Back in 2005, there was just one co-working space in the US. By 2025, it’s expected almost 26,000 will pop up globally. It’s a phenomenal movement, and it’s one Soren Trampedach has embraced in Australia. Seeing the potential of shared office spaces, he leveraged his 20 years of leadership experience and invested his life savings into a new business – Work Club Global.
“Work Club sets the standard in pro-working, the next era of co-working, for those seeking a more sophisticated, curated and higher-quality experience,” the Chairman and CEO tells The CEO Magazine. “It’s a unique philosophy built around freedom of movement, curiosity of mind and courage of spirit.”
And an inquisitive mind certainly mirrors the thought leader’s approach to business and life. The Danish national moved abroad when he was just 18, only to spend the following 31 years working across many continents. Having taken his career through Denmark, England, Germany, Ireland, Spain, China, Hong Kong, Japan and Australia, the entrepreneur is a true global citizen.
“Bring all of yourself to work; don’t leave anything at the door.”
It’s this agility and ability to work fluidly around the globe that opened Trampedach’s mind up in the approach of future office spaces. “Many meetings and cultural exposures like China, Japan, Europe and the US – they all built an understanding of business and nuances and different ways of looking at business and interacting with people,” he shares.
Work Club, which is a members-only space, allows established businesses to embrace a unique and boutique solution to the rapid pace of the working environment where business minds can interact with like-minded leaders.
With years spent at Haworth – the world’s second-largest office furniture manufacturer – the Work Club concept grew from Trampedach’s lengthy leadership experience. Through his time at Haworth, the leader was able to turnaround failing businesses with insightful and effective strategies, which led him to being promoted to Managing Director of ANZ.
From there, he held the role as Director of Strategy for Asia–Pacific, Middle East and Latin America, moving on to become the Director of Sales for Asia–Pacific and grew the business from A$50 million in revenue to A$250 million per annum while leading a team of 400 staff.
But it was his role as Vice President and General Manager of Haworth Central Europe that is perhaps the most significant – making Trampedach the youngest person to hold the position. Involved in global debates, think tanks and collaborations while he was on the global board, the thought leader has honed his skills as a visionary strategic thinker.
Sharing his leadership insights, Trampedach was part of the prestigious judging panel for The CEO Magazine’s 2021 Executive of the Year Awards.
“Coming out of COVID, I hope it will become obvious who dealt with this through true leadership, making difficult but brave decisions,” he said in the lead-up to the big night. “I am excited about being part of highlighting those.”
Traditionally the talented judges are tasked with determining the top CEO in Australia, but for the first time in 10 years, two CEOs of the Year were crowned instead of one.
Having learned a nugget of business wisdom from an “older and wiser” CEO, Trampedach no doubt used this advice to determine the worthy CEOs of the Year.
“I was once guided to tick all the boxes – for example, learning different parts of the business from sales and marketing to manufacturing and operations,” he says. “Bring all of yourself to work; don’t leave anything at the door. Business is not work, it is life – so bring all of yourself.”
