[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-06 Thread Patrick Tanguay

Thanks for that post Alex, we're at that stage ourselves now. We have
an intern for a couple of months this summer who's taking some of the
admin too and I don't think we'll be able to go back to doing
everything so your experience is good to have as reference for our own
decisions.


Patrick
http://station-c.com
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[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-06 Thread Rhyeal

With a business plan, I used the SCORE website.

http://www.score.org/template_gallery.html - Plenty of templates here
to chose from.

On Aug 3, 9:25 pm, portlandhead pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:
 Hi All,

 I'm in the process of setting up a coworking space in Portland,
 Maine.  I'm trying to write up a business plan and cash flow.  If
 anyone has any templates, resources or words of advice, that would be
 greatly appreciated.

 Cheers,

 - Rob
 
 #RobLandry {
 title:  Principal;
 company: Pemaquid Communications, LLC;
 city: Portland, Maine;
 ph: 207.221.2520;
 url:www.pemaquid.com;
 twitter: portlandhead, pemaquid;

 }

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[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-05 Thread jasontgoodr...@gmail.com

Hi! I'm in the same dilemma—looking for cashflow templates. Here's a
good example of a biz plan with cashflow forecasts. It's in Australian
dollars, however.

http://www.urbanworkspaces.com/wp/business-model/

You could contact the owner to see if he would make the template
available to everyone in an .xls format or similar.

Good luck!


On Aug 4, 8:37 pm, django_jedi pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:
 Thanks Cadu.  I checked out the docs last night.  Very helpful.  Still
 looking for cash flow templates, though, if anyone is willing to
 share.

 - R

 On Aug 4, 12:32 pm, Cadu de Castro Alves cadudecastroal...@gmail.com
 wrote:

  Hi Rob,

  There is a place in the group where people share 
  files:http://groups.google.com/group/coworking/files?hl=en

  Enjoy!

  []'s,

  Cadu de Castro Alves
  Desenvolvedor Web
  Blue Factory Solutions
  Celular: (21) 7841-5020 / ID: 23*34315

  On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 11:25 PM, portlandhead pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:

   Hi All,

   I'm in the process of setting up a coworking space in Portland,
   Maine.  I'm trying to write up a business plan and cash flow.  If
   anyone has any templates, resources or words of advice, that would be
   greatly appreciated.

   Cheers,

   - Rob
   
   #RobLandry {
   title:  Principal;
   company: Pemaquid Communications, LLC;
   city: Portland, Maine;
   ph: 207.221.2520;
   url:www.pemaquid.com;
   twitter: portlandhead, pemaquid;
   }
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[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-05 Thread JeninVT

Just uploaded my cash flow statement. It's a work in progress.

One issue that I'm challenged with, that you'll see on my cash flow,
is that I can't
be at the space all of the time once it's up and running.  I own an IT
consulting
company, which requires me to be at client locs 2-3 days a week.
How does everyone else handle staffing/manning the loc when you're not
there?
Options I've considered:
1.  partner with someone (I have someone that i'm working with and we
may be able to split
the hours to cover the space)
2.  hire someone (although I'm not sure they will give the place the
right feel)
3.  ask one of the community members to cover in exchange for reduced
fees

Other ideas?

Jen.

On Aug 5, 10:41 am, jasontgoodr...@gmail.com
jasontgoodr...@gmail.com wrote:
 Hi! I'm in the same dilemma—looking for cashflow templates. Here's a
 good example of a biz plan with cashflow forecasts. It's in Australian
 dollars, however.

 http://www.urbanworkspaces.com/wp/business-model/

 You could contact the owner to see if he would make the template
 available to everyone in an .xls format or similar.

 Good luck!

 On Aug 4, 8:37 pm, django_jedi pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:

  Thanks Cadu.  I checked out the docs last night.  Very helpful.  Still
  looking for cash flow templates, though, if anyone is willing to
  share.

  - R

  On Aug 4, 12:32 pm, Cadu de Castro Alves cadudecastroal...@gmail.com
  wrote:

   Hi Rob,

   There is a place in the group where people share 
   files:http://groups.google.com/group/coworking/files?hl=en

   Enjoy!

   []'s,

   Cadu de Castro Alves
   Desenvolvedor Web
   Blue Factory Solutions
   Celular: (21) 7841-5020 / ID: 23*34315

   On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 11:25 PM, portlandhead pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:

Hi All,

I'm in the process of setting up a coworking space in Portland,
Maine.  I'm trying to write up a business plan and cash flow.  If
anyone has any templates, resources or words of advice, that would be
greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

- Rob

#RobLandry {
title:  Principal;
company: Pemaquid Communications, LLC;
city: Portland, Maine;
ph: 207.221.2520;
url:www.pemaquid.com;
twitter: portlandhead, pemaquid;
}
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[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-05 Thread Jerome Chang

I think you should hire someone to run the space or monitor it at  
least on an admin level.  At some point, you'll get sick, injured, or  
on vacation, let alone your regular on-site client visits.  For  
liability reasons, I wouldn't hand over supervision to a customer  
unless you're set up as a co-op or something.


Jerome
__
BLANKSPACES
work wide open

www.blankspaces.com
5405 Wilshire Blvd (2 blocks west of La Brea)
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323.330.9505 (office)

On Aug 5, 2009, at 2:47 PM, JeninVT wrote:


 Just uploaded my cash flow statement. It's a work in progress.

 One issue that I'm challenged with, that you'll see on my cash flow,
 is that I can't
 be at the space all of the time once it's up and running.  I own an IT
 consulting
 company, which requires me to be at client locs 2-3 days a week.
 How does everyone else handle staffing/manning the loc when you're not
 there?
 Options I've considered:
 1.  partner with someone (I have someone that i'm working with and we
 may be able to split
 the hours to cover the space)
 2.  hire someone (although I'm not sure they will give the place the
 right feel)
 3.  ask one of the community members to cover in exchange for reduced
 fees

 Other ideas?

 Jen.

 On Aug 5, 10:41 am, jasontgoodr...@gmail.com
 jasontgoodr...@gmail.com wrote:
 Hi! I'm in the same dilemma—looking for cashflow templates. Here's a
 good example of a biz plan with cashflow forecasts. It's in  
 Australian
 dollars, however.

 http://www.urbanworkspaces.com/wp/business-model/

 You could contact the owner to see if he would make the template
 available to everyone in an .xls format or similar.

 Good luck!

 On Aug 4, 8:37 pm, django_jedi pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:

 Thanks Cadu.  I checked out the docs last night.  Very helpful.   
 Still
 looking for cash flow templates, though, if anyone is willing to
 share.

 - R

 On Aug 4, 12:32 pm, Cadu de Castro Alves  
 cadudecastroal...@gmail.com
 wrote:

 Hi Rob,

 There is a place in the group where people share 
 files:http://groups.google.com/group/coworking/files?hl=en

 Enjoy!

 []'s,

 Cadu de Castro Alves
 Desenvolvedor Web
 Blue Factory Solutions
 Celular: (21) 7841-5020 / ID: 23*34315

 On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 11:25 PM, portlandhead  
 pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:

 Hi All,

 I'm in the process of setting up a coworking space in Portland,
 Maine.  I'm trying to write up a business plan and cash flow.  If
 anyone has any templates, resources or words of advice, that  
 would be
 greatly appreciated.

 Cheers,

 - Rob
 
 #RobLandry {
 title:  Principal;
 company: Pemaquid Communications, LLC;
 city: Portland, Maine;
 ph: 207.221.2520;
 url:www.pemaquid.com;
 twitter: portlandhead, pemaquid;
 }
 


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[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-05 Thread Anca Mosoiu
I'm working on that same question myself...  I hired someone as an admin,
who is motivated and dedicated enough to keep the place running and also
help me with the consulting side of the business.
I'm also working with a possible partner.

The space has to be able to run without the owner there.  If I was running
a retail shop, or a hote, I would hire a clerk - so why not for a co-working
space?  However, this has an influence on cash flow and profitability, so,
it takes some planning to be able to do it.

Cheers,

Anca.

On Wed, Aug 5, 2009 at 2:53 PM, Jerome Chang jer...@blankspaces.com wrote:


 I think you should hire someone to run the space or monitor it at
 least on an admin level.  At some point, you'll get sick, injured, or
 on vacation, let alone your regular on-site client visits.  For
 liability reasons, I wouldn't hand over supervision to a customer
 unless you're set up as a co-op or something.


 Jerome
 __
 BLANKSPACES
 work wide open

 www.blankspaces.com
 5405 Wilshire Blvd (2 blocks west of La Brea)
 Los Angeles, CA 90036
 323.330.9505 (office)

 On Aug 5, 2009, at 2:47 PM, JeninVT wrote:

 
  Just uploaded my cash flow statement. It's a work in progress.
 
  One issue that I'm challenged with, that you'll see on my cash flow,
  is that I can't
  be at the space all of the time once it's up and running.  I own an IT
  consulting
  company, which requires me to be at client locs 2-3 days a week.
  How does everyone else handle staffing/manning the loc when you're not
  there?
  Options I've considered:
  1.  partner with someone (I have someone that i'm working with and we
  may be able to split
  the hours to cover the space)
  2.  hire someone (although I'm not sure they will give the place the
  right feel)
  3.  ask one of the community members to cover in exchange for reduced
  fees
 
  Other ideas?
 
  Jen.
 
  On Aug 5, 10:41 am, jasontgoodr...@gmail.com
  jasontgoodr...@gmail.com wrote:
  Hi! I'm in the same dilemma—looking for cashflow templates. Here's a
  good example of a biz plan with cashflow forecasts. It's in
  Australian
  dollars, however.
 
  http://www.urbanworkspaces.com/wp/business-model/
 
  You could contact the owner to see if he would make the template
  available to everyone in an .xls format or similar.
 
  Good luck!
 
  On Aug 4, 8:37 pm, django_jedi pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:
 
  Thanks Cadu.  I checked out the docs last night.  Very helpful.
  Still
  looking for cash flow templates, though, if anyone is willing to
  share.
 
  - R
 
  On Aug 4, 12:32 pm, Cadu de Castro Alves
  cadudecastroal...@gmail.com
  wrote:
 
  Hi Rob,
 
  There is a place in the group where people share files:
 http://groups.google.com/group/coworking/files?hl=en
 
  Enjoy!
 
  []'s,
 
  Cadu de Castro Alves
  Desenvolvedor Web
  Blue Factory Solutions
  Celular: (21) 7841-5020 / ID: 23*34315
 
  On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 11:25 PM, portlandhead
  pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:
 
  Hi All,
 
  I'm in the process of setting up a coworking space in Portland,
  Maine.  I'm trying to write up a business plan and cash flow.  If
  anyone has any templates, resources or words of advice, that
  would be
  greatly appreciated.
 
  Cheers,
 
  - Rob
  
  #RobLandry {
  title:  Principal;
  company: Pemaquid Communications, LLC;
  city: Portland, Maine;
  ph: 207.221.2520;
  url:www.pemaquid.com;
  twitter: portlandhead, pemaquid;
  }
  


 


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[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-05 Thread Alex Hillman
Fair warning, this gets a little wordy, but I wanted to talk about the issue
of hiring a space manager from our experience in the last 2 years.

We took a holistic approach to bringing on someone to help me run IndyHall
day to day.

Dana, our office manager, came on a year ago as an assistant to me, with the
job of taking administrative tasks away from me as she saw fit, and finding
ways to improve things around the office. At the same time, rather than
employ her, we brought her on as a contractor.

This was important for two reasons:
1) it helped us keep our overhead low
2) it gave us the opportunity to cultivate another successful independent as
a part of the IndyHall community

Dana knew that IndyHall could only afford to pay her a certain amount per
month. Having a desk to work from is an obvious perk, but a perk
nonetheless.

Most importantly, the rest of the time, she needed to find other things to
do to make ends meet. Most of you haven't met her, but Dana is exactly who
you'd want to be greeting you when walking into ...well, anywhere. She's
smart, friendly, outgoing. She's the perfect person to have at the other end
of the phone lines, email, or on the other side of the desk.

Rather than be cornered into an admin job, she also took advantage of the
fact that those skills also make her an awesome candidate for doing support
work. She took on the role of doing email support for one of the products
born at IndyHall, RipIt. Since then, she's grown that role to supporting 4
products, which is now consuming the majority of her time and she's looking
at ways to grow and scale that business of providing affordable customer
support to indie products.

What does that mean for IndyHall, now that she's dedicating more time to her
own ventures?

Well, for one, it means we succeeded in cultivating a successful independent
(some would say that I've ruined her for any real job. i consider that a
success as well). Not only that, but Dana is single handedly responsible for
a sizable chunk of our growth in the last year, by not just being a desk
admin but someone who makes it part of her job to make sure people in the
office are happy. Things like cupcake thursdays. And that awesome mural many
of you have seen in pictures of our old space, was painted by her.

Furthermore, she helped me get my life back, because I was dedicating all of
my personal time to running IndyHall AND my own consulting business. Now, I
focus on vision and strategy and leadership for IndyHall, and less on the
management of it.

But she's growing this support business. So now what?

With her able to dedicate 20% or less of her time to the office, our admin
needs an admin.

And the cycle repeats itself. We're about to start looking for an intern to
repeat the cycle we've gone through with Dana in the last year. We're
splitting Dana's role into two, a general manager and an admin. The best
part? Dana figured this out on her own. She split up the role like this:

Indy Hall Administrator -  8:30a - 5:00p Monday - Friday

Responsibilities would include:

- opening the space every morning
- being available at the front during the day to answer any questions
- give tours of the space
- in charge of reservations
- keep daily attendance records
- daily invoicing for drop ins


Indy Hall General Manager-  5-10 hours a week

- monthly invoices
- membership management
- planning events (show and tell, 2 hr. workshops, etc)
- contact form emails
- general management of things that need to be done / improvements to IH
- cupcakes on Thursdays ;)

The plan would be for the admin to report to her, and in time, have the
admin become the GM as Dana continues to grow her support business.

And then the cycle continues.

Geoff and I are really excited about this process, and think it's great for
the long term sustainability of the management of the space. It lets me
focus on the stuff I need to focus on, and it creates a constant cycle of
opportunity for new people to build their careers in creative management
roles.

Of course, if your cashflow allows it, you can just pay someone outright.
But we think this aligns more with the goals and values of coworking than
just hiring an employee. We truly wanted that person to be a part of the
community, rather than a service for the community.

Oh, and if you ever meet Dana at IndyHall, SXSW, or anywhere else...be sure
to say hi.

-Alex, IndyHall, Philadelphia


-- 
-
-- 
-
Alex Hillman
im always developing something
digital: a...@weknowhtml.com
helpful: www.unstick.me
visual: www.dangerouslyawesome.com
local: www.indyhall.org



On Wed, Aug 5, 2009 at 11:26 PM, Anca Mosoiu liminal.a...@gmail.com wrote:

 I'm working on that same question myself...  I hired someone as an admin,
 who is motivated and dedicated enough to keep the place running and also
 help me with the consulting side of the business.
 I'm also working with a possible partner.

 The space has to be able to run without the owner there.  If I was
 

[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-04 Thread Cadu de Castro Alves
Hi Rob,

There is a place in the group where people share files:
http://groups.google.com/group/coworking/files?hl=en

Enjoy!

[]'s,

Cadu de Castro Alves
Desenvolvedor Web
Blue Factory Solutions
Celular: (21) 7841-5020 / ID: 23*34315


On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 11:25 PM, portlandhead pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:


 Hi All,

 I'm in the process of setting up a coworking space in Portland,
 Maine.  I'm trying to write up a business plan and cash flow.  If
 anyone has any templates, resources or words of advice, that would be
 greatly appreciated.

 Cheers,

 - Rob
 
 #RobLandry {
 title:  Principal;
 company: Pemaquid Communications, LLC;
 city: Portland, Maine;
 ph: 207.221.2520;
 url: www.pemaquid.com;
 twitter: portlandhead, pemaquid;
 }

 


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[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-04 Thread WHERE MMM
My quick advice whould be to visit some sites and see what fits for your
community and your style of coworking.

You are welcome to come to WHERE: Meet, Mix, Mogul in Los Angeles and or
contact me if you would like to chat.

And, I think that all of us who have started our own sites would wish you
good luck!. I will add that it takes a lot of focus, vitamins and keep
plenty of caffeine on hand.

Best wishes, Danielle

www.wheremmm.com

On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 7:25 PM, portlandhead pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:


 Hi All,

 I'm in the process of setting up a coworking space in Portland,
 Maine.  I'm trying to write up a business plan and cash flow.  If
 anyone has any templates, resources or words of advice, that would be
 greatly appreciated.

 Cheers,

 - Rob
 
 #RobLandry {
 title:  Principal;
 company: Pemaquid Communications, LLC;
 city: Portland, Maine;
 ph: 207.221.2520;
 url: www.pemaquid.com;
 twitter: portlandhead, pemaquid;
 }

 


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[Coworking] Re: Coworking business planning

2009-08-04 Thread django_jedi

Thanks Cadu.  I checked out the docs last night.  Very helpful.  Still
looking for cash flow templates, though, if anyone is willing to
share.

- R

On Aug 4, 12:32 pm, Cadu de Castro Alves cadudecastroal...@gmail.com
wrote:
 Hi Rob,

 There is a place in the group where people share 
 files:http://groups.google.com/group/coworking/files?hl=en

 Enjoy!

 []'s,

 Cadu de Castro Alves
 Desenvolvedor Web
 Blue Factory Solutions
 Celular: (21) 7841-5020 / ID: 23*34315

 On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 11:25 PM, portlandhead pemaq...@gmail.com wrote:

  Hi All,

  I'm in the process of setting up a coworking space in Portland,
  Maine.  I'm trying to write up a business plan and cash flow.  If
  anyone has any templates, resources or words of advice, that would be
  greatly appreciated.

  Cheers,

  - Rob
  
  #RobLandry {
  title:  Principal;
  company: Pemaquid Communications, LLC;
  city: Portland, Maine;
  ph: 207.221.2520;
  url:www.pemaquid.com;
  twitter: portlandhead, pemaquid;
  }


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