Hot desking is the latest cool idea for savvy social enterprises

A hot desking service for the not-for-profit sector has been launched this month (May) by award-winning social enterprise CAN Mezzanine. First customers using the new service at its offices in East Road (London N1) were an international social enterprise consultant and a national volunteering charity. 

The new services were launched by CAN Mezzanine following a burgeoning number of enquiries from charities and social enterprises looking for affordable desk space in central London. CAN Mezzanine provides permanent office space exclusively for Third Sector organisations.

“We wanted to widen our services to support the Third Sector as a whole,” says CAN Chief Executive Andrew Croft. “We are aiming our hot desking service primarily at people working on temporary projects, start-up social entrepreneurs, consultants and anyone in the not-for-profit sector who need a London address without the cost of setting up their own office.”

Hot desking - where people hire a desk on a short-term ad hoc basis - isa growing trend for organisations that want extra temporary office space, to offer flexible working, or provide a cost-effective option for freelancers who need occasional office space. For only £20 a day organisations and individuals can rent a desk space at CAN Mezzanine’s East Road offices (London N1). Services include access to meeting rooms, a free third sector resource library, fully-serviced kitchens and post services, depending on the package.  CAN Mezzanine is also providing a “virtual office” facility for organisations and individuals who want a London postal address and telephone number.

Jonathan Bland (former Chief Executive of the Social Enterprise Coalition), who recently set up a new international consultancy called Social Business International, has just started using the virtual office service. He says: “Running an international business means that I do a lot of travelling, so I need to be able to connect with people easily and pick up messages. But being part of a community among other social enterprises and Third Sector organisations with shared values is a real benefit – it’s a good fit.”

V – The National Young Volunteers Service –  is the first organisation to use the hot desking service. Julie Orrey,  Schools Regional Manager, London, says: “The CAN Mezzanine offices are in a fantastic location, well organised and clean   –  a perfect temporary base for our regional office here in London. The range of services available and the flexibility to add additional people, plus access to meeting rooms, works for our changing needs. My team has also enjoyed networking with other organisations based in the building.”

Contrary to research* that has been carried out suggesting that hot desking makes workers feel isolated and hampers knowledge-sharing, CAN Chief Executive Andrew Croft anticipates that people taking advantage of CAN Mezzanine’s hot desking service  will find that sharing open plan office space with other charities provides excellent networking opportunities. Recent research of customers renting permanent office space in CAN Mezzanine’s three London buildings shows an unprecedented amount of collaboration between organisations, particularly those working in close proximity to each other.

*Research by the Institute of Work Psychology (Feb 2008).