The costs of running an office are going up, with the additional required budget often being driven by rent, escalating energy prices, and fit-out expenses. Yet there is another insidious culprit undermining office costs and the profitability of tenants. It is the spatial intelligence gap, the ability to understand how the workforce uses the office.
Closing the gap can lower building costs and increase employee productivity. However, capturing the relevant data has been difficult. Still, it is a priority as a recent Wakefield Research survey of 400 workplace decision makers report 79% lack data on how office space is used.
“The problem isn’t having enough data on office usage; it’s about getting the right data.”
Quality data about office usage needs to go beyond head counts, foot traffic, and badge swipes. Ideally, it understands human movement in a space and infers the actions from it.
For example, group huddles in the hallway after a company-wide meeting or a mass exodus at lunchtime can lead to assumptions. It is not uncommon to take the leap that clusters of employees are unhappy gossips and not committed to putting in a full day at the office.
What if the data revealed an entirely different interpretation of those actions?
After the company meeting, a team was inspired, hatched a fresh idea in the hallway, and productivity soared. The so-called slackers leaving at lunch were dealing with sun glare that made it difficult to read their screens. Further, the elevated office temperature prompted them to leave their desks and seek a cooler space.
The High Cost of Assumption Based Decision Making
What these two real world scenarios reveal is that high performing, dedicated employees may not always be in the office or act in ways that can be understood just by watching. And when they are present in the office, their needs may not be sufficiently met.
Imagine how perceptions would change if the hallway huddle was conducted in an open, collaborative space. Or a closer look at occupancy data linked to weather reveals a different attendance pattern on rainy days.
False narratives about office usage can lead to costly mistakes. This includes choices about office layout and design, RTO policies, and HVAC settings that cool under or unoccupied spaces. It could also influence decision about performance and layoffs as well as leasing.
Being able to gather and analyze these types of human actions has been stifled because it required cameras. We can anticipate what happens when employees know they’re being watched. Loyalty goes out the window, intellectual property is scooped up by the competition, and employers are left with performance sycophants.
Getting Insight Into Human Behavior Without Alienating Employees
Innovations in thermal sensing technology have emerged from MIT to solve the issue of understanding how the office is actually used. By design, thermal is incapable of identifying individuals. Instead, it understands body heat. When combined with machine learning, employers get a better understanding of how the office is used.
For example, a global software company with a large presence in Silicon Valley had a 15% workstation utilization rate. This meant 85% of their workforce was not coming into the office. Yet the HVAC was running, maintenance crews cleaned as if the space was fully occupied, and the ROI on the commercial property investment kept dwindling.
Like most companies, they mandated an RTO. At first, it worked. Over a few months the utilization rate hovered at 45% despite warnings from management. Overall, productivity dipped regardless of where employees were working.
After installing thermal sensors, the employer figured out the office was not conducive to the needs of the workforce. The sensor data was connected with other building data sources to present a bigger picture of activity. The company’s leaders learned they did not have enough conference rooms to accommodate the needs for open collaboration or provide sufficient space for focused work.
This led to an office redesign, which is not without risks. Cushman & Wakefield report office fit-out costs rose 5.5% over the past year, averaging $149 per square foot. Within a few weeks, the Silicon Valley company’s occupancy hit 72% and remains consistently high, as does employee output and satisfaction.
Given the rising costs of managing and maintaining an office, it is not surprising that office redesign may be put on hold. The Wakefield survey shows that 76% of decision makers are concerned their current layout is not delivering the most productive use of space. And 48% have delayed or canceled renovation projects due to the lack of insight into office usage.
Data Drives Design
When thinking about office design, it is easy to be sidetracked by cool furniture, sleek products, and eye-catching layouts. Before investing in a fit out, it is critical to first understand how employees currently use the space and what they may need to deliver optimal performance.
Going a level deeper, decision makers may also find that what works in headquarters may not work in a field office. Just as each company has a culture that should be reflected in office design, each office may require slight modification on the larger corporate vibe.
The payoff is in higher employee retention, productivity, and profitability within the confines of a sustainable, right-sized modern office.
