According to forecasts, within three years, freelancers, self-employed entrepreneurs and independent consultants will account for 40% of the labour force (Forbes). Designed to promote cooperation, coworking offices greatly help young people take the first steps in the world of work; they mostly choose this form of work because of the social capital and knowledge sharing it offers.
The first coworking offices were established due to new economic and social trends in the early 2000’s, and their number is still constantly growing all over the world. Coworking offices are the signs of a new and developing working culture: apparently, the workplace of the future won’t be the obligatory 8-to-5 kind that we know so well, but a flexible one, built on a community, sharing and social connections. This is something a teacher or a youth work professional should keep in mind when it comes to generation Z. In many cases, these coworking offices also serve as business incubators and support startup companies.
Coworking & Erasmus+
Funded by the Erasmus+ programme, the European Coworking Network project is a three-year strategic partnership consisting of seven organisations from five countries. The initiative seeks to boost the implementation of young people’s ideas about projects, products and services, motivate young entrepreneurs and increase initiative and creativity. The common work included research, the development of a training module and entrepreneurial workshops. Besides the training module, the partners also produced a study and a manual designed to provide guidance for would-be entrepreneurs. The study pointed out that 40% of the generation Z youths plan to launch their own projects in the future.
Become an Entrepreneur!
How can an app help people with disabilities to find employment, teenagers to enter the big wide world or parents on parental leave to learn languages? The young people participating in the Youth Challenge entrepreneurial workshop, organised in Budapest by the Hungarian project partner Loffice, brainstormed about similar projects. The participants did not only gain relevant knowledge, due to the mini master courses (from idea to startup, brand building, business planning), but could also challenge their business creativity. They also took part in a pitch competition, where they could challenge themselves in live situations trying to convince investors about their ideas. The most inspiring element was that they could work together with real, successful entrepreneurs, such as Kata Klementz, co-founder of Loffice. It was nice to see so many progressive ideas and so much enterprising spirit, since – according to the predictions – the future is theirs.
| Learn more about the project! http://eucoworknet.com/ |
Last modified: 12-03-2018
