A software giant taps into a world of agile office space

To solve a need for fast and flexible space in numerous cities, Red Hat turned to WeWork

Around the world, companies of all sizes find space to succeed at WeWork. Our case studies share their unique stories.

The challenge: scaling up and down, as needed, in markets around the world

Red Hat provides enterprise open source technology solutions to companies around the world; their team of more than 14,000 associates is distributed across 35 countries. Often, Red Hat needs to scale up and down spaces—fast—in various locations, depending on their projects. All the while, Red Hat seeks to give employees flexibility to work from offices that are conveniently located, where they can collaborate with colleagues, and in which they can do their best work. 

“We’re interested in treating cities like communities and having multiple locations and options for our associates to work from—and potentially meet customers at,” says Justin Halewood, Red Hat’s real estate and delivery lead. 

Red Hat wanted to harness the opportunities that a nimble workspace option could offer, something traditional real estate options weren’t able to provide. With a need to keep pace with the innovative demands of the business, Halewood was finding he had a global real estate challenge on his hands. 

The solution: a world of agile real estate options via one point of contact

Through WeWork, Red Hat gained access to a portfolio of real estate solutions spanning cities, countries, and continents—which allows it to tap into workspaces of all sizes and configurations exactly where and when needed. Red Hat moved into their first WeWork office in Denver in 2018, then opened in Warsaw in 2019. Now it has WeWork spaces in Prague, Johannesburg, and Dublin.

The Red Hat and WeWork teams collaborated to design and configure each space for the teams that will occupy it. Red Hat’s offices may include conference rooms aplenty for roaming associates who need to take multiple meetings and host clients—or custom, quiet spaces for engineering teams in need of deep focus. 

The Red Hat real estate team works with one WeWork point of contact—a single trusted partner who becomes part of the team. When speed and flexibility is a must, Red Hat can rely on the fact that their team will be in good hands with someone who understands their needs. One call is all it takes to get the ball rolling on a new space; and after multiple successes, the Red Hat teams know that their internal stakeholders trust WeWork to deliver the workspace experience they want, allowing them to move quickly. 

The results: offices around the world that energize current and prospective employees

Once the Red Hat team settled into their spaces, they noticed an unexpected benefit of being at WeWork: They had an easier time recruiting new talent. Letting candidates know they would be in a WeWork space, or interviewing them in one, provided an extra draw to join the team. 

Halewood has seen how associates feel at home in their new workspaces. The WeWork community team has welcomed the Red Hat team into each location and facilitated connections with other companies and professionals. Halewood notes that productivity has improved among employees.  

“WeWork feels like the product that we’ve been waiting for in the property industry for as long as I can remember,” says Halewood. “It’s a workplace environment that is at the cutting edge of what offices should now offer workers.”

Key highlights:

  • Since 2018, Red Hat has moved into WeWork locations in Denver, Warsaw, Prague, Johannesburg, and Dublin
  • Spaces are built to Red Hat’s specs for engineers, sales, marketing, and other teams
  • Teams in WeWork spaces achieve higher productivity and increased ability to hire talent

WeWork offers companies of all sizes space solutions that help solve their biggest business challenges.

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