In the last five years, how we work has virtually changed. Amid the many attempts to adapt to rapidly shifting work models, triggered by the pandemic, emerges the pertinent realization: the future is hybrid. According to a survey by International Workplace Group in 2022, sourced from 80 countries, 75% of workers think flexible working is the new normal.
Coworking- housing businesses of all sizes under one roof- champions the hybrid working model, by facilitating it’s clientele with flexible office spaces and timings, enabling them to work at their own convenience and as a result, boosting productivity. As hybrid working proliferates, various companies have started using coworking spaces to develop an evolved business strategy.
Coworking’s agile infrastructure and amenities are amongst the many reasons why enterprises such as Unifonic, Careem, Tintash, Starzplay, Jugnu and Gudangada chose Daftarkhwan as their starting point to expand in Pakistan. Despite having their own central office, Careem started at Daftarkhwan as a small tech team in an attempt to de-densify their office and has grown since, to a multiplicity of specialized teams such as Infrastructure, Engineering, Information Security and Careem Pay. This rapid growth was accommodated by Daftarkhwan’s flexible office spaces, providing Careem with the best of both worlds by delivering both, an access controlled dedicated space, perfectly customized to their needs, where they could focus and deliver impact, as well as a rich community they could share ideas with. “We don’t have to hassle with landlords or office managers”affirms Junaid Chaudhry, Senior Director of Engineering at Careem, “I don’t just consider Daftarkhwan a place where we host our teams. I also consider them a partner.”
With 7 expansive sites across 3 cities, Daftarkhwan provides a unique opportunity for companies to hire on the basis of talent, eliminating geographical limitations in recruitment. Reinforced by the short commutes owing to Daftarkhwan sites being situated in key locales, this allows businesses to strategically curate a skilled team that gels well with their work culture. Khuram Rahat, Senior Country Director at Unifonic “see’s Pakistan not only as a strategic market for doing business, but also as a hub of immense technical talent.” Both Careem and Unifonic have distributed teams, making use of Daftarkhwan sites in the Central and North regions in order to fully realize the potential for disruption.
However, flexible working models such as hybrid working do more than team allocation and resource optimization; they also allow for a subtle shift in work culture. According to Naima Ahmed, Legal Advisor for Punjab Resource Improvement and Digital Effectiveness (PRIDE), a World Bank project funded by the Government of Punjab, coworking effectively introduces new models of workspace dynamics that might be otherwise lagging in the public sector such as remote working, “It’s a two way reciprocity that you need to enable, learning from each other, so the positives may seep into your culture.” This reflectance of work culture is seen through Daftarkhwan’s diversity. PRIDE’s goal to increase accessibility of public service to women aligns with Daftarkhwan’s drive to greatly reduce and ultimately end gender disparity at the workplace, paving the way for a mutually appreciative work relationship.
Curating an inclusive and deeply entrepreneurial community, Daftarkhwan enables companies to feed off each other’s energy, invigorated and primed for disruption. “Our cultural wavelengths matched! This meant we were freed up from the stress of creating a cool and functional office space. As a result we could focus on becoming the best version of ourselves,” expresses Mannan Amin, Co-founder of Tintash, a custom software development company that has been with Daftarkhwan for 4 years. Starting off with only 12 people, Tintash has scaled to a 50+ strong satellite office at Daftarkhwan with teams such as HR, Business Development and Engineering.
Here to stay, flexible working models need to not just be encouraged but facilitated so businesses can grow in ways effective to this milieu of work.