This weekend I attended what is said to be the first European conference on Coworking, Coworking Europe 2010 in Brussels. There were presentations from the official institutional side as well as from practitioners and pioneers in the field of future of work. The EU survey Flash Euro Parameter 2010 stated that the number one reason for Europeans to become an entrepreneur is independence. Next comes flexibility in time and place and money only on 3rd place. But, – in our globalized economy it’s a problem that only 34% of Europeans wants to become self-employed (compared to 55% in US). Co- and interdisciplinary thinking and supporting a-typical work here said to be an important tool to meet pressing challenges.

FLEXICURITY = flexibility + security
The participants were mostly and mainly entrepreneurs and people from the creative class. We are familiar to the advantages of coworking, all ready thinking, acting and working across sectors and breaking traditional conventions of work life. While coworking take many forms and styles and means different things to different coworkers, words as openness, sustainability, community, flexibility and security can describe the coworking communities arising around the globe. (p.t ca 240 in the United States and 130 in Europe). The economic crisis, social instability and the over sized big corporate world where individuals are degenerated to pieces in a production machine has led to a rise of alternative work forms and patterns among pioneers. In earlier times people valued products and services. Then it was information. Now is it the link, the relationship we value and need. Social capital. And this is the strength of the coworking scene. Big corporations are off course all ready picking up on this trend experimenting with established work norms. Lets see how we can utilize the best of two worlds. I think we will se a whole lot of new types of organizations in the time to come. There will be hybrid organisations serving more needs and allowing for individual adjustments. For those daring to try I think the future of work gives amazing opportunities.