No pets, no events: The new normal at WeWork

Shared collaboration, reliable WiFi, gaming areas, networking opportunities — all these used to define co-working spaces for entrepreneurs in a pre-Covid-19 world.Karan Virwani, CEO, WeWork India, says much of this hasn’t changed; it’s just evolved to include social distancing norms.“Our community and how we interact with each other is at the core of our spaces, and even as we learn to embrace this new normal, that remains unchanged. [But] it will take some time before we get used to not having events, or common amenities, or not having our pets around,” he says.Accepting changesA temporary no-pets policy is one of the changes the company has instituted to keep employees and guests safe. In addition, they have also put on hold all internal and external events, discontinued common amenities like gaming areas, and restricted the use of elevators and escalators.“We also implemented business-hour restrictions at all our spaces. No visitors or delivery persons will be allowed to access the premises during this time,” Virwani, who’s himself based out of Bengaluru, says.“The urge to get back to some semblance of normality will be hard to resist, [but] it’s important to ensure that safety and security measures are implemented.”Day oneVirwani and Co., after spending two months working from home, resumed work from office in May. “The first day back felt different, [but] I also felt people were more careful. They had a definite sense of responsibility, and also maintained distancing,” Virwani adds.He adds that he missed the human connection and camaraderie in the time spent away from the office. “I missed spending time at my favourite spots, chatting with members, understanding their needs and feedback.Going back wasn’t a difficult decision, because I knew our operations team had worked hard during the lockdown to ensure we were up and running with all safety protocols in place even before we reopened, ” he adds.

from Economic Times https://ift.tt/3gj3NDL