Purpose

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the German coworking industry has grown rapidly as one of the fastest-growing coworking markets globally. The pandemic, however, has brought the industry to an abrupt halt. The purpose of this paper is, therefore, to explore the impact the pandemic has had so far on German coworking spaces.

Design/methodology/approach

Using an online questionnaire, quantitative data from 38 coworking space owners, operators and employees of a total of 77 spaces in Germany has been collected regarding their situation before, during and after the peak of the first wave of the pandemic from Spring until Summer 2020. The data has been analyzed using descriptive statistics.

Findings

The reported income losses significantly outweigh a decrease in costs of the spaces. Nevertheless, the member base seems rather unaffected, and coworking spaces are exploring adaptations to their businesses with a strong shift to the digital environment. Fear of re-imposed governmental restrictions is evident, as well as justified with a looming second infection wave.

Research limitations/implications

Due to the sample size, the data may lack generalizability. Therefore, recommendations for future research are provided.

Originality/value

Data on the impact of the pandemic on coworking spaces is scarce. This paper provides a first necessary overview for the industry as well as the academic field to allow for action to be taken.

中文翻译：

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Covid-19 对联合办公空间的影响：来自德国的证据

目的

在 Covid-19 大流行之前，德国联合办公行业发展迅速，成为全球增长最快的联合办公市场之一。然而，大流行使该行业突然停顿。因此，本文的目的是探讨迄今为止大流行对德国联合办公空间的影响。

设计/方法/方法

使用在线调查问卷，收集了德国总共 77 个共享办公空间的 38 位共享办公空间所有者、运营商和员工在 2020 年春季至夏季的第一波大流行高峰之前、期间和之后的情况的定量数据。数据已使用描述性统计进行分析。

发现

报告的收入损失大大超过了空间成本的下降。尽管如此，会员群似乎并未受到影响，联合办公空间正在探索如何适应其业务，并大力转向数字环境。对重新实施政府限制的恐惧是显而易见的，并且迫在眉睫的第二波感染是合理的。

研究限制/影响

由于样本量的原因，数据可能缺乏普遍性。因此，提出了对未来研究的建议。

原创性/价值

关于大流行对联合办公空间的影响的数据很少。本文首先为行业和学术领域提供了必要的概述，以便采取行动。