A Conversation With One Of This Year’s Most Innovative Companies: WeWork
Join Fast Company associate editor Sarah Kessler for a live Q&A with WeWork CEO Adam Neumann. The event will begin at 11:30 a.m. ET Thursday, March 12, but you can get your questions in now.
Adam Neumann, CEO of WeWork
Photo By: Lauren Kallen, courtesy of WeWork WeWork started as a single coworking space in 2010, and has since grown into a network of more than 20 locations in four countries.
Having raised its most recent round of funding at a staggering $5 billion valuation, the company plans to have about 60 locations by the end of the year.Adam Neumann, WeWork's CEO, says his company is not a real estate business, but a people business. Last year, the company built an internal app that connects members and began offering them discounts from partners on things as big as insurance and as small as lunch.
On Thursday, March 12 at 11:30 a.m. ET, join us for a live chat with Neumann and Fast Company's Sarah Kessler about how WeWork has managed to expand locations like a Starbucks while building community like a social network. You can get your questions in now by using the "make a comment" box below.
Be sure to check out Fast Company's post for WeWork on its Most Innovative Companies 2015 list.
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Hi, it's Sarah from Fast Company. I'm here with Adam Neumann, the CEO of WeWork. Thanks for joining us, Adam.
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Thank you, Sarah, for having me. I'm excited to chat with your readers -- hello, everyone.
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For those of you who don't know, WeWork is a network of coworking spaces that has been growing like crazy. It has 29 locations, and plans to expand to more than 50 by the end of the year.
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WeWork started at a time when coworking was becoming a buzzword. A lot of companies were starting around the idea. Why did WeWork become the one with the $5 billion valuation?
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Multiple reasons -- mainly because we're not a coworking space. We're building a community for creators that gives a holistic solution for all of your needs.
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Can you talk more about that distinction? What does WeWork have that a coworking space doesn't?
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We have 23,000 members who participate and communicate through our social network and physical live events on a daily and hourly basis. Not to mention access to healthcare, payment processing, and other services.
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When you're a member of a WeWork location, you're part of a bigger community. We're currently in 11 cities and four countries.
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Hi Sarah. Hi Adam. Nice to meet you. How can WeWork help me as a small business owner who doesn't live near one of your locations?
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Through WeWork Commons, which is a $45 monthly membership which gives you access to the community - as well as hourly and daily access to all physical locations and all of our services.
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Here is a link for people to check out:
Join WeWork Commons
WeWork CommonsJoin WeWork and get instant access to space, community and services to build and grow your business. -
Does that mean if I live in NY, I can pay $45 and work in the WeWork every day? Or is there some sort of limit to how often I can visit?
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If you want to use it more than 8 days a month you're better off buying the unlimited. If you want to use it more than 15 days a month and you want to use it at the same location, a dedicated desk or one person office is the better solution for you.
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Who are your members? Are they all people building apps?
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Our members are very diverse. Only 20% focus on pure technology plays, the rest are in every industry from nonprofits, to creatives, to professional services.
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We understand how difficult it is to start a business, or work for a startup. Our job is to help members do what they love it and try to make the rest as seamless as possible. It's a work in progress.
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You always say that you’re not a real estate company. But your business is also primarily collecting fees for using space. So maybe it's just a little bit of a real estate company?
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Would you argue WeWork is more of a technology company?
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Our business is about building community and an ecosystem for our members. One of their needs is physical space.
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I think every new company in the world today needs to also be a technology company.
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Technology allows us to grow beyond real estate and deliver a digital network to our members.
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Do you think that digital network can be as valuable as the space? Do you see an opportunity for a membership that doesn't include use of physical space?
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All forms of membership are valuable. Different members have different needs. We currently have over 1500 members who are starting their journey with us via WeWork Commons and don't access the physical locations at all.
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I just joined Commons... I think it's a good experience but curious what's next on the roadmap, specifically for the community. Also, is it likely that Google will open up its free work spaces in locations next to Wework? How will wework differentiate if they do? Finally, great work with WW so far, I think your app is pretty bad arse.
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Our focus on the roadmap is creating more opportunities for connections and allowing you to fulfill your business needs - whatever they may be. We just added a group feature that is very useful to many of our members.
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Regarding google, we're big fans. But building diverse communities is our core competency and is substantially more than free space. From my experience free spaces never create the same energy as the ones you subscribe to as a member.
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From my experience most people don't appreciate things that come for free. When you have to pay for something, you both expect higher standards of service and try to extract the most value, which in our case includes a higher level of participation in the community.
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Here's a silly question, if WW isn't about space and is about professional communities and connections instead, is LinkedIn the real competitor?
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It is about space and also the community which is why I don't think Linkedin is a direct competitor. That said, there is a lot of value that a person looking for a job or looking to hire someone can receive by participating in the WeWork community.