What are the "Vibes" Required for the Community Team, and How Forge New Possibilities? - Takumi Masubuchi, WeWork Japan, Community Team, Community Associate

──Could you tell us what led you to join WeWork?

Takumi: After graduating from university, I worked as a delivery driver for a food delivery service, but through a friend’s introduction, I got a job at a startup working on environmental issues. This was because I was originally interested in environmental problems and wanted to work at a startup. However, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, business drastically decreased, and I decided to change jobs to WeWork to find my next opportunity for growth.

Actually, when I was working for the food delivery service, I visited WeWork Shibuya Scramble Square for work. I remember thinking, “What a cool place!”. I also passed by WeWork Iceberg (Harajuku) many times and was always curious about it. It was a place I admired.

I was strongly aware that my strength was communication skills and considered jobs related to regional revitalization, among others, but I was hesitant to leave Tokyo. A former colleague who had come from WeWork worked at the company I was with at the time, and their support was also a deciding factor in my job change.

──What kind of questions were you asked during the interview?

Takumi: The interview with the Senior Community Manager is particularly memorable. I was asked in depth, “Why must it be WeWork?”. What I talked about at that time was the curry pop-up shop I planned myself during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, opportunities to meet people drastically decreased, and many people around me were feeling down. I reconfirmed the importance of communication that isn’t through a screen and wanted to do something, which is when I came up with the idea of a curry project. I love curry, having stayed in India for about two weeks. Using my hobby, I planned a “curry shop” that I produced and cooked myself after the state of emergency was lifted. I named the shop, created social media accounts, and made flyers. Then, everyone around me came. My local friends, university friends, and friends of former colleagues gathered in one place, and although you couldn’t call it a chemical reaction, new connections were made. I told them that if I could do something like this through business, it could only be WeWork.

──How was the actual work?

Takumi: Shibuya is the largest WeWork location in Japan, and the workload is enormous. Since I hadn’t been doing similar work intensely in my previous job, I struggled initially, especially.

At that time, I even planned my own welcome party event myself.

──You planned your own welcome party yourself?

Takumi: Yes. I was appointed as the event manager at the Shibuya location, and there seemed to be an expectation for me to “do something new,” so they let me plan my own welcome party as my first event.

While the usual first event planned by someone joining the Community Team is something like a “Happy Hour,” I wanted to make an impact on the members using the Shibuya location by showing that “we are doing something different than before”. In addition to announcing the event, decorating, and preparing drinks, I even prepared masks with my face printed on them (laughs). About 20 people gathered, and my boss told me, “I’ve never seen a party like this”. I thought, “If I can make them say that, I win” (laughs).

However, after that, I gradually realized that the Community Team’s work isn’t just about these cultural aspects. WeWork members have a complete lifecycle from the start of their contract/use (Move In) to the end of their contract/use (Move Out), and the Community Team needs to manage a vast number of detailed processes throughout this process. In the midst of this, I struggled because I couldn’t quite grasp which part I was currently responsible for and how I was contributing to the overall picture. There are also many tools used internally, and remembering the detailed tasks was difficult.

To be honest, regarding daily operations, I haven’t yet had any “this is how it should be” moments or breakthroughs within myself. Asking others is a given, but even so, I still face days where I confront my own inadequacies.

However, I am gradually gaining what can be called successful experiences. Recently I organized a networking event for members who like soccer because I like soccer myself. At the event, conversations about our shared hobby of soccer connected to business, and ultimately, a collaboration between a large WeWork member company and a startup was realized. Through something I enjoy, I succeeded in making a match that led to the “next step” in a member’s business.

──You mentioned communication skills are your strength, but are there things you have been careful about since joining the company, or any changes in your communication style?

Takumi: I am conscious of “balancing casualness and professionalism”. I am careful not to lean too much towards either side in communication.

By building up small conversations like, “Those sneakers look cool,” the Community Team can become a presence that members feel comfortable talking to without overthinking. I believe my strength lies in such casual communication. There are many things you can ask or be told precisely because of a casual relationship, and this often provides hints for ideas like, “Connecting them with that company might be interesting”.

On the other hand, the members who have contracts with WeWork pay a considerable fee each month. It’s not enough just to have small talk with everyone; I approach my work while properly being aware of the situations where professional responses are necessary.

I believe the value of WeWork lies precisely in its community. When I hear members say things like, “Thanks to Takumi-san, things seem to be heading in a good direction,” I truly feel that we, the Community Team, are providing something more than just an office environment to the members. Although still few, I want to create more such opportunities.

──Takumi-san is known within the company for frequently using the word “Vibes.” For Takumi-san, what are the essential “Vibes” for working at WeWork?

Takumi: It’s difficult to put into words (laughs)… Perhaps it’s the passion for having fun with a high degree of freedom and working together to liven up WeWork in a world where many parts still don’t have a clear answer.

WeWork can identify itself as a pioneer in flexible offices. The aspect of creating the correct answer for this business ourselves is very exciting. On the other hand, it’s not a business where you can just follow precedents; I also have the feeling that we are moving forward while repeating trial and error.

However, in situations where everyone’s ideas are needed, I think it’s an environment where anyone can speak their mind flatly, regardless of how long they’ve been with the company or their career history. When you think, “I want to make this location better!”, an infinite number of ideas come out. In such times, precisely because many parts still don’t have a clear answer, WeWork has an environment where you can try various things, and I think that is very interesting.

I believe the “Vibes” of “Let’s make it better together, let’s liven it up more together” lead to the extraordinary feeling that WeWork creates and the value that only WeWork can provide.