Announcing Coworking Community Manager of the Year 2022

"You can have a marginal space and a great manager, and you'll be set. But you can't have a great space and a marginal manager. It just doesn't work."

That’s a sentiment William Edmundson, Executive Director of the Global Workspace Association, often shares. And it’s the reason the GWA holds annual awards, recognizing excellence among community managers.

"The manager makes the space,” he explained. That’s why the GWA opens the award for both the United States-based and international coworking spaces to nominate a manager. There isn’t a list of must-haves, complex certifications, or a series of challenges. Instead, the process is really about hearing from the people those managers serve.

“Everyone who is nominated has a video submitted, which includes interviews from their community members and their brand leaders.”

These videos truly demonstrate the daily impact a community manager has. Edmundson has seen dozens over the years, but is still moved each time. “Every time I see the videos, I think, ‘these people are loved!’ They do extraordinary things. They anticipate the needs of their members and truly prioritize the community.”

The GWA Advisory Board includes people from all over the industry. They go through the nominations and select three finalists. Then a much smaller panel interviews those finalists.

The domestic and international winners for 2022 will be announced live on the mainstage at The GWA FlexForward conference this month. As sponsors of the award, Coworks CEO DeShawn Brown will join Edmundson to highlight each of the nominees and, of course, recognize the year’s winners.

“We do what we do because of community managers,” Brown said. “They are the ones who use our management platform every day and help to make it what it is. Making their lives easier is our top priority.”

As of this publication, there are still tickets available and select discounted rooms.

Photo by Terren Hurst on Unsplash