Management & Tourism
Cowork action in the Alpine region – new study shows high potential
Coworkation – the combination of coworking and vacation – is a sustainable new work concept for the economy of the entire Alpine region.
These data emerge from the first Alpine-wide study on the potential for coworking, which was conducted on behalf of the CoworkationALPS association. The respondents’ experiences to date with the combination of vacation and collaborative work are predominantly positive.
The most important results
- Exchange, inspiration and the combination of vacation and work are main motives for coworking
- 60% of the surveyed employees can imagine doing coworkation
- 90% of employees and 86% of companies would choose the Alpine region as a target destination for coworking
Coworkation and business travel
Throughout the Alpine region – especially in northern Italy – the awareness and willingness for coworkation is high. The main motives of working people are primarily exchange and inspiration, as well as breaking away from everyday life and an increase in motivation.
From a company perspective, various aspects are prerequisites for offering coworking: A suitable technical infrastructure on site with a reliable Internet connection, protection under labor law, and a clear agreement between employer and employees.
Companies are generally open to combining traditional business travel and MICE services with a coworking facility; more than 80 percent can imagine such a link.
Among the employees surveyed, the figure is between 78% and 83%, depending on the sector. In order to activate the full potential, more educational work is needed among employees, as well as among managers – especially with regard to the (labor) legal protection of coworkations.
About the study
The study is the first alpine-wide survey on coworkation potentials. It was conducted by the tourism marketing agency Saint Elmo’s and the European Tourism Institute (ETI) on behalf of the CoworkationALPS e.V. association. An online panel survey was conducted among the German-speaking population and German-speaking companies in the DACH region + Northern Italy between mid-November and early December 2021. 2,728 professionals whose work is not location-based were surveyed. This corresponds to about 92% of all professionals in the target group. 676 companies whose employees can work regardless of location were also surveyed. The aim of the study was to determine the work situation, the experience with coworking and coworkation and the potential for the Alpine region for this. In addition, the effectiveness for MICE offers was explored. Other partners of the study are the Standortagentur Tirol, Tirol Werbung, SMG Standortmarketing-Gesellschaft Landkreis Miesbach mbH, IDM Südtirol, Allgäu GmbH and Tourismus Oberbayern München e.V.
Tourism in the off-season
Coworkation offers not only variety in everyday working life and the integration of New Work, but also a perspective for rural regions. Vacant buildings can be used efficiently and tourism businesses can offer their premises in the off-season.
The CoworkationALPS association serves as a platform for networking providers, companies and employees.
“As an association, we want to communicate how coworking and coworking can be successfully implemented in the world of work and tourism and show that it also offers a possible solution to the vacancy issue in communities,” says Veronika Engel, chairwoman of CoworkationALPS.
“Tourism providers rival each other for a limited time budget per year. Coworkation is basically a ‘365-day thing’ – so the market potential arises mathematically alone.” Coworkationists feel a stronger sense of place and demand less perfection. They are more concerned with community, i.e. away from the quick consumption of leisure spaces to integrative forms of temporary coexistence,” adds Georg Gasteiger, owner of Mesnerhof-C in Steinberg in Tyrol and member of CoworkationALPS.
“Rural areas in particular, with the opportunity to spend time in nature, are in high demand. A coworkation thus brings benefits for all parties involved,” emphasize study authors Jurriën Dikken of the European Tourism Institute (ETI) and Verena Feyock of St. Elmo’s Tourism Marketing.
About CoworkationALPS
The CoworkationALPS association is a contact, expert, communication platform, consultant and mediator on the subject of coworking in the Alpine region. Members are tourism actors, hosts, regions, municipalities and associations. This Interreg project is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund in the project area Austria-Bavaria.
