At Beehive Baltimore's still-spartan office in Canton, about a half-dozen intense people huddled recently at laptops, with cell phones, Coke cans and power cords scattered across tables. But they aren't employed by the same company; they're software developers, entrepreneurs and freelancers busy with their own projects - part of a trend called "co-working."
All have one thing in common: They're tired of working from home alone.
The Beehive was formed for independent workers "tired of talking to their dogs," says co-founder Dave Troy, a software developer who's been involved with the local technology scene for years.
The co-working concept, relatively new to Baltimore, allows independent workers to network, share ideas and build camaraderie. Groups are typically small and based in welcoming coffee shops; some, like Beehive, have a more formal structure.
"There can be these long patches of everyone working away, and all of a sudden the ideas are flying around," said Robin Yasinow, a public relations consultant who is based in Kensington but works at the Beehive a couple of times a week. "I imagine as we get more people in the Beehive, more graphic designers, more artists, those conversations are going to become even more diverse."
Co-working started on the West Coast several years ago and has spread worldwide; online sites list groups in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East and Australia. Groups tend to be more established in urban areas with a concentration of independent technology and creative industry workers, such as San Francisco and Austin, Texas.
There's no precise figure for co-working Americans. But the people most likely to take advantage of the concept - self-employed "free agents" - make up more than 25 percent of the U.S. working population, up from 19 percent in 2006, according to a recent study by Kelly Services Inc., the temporary staffing and human resources agency.
The co-working mantra - displayed on a Web site that tracks the concept's international evolution - is "cafe-like community/collaboration space for developers, writers and independents." Chris Messina, an open Web advocate and one of the movement's founders in San Francisco, says co-working is an example of "accelerated serendipity" - of fostering new encounters and collaborations in a supportive environment.
Troy, who calls Beehive Baltimore a "people incubator," hopes to foster a collaborative environment. "If someone starts laughing, it sparks a conversation. It's the community first, not the place."
