Advantages of working in a Coworking in Lisbon

A few days ago, Bruno Bobone, the president of the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shared the following reflexion on Linkedin, "A company's mission should be the creation of  wealth”. He claimed that, in this process, we can’t have "we" (workers) and «them» (employers). A company is, since its foundation, a place where all pull together and efforts are deployed to achieve common goals. That is the reason for its existence.

Where we read "workers” we can also read suppliers or partners. For a long time now, in mature and advanced markets, we have been talking and hearing about the "Customer centric" culture, and after it (although technically before it) the "Employee centric" culture. The "Partner centric" culture is now being practised.

If we, as consumers, wish that consumer brands (our suppliers) provide us with solutions that are more and more tailored to our needs, and once we are usually available to give our feedback in the hope that they can precisely present solutions, the companies should also develop this constructive culture which consists of giving feedback to its suppliers (who are now partners), so that they are motivated to present solutions to our customers.

What are the keys to complete this golden cycle successfully? Communication, openness to dialogue, power of participative observation, reading capacity, real interest in listening, and genuinely getting to know the concerns and wishes of all the stakeholders in this equation.

It is in this context that coworking is a particularly effective model. Either in particular or in general terms, as well as at the cultural development level focused on cooperation and communication.

In a country where well-defined hierarchy models are firmly established – where leadership is driven by the power of academic titles and grey suits –  coworking spaces and its associated services (such as virtual offices) have been experiencing substantial growth, feeding on the mold that emanates from that kind of business ecosystem which still persists.

In Lisbon, coworking spaces are now a fertile ground to accommodate the creative and entrepreneurial genius of so many young people who leave the Portuguese and International universities every year.

One visit to one of these coworking spaces is enough to realise that all we find there, is almost everyhtnig that is required to fulfill the Golden cycle: networking, workshops, openness to dialogue, sharing spirit, spontaneous discussions of new business ideas, test of new concepts, observation of consumption trends and working habits.

Everything we need is close at hand, right there.

To be in a coworking space in Lisbon today, and taking advantage of it, is to ensure that we are prepared for what will inevitably be the future.

Carlos Gonçalves, CEO Avila Spaces.