Desk hoteling, a form of advanced desk management, is one element of a new wave of space utilization tools. These platforms allow employees to book desks before arrival, as hot desks (first-come, first-served reservations), or permanently booked (for fixed workspaces that need a single employee’s use every day).
In addition to supplying seating alternatives, these systems provide comprehensive data about usage trends. These insights help facility managers identify unused spaces and make improvements to maximize utilization.
Features
Desk booking systems are software that helps employees book workspaces. They also allow managers to keep track of employee and guest use. This can help reduce real estate costs and eliminate wasted space.
Moreover, it can give managers insight into how the office is used and optimize it. They can see if collaborative spaces are booked out while individual desks sit vacant or if certain amenities (like dual monitors) are more popular than others.
The key here is to get management buy-in and make sure everyone understands why they’re using desk booking software. This way, they can support the system and ensure it runs smoothly.
One of the biggest benefits is that it can increase collaboration and team productivity. People will be able to sit closer together and will feel more connected. They’ll also have the option to work at different desks, so they won’t have to fight for spaces or be forced to work alone in a corner.
Another great benefit of office desk booking is that it’s a safe and secure environment. By tracking who uses the workspaces and how often, it’s easy to spot hygiene issues and safety concerns. It’s also a good idea to monitor who’s sitting at the desk and how long they’re there for, so workers don’t stay too long.
Many of the best office desk booking systems feature neighborhoods, which are areas designated for specific teams to collaborate. This can be particularly helpful for teams that are new to the company and need to find their feet.
Users can easily book their workspaces with a mobile app, touchscreen kiosk or desktop. Some systems even integrate with messaging platforms like Slack, to let users know when a workspace is available.
For large businesses, desk booking can also be integrated with access control. It allows employees to swipe their cards to enter the workspace, making it more efficient and convenient for them.
The best office desk booking systems can be integrated with a number of other tools, including Microsoft Outlook and Office 365. These integrations can improve efficiency, save time and money, and boost employee satisfaction.
Integrations
In the United States, a wide variety of companies use desk booking systems to help manage their employees and workspaces. These solutions allow employees to book workspaces through a web browser, desktop computer or mobile device, and can also be used for reserving meeting rooms, equipment, and parking spaces.
While desk booking software is not new to the workplace, it has recently evolved to include additional capabilities and features that help companies make the most of their office space. In addition to booking desks, these systems can track utilization trends to help companies reduce their real estate footprint and maximize their space-per-employee costs.
These tools are being implemented by office managers who are trying to keep their workforce healthy and productive, as well as by facilities management teams who want to save money and reduce the number of resources needed in the building. For example, HSBC is using desk booking to bring down its real estate costs by 40%.
Rather than relying on physical kiosks, these platforms use sensors in the building that are connected to the Internet of Things (IoT). This technology lets them track occupancy rates and monitor data usage patterns to identify underutilized workspaces and pain points.
The desks are also a useful resource for outside sales representatives who occasionally need to reserve a workspace or demonstrate technical equipment for clients. This allows them to avoid having to travel back and forth between their home and the office, saving time and gas mileage.
Many of these platforms can also track COVID (Campylobacter Vaccine-Induced Viral Disease) vaccinations for their employees and alert cleaners when a room needs sanitizing. Other features, such as contact tracing for employees who are exposed or diagnosed with COVID, can help companies prevent outbreaks and ensure the health of their employees.
A few of these desk booking platforms are integrated with other workplace management tools, such as ad hoc work order request management, move management, and meeting room scheduling. These integrations enable companies to streamline the workflow and provide a more unified experience for users.
Desk booking systems are a vital part of any workplace that wants to manage a flexible workforce. By keeping occupancy rates high and rotating employees to ensure optimal utilization of the space, these platforms can help reduce real estate costs while allowing for more flexibility.
Pricing
Office desk booking systems can be a powerful tool for businesses. They help to optimize space utilization, lower overhead costs and improve employee productivity. They also allow employees to choose the desk they want to work at, reducing disruptions caused by incompatible working arrangement preferences.
Companies are increasingly adopting desk booking systems in the United States as a way to cut costs and increase space usage. For example, HSBC recently replaced their permanent work desks with hot desking arrangements in order to reduce their real estate footprint by 40%, saving them $47 million over five years.
Using office hoteling software, HSBC was able to compare their desk bookings with actual use to determine which spaces were underutilized and identify opportunities to optimize space. This helped them vacate six floors and sublet three to save a significant amount of money.
Many desk booking systems come with robust analytics features that provide key insights into the workplace. These include data on peak desk usage times, the number of people booking collaboration areas and how often certain amenities are booked.
These insights can help managers to make decisions on expansions or other office improvements. They may also be able to use this data to keep track of how much equipment is being used by clients, allowing them to maintain adequate inventory levels.
While desk booking systems can be a valuable resource for companies, it is important to ensure that users understand how to use them properly. In addition, the system should be easy to integrate with other apps and systems that employees already use.
For instance, if an employee uses an app to book a meeting room, it should be able to automatically update the calendar in their personal account, giving them a single interface when they need to reserve a space. EMS’ powerful office hoteling solution includes built-in integrations with Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Exchange, Zoom and Skype for Business, as well as a variety of other tools.
For a successful implementation, it is important to get the entire team on board with the desk booking system. This will ensure that they have a positive experience and feel like the system is making their job easier.
Security
There are many security measures and procedures that office desk booking systems in the United States take to protect sensitive data. These include encryption, password protection, and access controls. Using these measures, office managers can rest assured that their employees’ personal information is not being compromised.
Several office desk booking system also provide security features that are designed to help protect the health and safety of employees. For example, some platforms use sensors to monitor a person’s distance from others and their level of stress. They may also offer contact tracing for people who are infected with the COVID virus or have other symptoms that could be related to the illness.
Another important part of a good desk booking system is that it allows you to set up group rules for different groups and teams within the organisation. For instance, the accounting team may have a specific number of hours they are allowed to work on certain days and the marketing team might have a different set of rules for their days off.
These types of features make the system easy for everyone to use and reduce the need for manual handling by admin staff. Moreover, these features can help prevent issues with overcrowding and reducing real estate costs.
Some desk booking solutions also have a mobile app, which can help employees to easily login and make bookings on the go. This can save employees a lot of time and help them avoid frustrations at overcrowded offices and meeting rooms.
A key feature that office managers should look for in a good desk booking solution is integration with other enterprise software. This can include things like Google Workplace, Microsoft Exchange/Outlook, Jira, Slack, and Microsoft Teams.
There are also many desk booking platforms that integrate with access control and building management software, which can help keep a company’s spaces safe and efficient. For example, Eden’s COVID Team Safety offering uses a biometric scan and card swiping to ensure that only people who have the right paperwork enter the building.
The right platform will also let you control access to areas based on policies and restrictions, create hot desks and desk hoteling, and manage events and large meetings. This can give you important insights into how spaces are used and allow you to manage them in the future.
