Comment by shafyy | Hacker News Reader

Comment by shafyy | Hacker News Reader

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We just quit WeWork (WeWork Transbay in SOMA) because of the noise. I think most people don't realize that the hot desk area is supposed to be a quiet area. I repeatedly told the community managers to make sure people know that, but they didn't do anything about it.

At one point, there was even a family with 2 small kids eating lunch there.

Also for 1-2 months half of the tables didn't have a power outlet because they had to remove the extension cords (security reasons) and had to wait until they could install the cords below the floor.And they didn't even offer a discount or something in return. Neither did they inform the customers how long and why this is happening - I had to go up to them and ask. How can this happen?

For a business where operational excellence and customer support must be stellar, they are not doing a very good job. And don't get me started on their software. And we've tried out 3 locations in SF, with similar experiences.

Maybe it's different in other cities.

This was a huge problem for us, as well. People would make loud sales calls pacing back and forth in front of the empty phone booths.

That's the worst! (for people like me at least)

But I've had this experience working at private offices as well. It's basically a problem anywhere with a) open-office plans and b) sales/marketing people who are in the same area as developers (sometimes startups outgrow a co-working space but aren't big enough for a seperated office).

This is why I work with headphones on the majority of the time whenever I'm in an office (coworking or otherwise). I have enough trouble self-regulating my attention without having to distract myself from others.

I was in a WeWork for 2.5 years. Our floor had four phone booths but probably 20 or more people whose entire workday was spent on the phone, which led to multiple people pacing the halls while on a call. No amount of gentle reminders, glaring, or fighting back with my own noise would stop the loud conversations on the other side of the single-pane glass door.

There was a similar problem with the capacity of the men's bathroom.

WeWork should take more care that their physical infrastructure is not overwhelmed by subtenants who are mostly alike.

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