Coworks spoke with operators and industry experts to surface the hiring practices, common pitfalls, and emerging opportunities shaping the coworking workforce.
RALEIGH, N.C. — As the coworking industry matures, operators are rethinking how they hire, onboard, and retain the people who run their spaces. Coworks, a coworking space management platform, gathered insights from three operators — Alora Daunt of The Pearl Works (California), Matt Irvin of Cocial (suburban Chicago), and Karen Tait of The Residence (England) — along with Sam Shea, founder of FLOC (Future Leaders of Coworking), to document what hiring looks like on the ground.
Operators prioritize personality over credentials
Across all three spaces, operators consistently hire for character first. Skills can be trained. Warmth and genuine care for people cannot.
“I hire for personality, as the skills can be taught, but sadly I can’t teach people how to smile.” — Karen Tait, The Residence
“You want people that believe in what you’re doing, are sociable, outgoing, people that want to get to know your members — just a bright, happy person that enjoys making people’s experiences the best they can be.” — Matt Irvin, Cocial
Process matters more than platform
Operators use a mix of LinkedIn, Indeed, and Instagram to source candidates — but where they find people matters less than how they evaluate them. Matt Irvin prefers in-person interviews over video calls. Alora Daunt runs a structured discovery call to understand a candidate’s working style before any formal interview.
“I feel like you just learn more about a person sitting across the table over a cup of coffee than you would in a Zoom call.” — Matt Irvin, Cocial
“I ask candidates: tell me about a working dynamic that worked really well for you — and one that really didn’t. Those two questions give me so much information.” — Alora Daunt, The Pearl Works
Cocial has also hired two event coordinators directly through member referrals, a signal of what strong community culture can generate.
“Through our own ecosystem and community, we found some great people. It’s a testament to the community.” — Matt Irvin, Cocial
Common misstep: the part-time shortcut
Operators often default to part-time roles out of budget caution. Alora Daunt cautions that this can backfire.
“I tried part-time, and it wasn’t until I shifted the role to full-time that I actually started getting aligned candidates who could genuinely pour into the community and the business.” — Alora Daunt, The Pearl Works
Job titles are overdue for an update
The “community manager” title has become a catch-all that often understates what the role actually demands. Alora Daunt retitled her hire “community operations manager” to better reflect the dual nature of the work.
“Community and operations manager encapsulates more of the role. This person is stewarding a community and holding a lot of back-end operations at the same time.” — Alora Daunt, The Pearl Works
Sam Shea, founder of FLOC, sees title inconsistency as part of a wider retention problem across the industry.
“Over the last eight years, I’ve seen a lot of people leave coworking not because they don’t love the community manager function, but they just don’t see potential for growth after the first step.” — Sam Shea, FLOC
FLOC is building what the industry is missing
FLOC — Future Leaders of Coworking — is a growing community focused on career development and visibility for early-to-mid career coworking professionals. Founded by Sam Shea, FLOC offers four quarterly virtual workshops, one annual in-person event, and a WhatsApp channel designed to be accessible without pulling operators away from their spaces.
Coworks CEO DeShawn Brown serves on the FLOC board. Coworks is also a returning sponsor of the GWA Community Manager Awards.
“A rising tide lifts all ships. What I’m trying to do is create a more sustainable industry and provide real growth opportunities for people who come in and want to stay in coworking.” — Sam Shea, FLOC
What good hiring looks like
Alora Daunt is currently managing The Pearl Works remotely while her hire Dana runs day-to-day operations in California. It is, by her account, better than she imagined.
“It’s even better than when I was running the space myself. It’s so cool to see how these seeds we planted are growing — with someone else stewarding the space.” — Alora Daunt, The Pearl Works
About Coworks
Coworks is a coworking space management platform built for independent operators. From member management and billing to access control and reporting, Coworks helps spaces run smarter. Learn more at coworkssoftware.com.
About FLOC — Future Leaders of Coworking
FLOC is a community for early-to-mid career coworking professionals, providing resources, connections, and growth opportunities for the people who run coworking spaces every day. Learn more at futureleadersofcoworking.com.
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