Camille Tighe, workplace strategist at Vocon

NEW YORK CITY—In the past, workplace design relied heavily on simple math and intuition to organize workers into an office space. Over the last decade, technology breakthroughs, competitive pressures, changing demographics and cultural shifts have led to drastic shifts in how and where work is accomplished. Work is no longer an individual, solitary behavior – it's an experience that happens anytime, anywhere, and more collaboratively than ever before. As a result, today's workplace leaders are moving toward a more fluid, flexible and agile way of working where individuals can choose space based on task and behavior.

As the nature of work continues to evolve at a rapid pace, determining the optimal real estate solution to effectively and efficiently support employees remains a moving target. In response, workplace strategy and design teams are looking to more sophisticated, proven methods of designing space. Using data to make informed design decisions is helping companies to save money on underutilized space and identify better use of existing space, while enhancing employee productivity and better preparing them for tomorrow's workplace.

Technology has given rise to a number of ways to collect valuable occupancy and utilization data. When it comes to choosing the methods, it is important to first consider the size and number of facilities to be measured, the resources available, the information being gathered and how that information is intended to be used. Defining clear drivers that pinpoint specific business issues allows the researcher to understand how to effectively collect and apply the data.

Advances in utilization tracking, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) have enabled the ongoing collection and exchange of information in the workplace, allowing organizations to gather real-time information about their work environment. Motion and heat sensors, Bluetooth beacons, cameras, mobile devices and wearables can all communicate with building systems to enhance the user experience. Employers can leverage this information to analyze patterns of their workforce and respond by making changes to their space to fit the needs of their employees.

Vocon's strategy and design team leveraged one such technology for an insurance client. With its office at full capacity, the company was out of space, unable to accommodate planned workforce expansions. In addition, lack of meeting spaces inhibited employee interaction, making it difficult for individuals and teams to connect and share knowledge.

Facing these challenges, the team initiated an occupancy study by embedding sensors in all meeting rooms to track employee meeting behavior. The occupancy data revealed an average conference room utilization of 50%, while conference seats had an average utilization of only 24%. This indicated a discrepancy in room size and meeting behavior. The majority of conference rooms were larger in size, with a capacity of 8-10 people, and our sensor study revealed that employees were typically meeting in smaller groups of 2-3 people. With this knowledge, the team was able to recommend the right mix of a variety of collaborative spaces, avoiding a costly mistake of providing ineffective collaborative areas that met few people's needs.

For yet another client, we analyzed badge access data to tell us how many people used the facility and when. The data showed that only about 62% of employees were accessing the building. This insight encouraged the company to adopt a mobile work strategy. By designating 38% of the company's workforce as mobile, the organization maintained its current square footage while allowing for planned workforce growth.

The accelerated pace of change in the workforce will continue to challenge strategists and designers to develop intelligent planning strategies that optimize the real estate and foster productivity. By proactively embracing cutting-edge technology and tools, companies can validate their decision making, cut down on real estate costs, and re-direct resources toward the employee experience, helping to reshape the workplace and position for the ever-changing need of their global workforce.

Camille Tighe is a workplace strategist at the design and architecture firm Vocon. She works with organizations to align their cultures, business goals and work styles with workplace designs. The views expressed here are the author's own and not those of ALM's Real Estate Media Group.