Robert Gibbs, president and CEO of Gibbs Planning Group

ATLANTA—Flexible workspaces—from executive office suites to hot desks to coworking office space and beyond—started gaining momentum during the Great Recession. Although some office industry watchers say the demand is waning, most agree the concept is here to say and statistics demonstrate room for growth.

According to globalworkplaceanalytics.com, 3.7 million employees—just under 3% of the workforce—now work from home at least half the time. The employee population as a whole grew by 1.9% from 2013 to 2014, while the telecommuter population grew 5.6%.

“Not surprisingly, the average in-office workspace has declined in recent years,” Robert Gibbs, president and CEO of Gibbs Planning Group, tells GlobeSt.com. “Today, the average space per worker is between 130 and 150 square feet, down from 200 square feet. Employers are moving more workers into smaller spaces.”

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