Coworkify is one app to connect all co-working spaces

Imagine a world where all co-working spaces around the world are linked to a talent marketplace. That is the promise of Coworkify, an upcoming Facebook app from Japan which lets users find talent and like-minded people in co-working spaces outside of their own.

The team won the grand prize at Startup Weekend Kyoto 2011, and the founder, Kenshin Fujiwara, told SGE that they are actively partnering with co-working spaces globally. He’s also looking for beta testers to try the app, which is now still in development.

“Already, some space owners from Poland, Germany, Brazil, US, Korea, Australia and so on have agreed to join,” he said.

A major feature of the app is the talent marketplace, divided into “wills” and “wants”. It’s essentially an online classifieds.

Wills is a section for job seekers to publicize their skills and how much they are charging. Wants works the reverse way — allowing users to call for expertise.  Unclear at this point is whether there’s a notification feature to allow people to automatically receive inquiries.

Besides a jobs marketplace, the app would include other features like the ability to locate users in their co-working spaces, and tools for co-working space owners to manage their own members.

Co-working spaces is a global phenomena that has arisen as a result of changing work lifestyles. In Japan, for example, the massive tsunami that devastated the country in 2011 resulted in a shift of attitudes towards more work-life balance and flexible work arrangements.

Globally, this is happening too. With the increasingly ubiquity of smartphones, tablets, and cloud-based services, coupled with a greater desire for more flexible lifestyles, more workers now operate independently without being tied to a particular company.

The rise of these Internet entrepreneurs and freelancers has led to a demand for co-working spaces shared between many individuals, which eliminates the isolation they would otherwise face.

This phenomenon is also happening in Singapore. At last count, there are at least seven co-working spaces in the country, and probably more shared offices.

For more information, you can check out their Facebook Page, Twitter profile, or blog (which has an interesting series on co-working spaces around the world).

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