Article by Megan Kogan (Human Resource Student @ FUA)
It has been over a year since I studied in Italy. As I am reminded of my time there by fellow students beginning their adventures, I keep thinking back to one place in particular: The Student Hotel (TSH), and how it is revolutionizing the idea of co-working space.
TSH has tackled bringing motivation and creativity into the workplace "The Collab", preventing burnout, and reducing employee turnover.
I first visited The Student Hotel with Florence University of the Arts (FUA) Human Resource Management professor Marco de la Pierre, while on a learning excursion. As soon as I stood in front of the enormous glass doors, I knew that this was no typical hotel; this was something extraordinary.
Walking in and being immersed in pink light and the opportunity to sit on swings was the first clue that this hotel would be memorable. Although the pink light and swings are amusing, this led me to wonder what purpose they really served.
As we entered, Marco explained to us that one of the biggest dilemmas that employers face is motivating their employees. Motivating employees is not simple by any means. Every person is motivated by various factors ranked by their priorities. There are differences in how to motivate employees by generations, genders, culture, personality types, and more; as an employer, it is your responsibility to make sure your biggest resource, your human resources, are being productive.
At The Student Hotel, they understand that, although people are vastly different, we all have an inner student who thrives on curiosity and knowledge. This is apparent in all that they offer from music rehearsal spaces to classroom style rental rooms.
TSH wants to bring out each person’s inquisitive nature in a fun and creative manner. In addition, to fostering an imaginative environment, TSH’s pink lights, rehearsal rooms, and more assist in reducing workplace tension and pressure, thus encouraging people to constantly be working towards their full potential. The Collab at TSH brings out the creativity, drive, and workplace pride that businesses need to stay competitive (Craig, 2019).
This helps each employee bring their full selves into the office every day.
Among other amenities, TSH has the added benefit of hosting students and travelers. This creates an atmosphere of exchange of ideas and thoughts which is a perfect breeding ground for helping prevent burnout, a widespread epidemic for many employers.
Employees who have acquired a negative association with their place of work for a significant amount of time tend to catch the bug that is Burnout. This leads to poor performance, bad health, emotional exhaustion and more (Scott, 2019).
In fostering people on different paths of life, The Collab (at TSH) allows the opportunity to take a break from work and interact with students and travelers living vastly different lives. These interactions help build connections and friends while also blurring the line between employees lives inside and outside of the workplace, thus creating a greater positive view of their workplace.
Lastly, another top challenge for managers that Collab at TSH helps with is turnover. In top industries such as tech and retail, companies face the problem of employees finding opportunities elsewhere. This can be detrimental to companies that cannot afford to constantly recruit and hire. In the fight for quality employees, business cannot afford to only provide competitive salaries. They need to feed into more of the values of their resource base, ranging from flexible hours, to increasing workplace autonomy, to training for higher positions (Agovino, 2019).
The Collab at Student Hotel, being open 24/7, allows for employees to delve into work at the hours they choose in a comfortable environment.
It is crucial to keep in mind that location will not solely solve the major human resource problems of motivation, creativity, burnout, and turnover- yet it is a factor that can greatly influence one's employees.
In providing a space that fosters learning and creativity, interchange of ideas, and allows for workplace flexibility, The Collab at Student Hotel is paving the way for the coworking spaces of the future.
Article by Megan Kogan (South Florida and FUA Student)
Megan Kogan: linkedin profile
Works Cited:
How To Motivate And Inspire Your Team To Achieve Better Results. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/williamcraig/2019/04/09/how-to-motivate-and-inspire-your-team-to-achieve-better-results/#5aa493d3c7b3
Scott, E. (2019, December 5). How to Watch for Signs of Burnout in Your Life. Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/stress-and-burnout-symptoms-and-causes-3144516
To Have and to Hold. Retrieved from https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/all-things-work/pages/to-have-and-to-hold.aspx