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Coworking & Flexible Workspace Glossary
Plain-language definitions for the terms you'll run into running a flexible workspace.
Whether you're new to the industry or just want a quick refresher, this glossary covers the terminology that comes up most often in coworking and flexible workspace management — from membership models to billing terms to the software concepts behind running a multi-location operation.
A
Add-on — An optional extra charged alongside a core membership or booking, such as printing credits, locker rental, or extra meeting room hours.
Agreement (Membership Agreement) — The formal contract between an operator and a member or company, defining terms, pricing, and duration. See Digital Agreements.
Auto-Ticket Escalation — A system that automatically creates a support ticket when a trigger condition is met, such as a low satisfaction survey score. See Client Survey & Feedback Management.
B
Business Center — A traditional serviced office model, typically offering fully furnished private offices with reception and admin support, distinct from open coworking.
Billing Cycle — The recurring period (usually monthly) on which a member or company is invoiced.
Booking Overlap — When two reservation requests for the same resource (e.g., a meeting room) conflict in time — systems typically block this automatically. See Meeting Room Management.
C
CAM Charges (Common Area Maintenance) — Fees passed on to tenants or members to cover the cost of maintaining shared spaces like lobbies, restrooms, and corridors.
Churn — The rate at which members or companies leave or don't renew, a key metric for coworking operators.
Coworking — A shared workspace model where individuals or companies from different organizations work in the same space, typically on flexible, non-exclusive terms.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management) — Software used to track leads, sales opportunities, and client relationships from first contact through to a signed deal. See Coworking CRM & Sales Pipeline.
Credit Control — The practice of monitoring outstanding debt and payment behavior to manage financial risk. See Credit Control & Aging Dashboard.
D
Dedicated Desk — A fixed desk reserved exclusively for one member, as opposed to a hot desk shared among multiple people.
Deposit (Security Deposit) — An upfront payment held by the operator against potential damages or unpaid balances, typically returned at the end of a membership term.
Drop-In — A day pass or single-use access option for someone who isn't a regular member.
E
Enterprise Coworking — Flexible workspace solutions designed for larger companies or portfolio operators managing multiple locations, as opposed to individual freelancers or startups. See Multi-Location Operators.
Escalated Invoice — An overdue invoice that has been formally flagged for collections follow-up, as distinct from a standard overdue invoice. See Credit Control.
F
Flex Space / Flexible Workspace — An umbrella term covering coworking, serviced offices, hybrid workspaces, and other non-traditional leasing models.
Floor Plan — A visual layout of a space showing desks, rooms, and other bookable areas — often used in proposals or booking tools. See Proposal Generation.
G
GSTIN — Goods and Services Tax Identification Number (India) — used to determine tax classification (e.g., IGST vs. CGST/SGST) on invoices and agreements.
Guest Wi-Fi — Temporary internet access provided to visitors, typically time-limited and separate from the main member network. See Visitor Management.
H
Hot Desk / Hot Desking — An unassigned desk arrangement where members use any available desk rather than a fixed spot, typically on a first-come basis.
Helpdesk — A support ticketing system used to log, track, and resolve member or client issues. See Built-In Helpdesk.
I
IGST / CGST / SGST — India's tax categories: Integrated GST (interstate transactions) versus Central + State GST (intrastate transactions), determined by the client's registered state.
Invoice Outstanding — The remaining unpaid balance on an invoice after any partial payments have been applied.
K
Knowledge Base — A self-service library of help articles that lets members find answers without contacting support. See Knowledge Base.
L
Lead — A prospective customer who has expressed interest but hasn't yet been qualified as a sales opportunity. See Coworking CRM.
Lead Scoring — A method (often AI-driven) of ranking leads by their likelihood to convert, so sales teams prioritize effort. See AI-Powered Lead Scoring.
M
Meeting Room Booking — The reservation of a meeting or conference room for a specific time window, often billed hourly. See Meeting Room Management.
Member Portal — A self-service interface where members manage their own bookings, invoices, and account details.
Multi-Tenancy — A software architecture where a single platform serves multiple separate businesses (tenants), keeping each one's data isolated. See Multi-Location Operators.
N
NPS (Net Promoter Score) — A customer satisfaction metric that classifies respondents as Promoters, Passives, or Detractors based on a survey score. See Client Survey & Feedback.
Next-Step Recommendation — An AI-generated suggestion for the best next sales action to take on a given lead. See AI Capabilities.
O
Occupancy Rate — The percentage of available seats or space currently in use, a core operational metric for coworking operators.
Opportunity — A qualified lead that has been promoted into an actively tracked sales pipeline stage. See Coworking CRM.
Overdue Invoice — An invoice past its due date that has not yet been formally escalated or disputed.
P
Private Office — An enclosed, exclusive office space within a coworking or serviced office facility, as opposed to open desk seating.
Proposal — A formatted commercial document presenting pricing, products, and terms to a prospective client before an agreement is signed. See Proposal Generation.
Q
QR Check-In — A visitor or member check-in method using a scannable QR code instead of a manual sign-in process. See Visitor Management.
R
Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) — A permission system where access to features and data is determined by a user's assigned role rather than being configured individually. See Role-Based Dashboards.
S
SLA (Service Level Agreement) — A defined commitment for response or resolution time, commonly used in support ticketing to track performance against promised timelines. See Support & Ticketing.
Serviced Office — A fully furnished, managed office space typically leased with included amenities like reception, cleaning, and utilities.
Step Rental — A lease or membership pricing structure where the rate changes at defined points over the term, rather than staying flat.
T
Tenant Isolation — The practice of keeping each customer's (or location's) data completely separate within a shared software platform.
Ticket (Support Ticket) — A logged record of a customer support request, tracked from creation through resolution. See Support & Ticketing.
V
Virtual Office — A service allowing a business to use a physical address and related services (mail handling, occasional meeting room access) without occupying physical desk space full-time.
Visitor Management — The process of registering, tracking, and checking in guests at a physical location. See Visitor Management.
W
Walk-In — A visitor or prospective member who arrives without a prior booking or appointment.
White-Label — Software or a platform rebranded to appear as though it belongs to the operator rather than the underlying vendor.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between coworking and a serviced office?
Coworking typically means shared, open workspace used by people from different organizations, while a serviced office is a private, enclosed space that still includes shared amenities and support services.
What is hot desking?
Hot desking is an unassigned seating arrangement where members use any available desk rather than having a fixed, dedicated spot.
What does NPS mean in a coworking context?
NPS (Net Promoter Score) is a satisfaction metric based on survey responses, classifying members as Promoters, Passives, or Detractors to gauge overall sentiment.
What is a virtual office?
A virtual office lets a business use a physical address and related services, like mail handling, without occupying desk space full-time.
What's the difference between a lead and an opportunity?
A lead is a prospective customer who hasn't yet been qualified. Once qualified and actively pursued, it becomes an opportunity tracked through a sales pipeline.
Next step
Evaluating workspace software?
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