworking Fridays to give potential members a chance to try our workspace free for a day. Other events allow members to come together for no other reason than to connect and enjoy the space in each other’s company.
How is the space used?
What kind of space do you need for work? The traditional office setting typically consisted of a bunch of cubicles packed together with coveted office spaces for those moving up the ladder into the upper echelons of the office hierarchy. On the other hand, coworking spaces are comprised of multi-use spaces. So, whether you just need a table where you can set up your laptop or require a private office to personalize and make yours, the coworking office you choose should be able to handle your spatial demands. Ambition Center MKE offers free, open space, dedicated desks, and private offices. Additionally, there are rooms for meetings and hosting workshops, and we have a multimedia room for creative entrepreneurs that need space for creating podcast or video content.
Are there any extra benefits?
In a regular office owned and operated by the company you work for, you don’t have to think about business expenses like utilities, internet, printing costs, or furniture that lends comfort and taste to the environment. The coworking space you choose should handle most, if not all, of these costs. Ambition Center MKE offers free printing services for its members, and we cover all utility costs and provide high-speed internet at no cost to you. You don’t need to bring chairs or desks; we’ve got you covered; and our lot is full of FREE parking spaces. If you need an address for your small business to keep your home address private, Ambition Center MKE offers virtual business addresses.
Coworking is here to stay. These communities are replacing the work norm and there are no shortages of offices to meet your coworking demands. If you’re looking for a coworking office to call home, consider what you need from that space and make sure it checks off these things to ensure you’re in a reliable, adequate space that supports your working needs. If you’re in Milwaukee, Ambition Center MKE Coworking Office might be the perfect spot to find coworking and community.
What is Ambition Center MKE?
Ambition Center MKE Coworking is the most diverse and inclusive, and northernmost private office and coworking space in Milwaukee. We are located at 530 E. Vienna Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53212. Our team would love to meet you on one of daily tours... book one today!