Building a Scalable Membership Platform for the Military Coworking Network

The Military Coworking Network (MCN) supports military spouses and partners across the UK, offering coworking spaces, community, and career-focused support. As demand grew, MCN needed a more structured and scalable way to manage membership, resources, and access to services.

I was brought in to help build the digital systems that would underpin this new phase - developing a smooth, sustainable infrastructure for membership payments, bookings, and resource access.

More than tech: shaping the membership experience

While my brief focused on delivery, I was also able to draw on my background working with membership organisations to help shape internal discussions about the value proposition - how to make membership feel worthwhile, and how to align payment structures with member expectations and lived realities.

Working closely with the MCN team, I supported decisions around tiered access, benefits design, and the user journey from sign-up through to participation.

Designed for mobility and ease of use

For military families, life is constantly on the move. That meant the systems needed to be:

• Accessible from any location

• Easy to use independently

• Flexible enough to accommodate different membership types and user needs

The platform I developed enabled:

• Online membership sign-up and payments, including recurring options

• Space booking functionality across MCN sites

• Access-controlled resource areas, giving members the right tools at the right time

What the project delivered

• A streamlined membership payments and onboarding system

• User flows designed to reduce admin burden and improve experience

• A resource structure that supported professional development and onboarding

• A scalable backend that could support network growth

Why this matters

Military spouses often face employment disruption, limited local networks, and barriers to accessing professional development. MCN helps address this - but needed the right digital foundations to grow without creating bottlenecks or complexity.

This project was about building more than a system. It was about enabling the network to offer consistent value to members, wherever they were, while reducing internal overhead and future-proofing the model.

Need to scale your membership systems without losing your values?

The Innovation Office supports purpose-led organisations to design digital infrastructure that works - from payment and booking systems to resource access and user experience. We galvanise trusted Associates to source or build the solutions that are right for you.