Culture Without Borders: Designing the Future of Work

At WeWork’s recent CHRO roundtable in London with Deel, the all-in-one global HR platform, global HR and people leaders came together to explore a defining question of our time: how can companies build connection, belonging, and culture—without borders, and without losing flexibility?

As organizations expand globally and teams become increasingly distributed, the question of what it means to be together has never been more complex or more critical.

At WeWork’s Culture Without Borders breakfast roundtable in London, hosted in partnership with Deel, senior people and HR leaders gathered to discuss how flexibility, culture, and belonging are evolving in a world where work can happen anywhere.

Featuring Natalie Lovett, General Manager UKI at WeWork, and Eric Jorgensen, Head of EMEA Enterprise Sales at Deel, the conversation brought together diverse perspectives from office-first, hybrid, and remote-first organizations. The dialogue surfaced one clear theme: there’s no single model for success, but intentional design is everything.

Whether teams meet daily in shared spaces or collaborate across continents, leaders agreed that culture must be built deliberately—not left to chance. And the most future-ready organizations aren’t choosing between remote and in-person; they’re learning how to integrate both in ways that drive connection, learning, and long-term belonging.

From physical proximity to purposeful connection

Lovett opened the session by reflecting on the enduring power of physical space in shaping human connection. “The relationships created by bringing people together are colossal,” she noted. “But how we do that has to evolve.”

Today, leaders are designing for a workforce that values flexibility but still craves belonging. The tension between in-person collaboration and remote freedom is no longer about where people work—it’s about how organizations cultivate shared identity across distributed teams.

Many attendees echoed this shift, noting that culture doesn’t emerge organically in a hybrid world. It requires deliberate structures—rituals, rhythms, and environments that enable people to connect meaningfully, wherever they are.

Early careers and the return of learning by osmosis

One recurring concern was the impact of remote work on early-career employees. Companies hiring large graduate cohorts shared that in-office apprenticeship remains essential for skill development, confidence, and socialization. As one participant put it, “How else will recent graduates learn if not in person?”

Deel’s Jorgensen offered a complementary perspective: the next generation views remote work as the default. His 16-year-old daughter, he shared, “assumes work happens from anywhere.” The challenge for employers is to bridge these worlds—providing structure and mentorship that replicate in-person learning, even across distance.

Building belonging across borders

A key insight from the discussion was that belonging isn’t defined by geography but by intentional connection. Leaders described creative practices from “e-coffee chats” and smaller, purpose-driven offsites to shared rituals that mix personal and professional life.

Instead of one large annual event, many are opting for smaller, more frequent gatherings designed around learning, problem-solving, or creative collaboration. These moments, participants agreed, create the kind of social glue that technology alone can’t provide.

Evolving models: from HQ to hub-and-spoke

As global work expands, the traditional headquarters model is giving way to more dynamic, distributed systems. Several leaders described “hub-and-spoke” approaches: maintaining central offices for density and collaboration, while using flexible spaces across regions to support distributed teams.

This model not only reduces costs but also levels the playing field for employees outside HQ, giving everyone access to connection and community, no matter their location.

The human side of flexibility

The discussion closed with an important reminder: flexibility is only sustainable when boundaries are clear. As Jorgensen noted, “If leaders model being always on, that becomes culture.” Healthy work cultures, participants agreed, depend on visible examples of balance—leaders who unplug, teams who respect focus time, and companies that design for wellbeing as much as productivity.

The future of work won’t be defined by one model, but by how intentionally we blend flexibility with connection.

As the discussion made clear, belonging doesn’t come from a single office or a virtual get-together—it comes from thoughtful design. Leaders today must create frameworks that let people connect meaningfully, learn continuously, and feel part of something bigger, wherever they are.

That’s where companies like WeWork and Deel are helping lead the way.

WeWork continues to reimagine what the workplace can be—purposeful, human-centered spaces that unite teams, spanning 120 cities in 27 countries. Deel complements this with the infrastructure that makes global work seamless—enabling companies to hire, manage, and pay talent in +150 countries, compliantly and confidently.

Together, these two approaches represent the future of global collaboration: physical connection powered by digital freedom.

Learn more about how WeWork and Deel are helping companies build culture without borders.