Office space management involves researching, planning, and optimizing how your organization is utilizing space across your real estate portfolio. The process typically uses real-time data regarding space usage, available square footage, occupancy rates, real estate costs, and a variety of other metrics to produce plans and conduct forecasting.
Since the pandemic, workspace needs have changed dramatically. Where many teams were entirely in-person pre-covid, many have now transitioned to a hybrid work model in which physical spaces can be treated with a more flexible approach.
Hybrid workplaces will likely only have a few full-time on-site employees with most popping in occasionally. When they do, services like desk booking and hoteling, conference room booking, visitor management, and check-ins have the potential to drastically improve efficiency.
Space management tools monitor real-time and historic space allocation data to surface underutilized spaces and provide suggestions for how to transform them into more valuable floor plans.
Maybe you discover that some of your meeting rooms could be repurposed as a hot desking area, or seating arrangements for remote workers are best relegated to a specific area of the layout. Maybe two office locations can be combined into one. Office space management means using your available space to better serve your team and business.
Now that we understand the benefits of space management, let's take a look at how to implement office space planning in 5 steps:
Step One: Analysis
The space planning process begins with understanding your existing data. Take inventory of current metrics like:
- Technology used in the space
- Total square footage
- Total workplace capacity
- Capacity of each individual space
- Function of each area of the office.
Step Two: Use Tools to Track
Effective tracking is best done with the right tools. An integrated workplace management system (IWMS) can assist you with both planning and carrying out your space management strategy. You can also manage functions like desk and meeting room booking with a hot desk booking software.
Step Three: Ask the Team
Employee feedback is crucial to developing a space management strategy that works for everyone involved. Consider sending out a survey to employees. Ask questions like:
- How would you rate your workspace?
- Do you feel supported in completing your tasks at work?
- How can we improve the in-office experience?
- What's your biggest challenge when visiting the office?
Step Four: Establish Goals
From the feedback you receive from staff, you'll be able to narrow down the central objectives for your optimization plan. How can these goals be achieved using the space that you currently have?
In re-allocating resources, office space management software can be an invaluable tool to assist you in dreaming up new solutions and building out floor plans to support them.
Step Five: Implementation
To effectively implement your office space management plan is an ongoing process. Past the initial launch, you'll need to continuously monitor utilization and regularly gather feedback from your team. This way you can quickly identify problems and create adaptive solutions.
In conclusion, effective office space optimisation in Malta is crucial for optimizing productivity and employee well-being. A well-designed workspace can enhance collaboration, creativity, and overall work satisfaction, making it a key investment for businesses in the region.
