Africa is witnessing significant growth in flexible working as the demand for hybrid work rises.
SALM TEAM 
The office will always play a crucial role in corporate life. Headquarters have evolved to become hubs of creativity and connection, featuring intentional spaces and activities to maximise collaboration. At the same time, companies are increasingly empowering their teams to maintain productivity by working closer to home in workspaces located near where people actually live.
These permanent shifts provide incredible momentum for the International Workplace Group (IWG) business and the broader flexible workspace sector. IWG, the unrivalled leader in hybrid work solutions, has experienced its fastest growth in 35 years. With over 80 centres open across South Africa, IWG is set to launch an additional 10 new centres this year, including Somerset West, Knysna, and Hartbeespoort. With a further 10 to 15 new centres planned for 2026.
There are plans to open at least 45 centres in Africa by the end of 2025, with new locations in Morocco, Kenya, Nigeria, and Tunisia, effectively doubling their presence this year. The truth is that the office isn’t obsolete – it’s just relocated to more convenient locations, closer to where people live.
As technology’s growth shapes a so-called ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’ across Southern Africa, businesses no longer need to confine their teams to a single working location but can unlock the productivity and employee retention benefits of offering work across multiple locations. This reflects a broader trend across Africa and indeed the world, where both individuals and businesses are poised to benefit from investments in technology and new flexible working methods.
At the same time, these trends are generating an increasing number of opportunities for property owners and partners to transform real estate into more profitable assets that support dispersed businesses and their employees, as well as the evolving nature of work.
According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), Africa stands to gain significantly from what’s being termed the ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’ – a rapid shift to technology and connectivity.
The WEF states, “There has been considerable technological investment in major cities in Africa, such as improved access to mobile broadband and fibre-optic cable connections in homes. This, along with the swift adoption of affordable smartphones and tablets, has allowed millions of Africans to connect for the first time. As the Fourth Industrial Revolution progresses, Africa creates new working patterns.”
The pace of change is such that some African countries may fast-track their journey to widespread hybrid working adoption, just as mobile phone technology has enabled some parts of the world to bypass landline development altogether.
With a rapidly growing entrepreneurship scene and the increasing prevalence of online platform work, a hybrid model makes sense for Africa, where urban working patterns still require more infrastructure, but where there is a geographically diverse, work-ready population alongside a robust mobile communications network.
Joanne Bushell. Commercial EVP Middle East and Africa, IWG, highlights that hybrid work opens up a world of opportunity. “It gives us a future – here in Africa and across the globe – where companies can attract and retain the best talent, productivity and profits can be boosted, carbon emissions will fall, and people and communities will thrive as investment soars,” she comments.
“Importantly, when employees can work flexibly from shared office space, they don’t have to bear the cost of energy expenses at home, particularly significant given South Africa’s power crisis. In cases where a company has relinquished their physical premises and permitted employees to work entirely remotely, we are witnessing a trend of employers financing their employees’ use of coworking spaces with generators or other continuous power supply sources,” Bushell explains.
“This enables employees to benefit from the uninterrupted power supply they could access at an office while retaining the flexibility of their current working arrangement. We are seeing employees flock to our flexible workspaces to use our set-up that is designed to maintain power through load shedding. These centres offer much more than just office tools and supplies. They provide a service that enhances how people live, and the strategy to position them in suburban centres now lays the groundwork for a simpler work-life balance”, she adds
It is unsurprising that the demand for flexible workspaces is increasing, creating a growing market for building owners and partners to capitalise on. We are now witnessing companies swiftly learning how to manage dispersed workforces with the latest technology and innovative management techniques, all while enhancing the happiness and work-life balance of their teams.
We are making progress towards our goal of establishing an IWG centre within reach of every town, village, and suburb in our key markets, while simultaneously offering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for property owners and investors to transform buildings into thriving flexible workspaces. This milestone highlights our partners’ trust in IWG, and we look forward to expanding our network deeper into the heart of communities, addressing the burgeoning demand for hybrid work from millions of white-collar workers throughout the continent.
About International Workplace Group PLC
International Workplace Group is the global leader in hybrid work solutions and workspace brands. We create personal, financial, and strategic value for businesses of every size. From some of the most exciting companies and well-known organisations on the planet, to individuals and the next generation of industry leaders. All of them harness the power of International Workplace Group’s hybrid working platform to increase their productivity, efficiency, agility, and market proximity. International Workplace Group’s unrivalled network coverage includes approximately 4,000 locations across more than 120 countries and 83% of Fortune 500 companies are amongst our growing customer base.
Through our brands including Regus, Spaces, HQ and Signature, we help millions of people and their businesses to work more productively. We do so by providing the world’s leading hybrid work platform with professional, inspiring and collaborative workspaces and digital services all available via the International Workplace Group’s app.
For more information
Visit www.iwgplc.com and for more information on partnering with International Workplace
Group, see: https://www.iwgplc.com/develop-a-location
Dj Chilu 
