Hot Desking

An office has 60 desks and 100 employees, with only part of the team attending on a typical day, so people choose a suitable free desk when they arrive. If 90 arrive on the same day, the arrangement still fails without enough capacity.

WeWork describes hot desks as non-dedicated workspaces distinct from permanently assigned desks, and its commercial perspective helps define the term but does not prove savings for a particular employer. Acas's accessibility guidance emphasises making workplaces usable and meeting relevant adjustment duties in its UK context, and a hot-desk rule should not erase an agreed specialised setup, since local obligations vary.

Some workers may need an adjustable setup, assistive equipment or a reliably available location, so agree accommodations through the proper process rather than forcing a daily scramble. Start with attendance data by counting actual peak-day and peak-hour use by team and location, because an average of 50 attendees can hide a Tuesday peak of 85.

Set a capacity rule that counts usable workstations, not every chair in a lobby, since reservable desks, quiet areas and collaboration tables serve different activities. Choose walk-in or booking, remembering that walk-in desks are flexible but uncertain, while reservations help planning but need a release rule for no-shows.

Provide equipment, because monitors, docks, power, network access and ergonomic chairs should work across stations so employees do not waste the first hour searching for adapters. Protect focus work and confidentiality by offering quiet space and meeting rooms, since open seating near a sales team may be unsuitable for confidential calls or detailed writing and a screen visible to passing visitors can expose customer records.

Define clean-desk practice and provide lockers where needed, because workers should remove personal documents and secure devices at the end of a shift without carrying equipment and private notes home every day. Keep teams connected, because if everyone sits wherever a desk is free new colleagues may struggle to find their manager, and team zones or planned overlap days can help without requiring assigned seats.

Include visitor days and onboarding in the capacity forecast, since a new hire may need a predictable desk near a mentor and a client meeting can temporarily fill shared rooms. Set an escalation path so that if all suitable desks are occupied an employee has an immediate alternative rather than a vague instruction to find somewhere else.

Measure utilisation carefully: an illustrative peak occupancy rate is occupied usable desks divided by available usable desks at a chosen moment, so 72 of 80 in use is 90%. A low average occupancy does not automatically mean excessive space, as desks may be needed for high-attendance days, training or accessible reservations, and possible rent savings must be weighed against booking software, lockers, equipment duplication, cleaning, fit-out and staff time.

Distinguish desk sharing from remote policy, pilot before changing a lease by comparing booking logs with observed use (sensor or booking data alone may misclassify breaks and meetings), and ask whether staff can find a desk, connect equipment and perform focused work, because a cost saving that damages work quality may be false economy.