• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Techfortune global 500

WeWork Will House 300 Microsoft Employees in New York City

By
Kia Kokalitcheva
Kia Kokalitcheva
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Kia Kokalitcheva
Kia Kokalitcheva
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 4, 2016, 12:47 PM ET
Video Poster

WeWork is best known as an easy way for small startups to rent office space by the month, but the company is now experimenting with working with huge customers.

On Friday, Microsoft announced it will rent office space from WeWork for 300 of its employees in New York City as well as for a 37-person team in Atlanta. Some Microsoft employees will also have access to WeWork offices in Portland and Philadelphia whenever they need it.

The main goal in New York City is to give the participating Microsoft (MSFT) employees—all from its sales department—a more flexible office arrangement. Through their WeWork memberships, they’ll have access to 30 different office buildings throughout the city, where they can book space when they need to stop by and get some work done, or even private conference rooms for client meetings.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

The two companies first started working together at the beginning of the year with WeWork offering access to Office365 to its tenants, or members as it calls them. As part of this continued partnership, WeWork will also start to introduce or test more of Microsoft’s software for businesses. However, WeWork will remain free to work with competing software vendors as well.

“We’re making a big push into bettering our offerings for what we call ‘enterprise customers,'” WeWork chief development officer David Fano tells Fortune. Microsoft is the first large customer WeWork is publicly discussing, he notes.

One advantage of working with big companies like Microsoft is longer financial commitments. While small startups and other tenants usually rent space by the month, Microsoft has a one-year commitment for the New York City memberships for its sales team, and a three-year deal for its Atlanta office space from WeWork. WeWork’s business model has often been criticized for being too volatile because of its short-term tenants, so large enterprise customers might help stabilize some of its business.

In July, Bloomberg obtained documents that showed that WeWork had slashed its 2016 revenue forecast by 14% and that some buildings are opening to tenants later than anticipated, though WeWork tells Fortune that the documents were for scenario planning only and that buildings that have been opened for at least 12 months have 97% occupancy.

This isn’t WeWork’s only departure from its original model. Last month, WeWork vice chair Michael Gross vaguely described at the Cornell Real Estate Conference a new investment vehicle through which the company will purchase some buildings instead of its usual long-term leases, according to a report from real estate news site The Real Deal. Specifically, the company is looking at sale-leasebacks, a form of real estate sale in which the seller then leases the property it originally sold from the new owner. This new vehicle will be funded through new outside investors. A WeWork spokesman declined to share more details beyond Gross’s comments.

Founded in 2010, WeWork has raised more than $1.4 billion, and it is valued at $16 billion.

About the Author
By Kia Kokalitcheva
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Google Cloud revenue is now 18% of Alphabet’s business. Is this the beginning of the end of Google’s search identity?
Big TechGoogle
Google Cloud revenue is now 18% of Alphabet’s business. Is this the beginning of the end of Google’s search identity?
By Alexei OreskovicApril 29, 2026
9 hours ago
Man wearing a suit and tie and glasses
Big TechTech
Microsoft, Meta, and Google just announced billions more in AI spending. Only Google convinced investors it’s paying off
By Amanda GerutApril 29, 2026
9 hours ago
A man in a suit and tie
InvestingMeta
Meta just bumped its 2026 capex forecast up to as much as $145 billion for the AI boom—and investors flinched
By Amanda GerutApril 29, 2026
11 hours ago
How JPMorgan’s CIO is reshaping work at the bank with a $19.8 billion annual tech and AI budget
NewslettersCIO Intelligence
How JPMorgan’s CIO is reshaping work at the bank with a $19.8 billion annual tech and AI budget
By John KellApril 29, 2026
17 hours ago
hollywood
CommentaryMarketing
I spent 20 years learning to navigate an industry. Then I built a campaign for the man who’s dismantling it
By Matti YahavApril 29, 2026
21 hours ago
Current price of Ethereum for April 29, 2026
Personal FinanceEthereum
Current price of Ethereum for April 29, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerApril 29, 2026
21 hours ago

Most Popular

Apple cofounder Ronald Wayne—whose stake would be worth up to $400 billion had he not sold it in 1976—says that at 91, he has no regrets
Success
Apple cofounder Ronald Wayne—whose stake would be worth up to $400 billion had he not sold it in 1976—says that at 91, he has no regrets
By Preston ForeApril 27, 2026
3 days ago
‘Take the money and run’: Johns Hopkins economist Steve Hanke on why the UAE quit OPEC
Energy
‘Take the money and run’: Johns Hopkins economist Steve Hanke on why the UAE quit OPEC
By Shawn TullyApril 29, 2026
1 day ago
‘The cost of compute is far beyond the costs of the employees’: Nvidia executive says right now AI is more expensive than paying human workers
AI
‘The cost of compute is far beyond the costs of the employees’: Nvidia executive says right now AI is more expensive than paying human workers
By Sasha RogelbergApril 28, 2026
2 days ago
Jamie Dimon gets candid about national debt: ‘There will be a bond crisis, and then we’ll have to deal with it’
Economy
Jamie Dimon gets candid about national debt: ‘There will be a bond crisis, and then we’ll have to deal with it’
By Eleanor PringleApril 29, 2026
23 hours ago
‘They left me no choice’: Powell isn’t going anywhere—blocking Trump from another Fed appointee
Banking
‘They left me no choice’: Powell isn’t going anywhere—blocking Trump from another Fed appointee
By Eva RoytburgApril 29, 2026
15 hours ago
More than two-thirds of U.S. schools say they’re unable to afford the cost of student free lunch—and MAHA’s dietary guidelines may make it worse
Economy
More than two-thirds of U.S. schools say they’re unable to afford the cost of student free lunch—and MAHA’s dietary guidelines may make it worse
By Sasha RogelbergApril 29, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.