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What other problems does hot desking solve?
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Senior management at my company are talking about possibly introducing hot desking*, which might be introduced at the same time as an office move planned in a few months. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem.
What problems does hot desking strive to solve, apart from not having enough desks?
Does it actually solve those problems?
*From Wikipedia: "Hot desking is an office organization system which involves multiple workers using a single physical work station or surface during different time periods. The "desk" in the name refers to an office desk being shared by multiple office workers on different shifts as opposed to each staff member having their own personal desk."
work-environment offices office-layout
edited 19 mins ago
Dukeling
9,38332548
asked 1 hour ago
PunkUnicorn
564
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up vote
10
down vote
favorite
Senior management at my company are talking about possibly introducing hot desking*, which might be introduced at the same time as an office move planned in a few months. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem.
What problems does hot desking strive to solve, apart from not having enough desks?
Does it actually solve those problems?
*From Wikipedia: "Hot desking is an office organization system which involves multiple workers using a single physical work station or surface during different time periods. The "desk" in the name refers to an office desk being shared by multiple office workers on different shifts as opposed to each staff member having their own personal desk."
work-environment offices office-layout
edited 19 mins ago
Dukeling
9,38332548
asked 1 hour ago
PunkUnicorn
564
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PunkUnicorn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
4
The only real problem that is solved: how to minimize the cost of office space and office moves required as a company grows. Everything else is fluff.
– Joe Strazzere
1 hour ago
2
what is "hot desking"?
– BÈþòøћ
1 hour ago
@BÈþòøћ google.com/…
– GrumpyCrouton
56 mins ago
@BÈþòøћ when you don't have an assigned desk and you there either a daily/weekly desk chart or you just take a free desk when you get in
– SaggingRufus
51 mins ago
1
I included a definition of the term, "Hot desking", so people that are unaware of it's meaning (like myself) can quickly get up to speed
– DarkCygnus
30 mins ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
up vote
10
down vote
favorite
up vote
10
down vote
favorite
Senior management at my company are talking about possibly introducing hot desking*, which might be introduced at the same time as an office move planned in a few months. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem.
What problems does hot desking strive to solve, apart from not having enough desks?
Does it actually solve those problems?
*From Wikipedia: "Hot desking is an office organization system which involves multiple workers using a single physical work station or surface during different time periods. The "desk" in the name refers to an office desk being shared by multiple office workers on different shifts as opposed to each staff member having their own personal desk."
work-environment offices office-layout
edited 19 mins ago
Dukeling
9,38332548
asked 1 hour ago
PunkUnicorn
564
New contributor
PunkUnicorn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Senior management at my company are talking about possibly introducing hot desking*, which might be introduced at the same time as an office move planned in a few months. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem.
What problems does hot desking strive to solve, apart from not having enough desks?
Does it actually solve those problems?
*From Wikipedia: "Hot desking is an office organization system which involves multiple workers using a single physical work station or surface during different time periods. The "desk" in the name refers to an office desk being shared by multiple office workers on different shifts as opposed to each staff member having their own personal desk."
work-environment offices office-layout
work-environment offices office-layout
edited 19 mins ago
Dukeling
9,38332548
asked 1 hour ago
PunkUnicorn
564
New contributor
PunkUnicorn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 19 mins ago
Dukeling
9,38332548
asked 1 hour ago
PunkUnicorn
564
New contributor
PunkUnicorn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 19 mins ago
Dukeling
9,38332548
edited 19 mins ago
Dukeling
9,38332548
edited 19 mins ago
Dukeling
9,38332548
9,38332548
asked 1 hour ago
PunkUnicorn
564
New contributor
PunkUnicorn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 1 hour ago
PunkUnicorn
564
asked 1 hour ago
PunkUnicorn
564
564
New contributor
PunkUnicorn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
PunkUnicorn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
PunkUnicorn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
4
The only real problem that is solved: how to minimize the cost of office space and office moves required as a company grows. Everything else is fluff.
– Joe Strazzere
1 hour ago
2
what is "hot desking"?
– BÈþòøћ
1 hour ago
@BÈþòøћ google.com/…
– GrumpyCrouton
56 mins ago
@BÈþòøћ when you don't have an assigned desk and you there either a daily/weekly desk chart or you just take a free desk when you get in
– SaggingRufus
51 mins ago
1
I included a definition of the term, "Hot desking", so people that are unaware of it's meaning (like myself) can quickly get up to speed
– DarkCygnus
30 mins ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
4
The only real problem that is solved: how to minimize the cost of office space and office moves required as a company grows. Everything else is fluff.
– Joe Strazzere
1 hour ago
2
what is "hot desking"?
– BÈþòøћ
1 hour ago
@BÈþòøћ google.com/…
– GrumpyCrouton
56 mins ago
@BÈþòøћ when you don't have an assigned desk and you there either a daily/weekly desk chart or you just take a free desk when you get in
– SaggingRufus
51 mins ago
1
I included a definition of the term, "Hot desking", so people that are unaware of it's meaning (like myself) can quickly get up to speed
– DarkCygnus
30 mins ago
4
4
The only real problem that is solved: how to minimize the cost of office space and office moves required as a company grows. Everything else is fluff.
– Joe Strazzere
1 hour ago
The only real problem that is solved: how to minimize the cost of office space and office moves required as a company grows. Everything else is fluff.
– Joe Strazzere
1 hour ago
2
2
what is "hot desking"?
– BÈþòøћ
1 hour ago
what is "hot desking"?
– BÈþòøћ
1 hour ago
@BÈþòøћ google.com/…
– GrumpyCrouton
56 mins ago
@BÈþòøћ google.com/…
– GrumpyCrouton
56 mins ago
@BÈþòøћ when you don't have an assigned desk and you there either a daily/weekly desk chart or you just take a free desk when you get in
– SaggingRufus
51 mins ago
@BÈþòøћ when you don't have an assigned desk and you there either a daily/weekly desk chart or you just take a free desk when you get in
– SaggingRufus
51 mins ago
1
1
I included a definition of the term, "Hot desking", so people that are unaware of it's meaning (like myself) can quickly get up to speed
– DarkCygnus
30 mins ago
I included a definition of the term, "Hot desking", so people that are unaware of it's meaning (like myself) can quickly get up to speed
– DarkCygnus
30 mins ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
5 Answers
5
active
oldest
votes
up vote
15
down vote
Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems, no matter whether the office is too small or not.
I've worked at a company that had 20-40% fewer seats than employees. Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time. It was a drama. The most important part of the day was securing you had a chair.
Your company is probably expecting to grow. This could explain why they want to introduce the system already now.
Or maybe they just want people to "network more". But that's not the way to reach that.
answered 1 hour ago
385703
5,75831038
2
If the company believes that many of their employees are out on call, remote, or occasional office visitors, then they might believe they are reducing the footprint of the office space, by having desks to accommodate the attending employees, without reserved desks to accommodate the unlikely to be present employees. The problem is, at times when all hands meetings are held, you have too few desks under this plan for your employees.
– Edwin Buck
1 hour ago
2
@EdwinBuck, in the case of occasional office visitors, it's still better to have a few seats reserved for "occasional visitors" than make everybody fight for seats and take all their things with them every evening because some people aren't in the office most of the days.
– 385703
1 hour ago
1
I didn't have to read past "Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems" to agree. As good as the intentions might be for the company, I have yet to meet someone in person who found it a positive experience in the long run. Perhaps there are industries where there are more part-time workers where it actually does solve some problems?
– Kozaky
58 mins ago
"Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time" - that's just bad management. Hot desking can certainly resolve the problem of having less seats as long as there's a mechanism to report when people work from home to ensure that people who come in have a desk.
– UKMonkey
53 mins ago
@UKMonkey: We had such a mechanism. But still, many people seem to decide in the morning whether they will come or not. Also, the company didn't calculate the number of seats we needed appropriately. There were simply not enough seats for everybody.
– 385703
51 mins ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
up vote
5
down vote
Ask your management. They're the ones that implemented it.
Start with your boss. Tell her what you told us.
"Kate, I see that when we move to the new office we're going to be doing hot desking. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem. Do you know what's behind this decision?"
answered 1 hour ago
Andy Lester
998511
3
The question asks what problems hot-desking solve, so this seems more like a comment than an answer.
– Dukeling
26 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
5
down vote
I am not a fan of the hot desk principle, but here are a few reason why people might be for it:
- Tidier working area. If people can't keep their belongings at
their desk, the desks are typically clutter free - Fresh perspective. Some people actually think differently when
they are moved around. I don't, but I know people who claim where
they sit affect them - Collaboration with new people. Depending on your field, this may
encourage to work with more people than before and it could cause a
rise in productivity
Again, I am not for hot desking; these are just reasons I have heard in the past.
edited 21 mins ago
padd13ear
31
answered 1 hour ago
SaggingRufus
8,21652546
4. Smaller office space (eg 20% less chairs than people with the 20% working from home) requires hot desking.
– UKMonkey
51 mins ago
@UKMonkey that is correct, but OP asked for reasons other than that
– SaggingRufus
50 mins ago
I agree totally with this one. I'd only also add that it can be useful for organisations spanning several offices when organising meetings if there aren't any dedicated meeting/board rooms in said office.
– JTPenguin
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
Hot Desking is useful if team structure changes often, or if people are working from home for the majority of their time and their presence days can be coordinated company-wide. That's a lot of ifs.
I've seen exactly one working example for each of these:
one customer building test and measurement equipment organizes work items as short-lived projects, where they build teams with domain experts for each of the layers in their software stack (UI, remote control, settings data model, measurement data processing, hardware control). Each is chosen from a pool, and the team works together for a few weeks. Desks are allocated for the project duration, then switched around.
one customer has 80% home office as standard. Each team meets once per week in the office to coordinate and review. Desks are allocated to the team for this one day. Company laptops are standardized, and docking stations are provided on each desk, so people bring in their laptop only, no cables or accessories.
I've also seen it fail miserably in an environment where 50 people shared 40 desks. Basically, people showed up at 7 AM to get one of the free desks, then tried to stay awake using lots of coffee.
answered 30 mins ago
Simon Richter
26114
So what happened to the last 10 people who didn't get a free desk? "I guess you are working from home today, sorry about the wasted commute"? How does that last beyond day 1?
– Myles
41 secs ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
If some employees are not regularly at that office (e.g. mostly-remote workers), a hot desking system allows the desk space to be used more efficiently. I believe this was the original reason for the system; it allows the company to save on office space that goes unused.
On days when there are several people out (e.g. popular times of the year to take holidays), the ones who are in can sit closer together for collaboration instead of feeling like the place is a ghost town.
If people are on teams that change relatively often, or on multiple teams, they can have the close desk proximity to one team while they are working with that team, and then easily change when working with a different team (e.g. a different day or a different week) without disruption of moving offices.
If people aren't allowed to keep things at the desk, it also makes for a tidier workspace and reduces the probability that an important paper will get buried under a mound of others on someone's desk.
Of course, hotdesking introduces new challenges such as the time cost of getting things set up every day and having to access a closet or cubby for the things one might otherwise keep in/at/on a desk. However, forcing people to get up and walk around more might also reduce healthcare costs and associated loss in productivity from the health issues caused by long constant sitting.
answered 7 mins ago
WBT
8311916
add a comment |Â
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5 Answers
5
active
oldest
votes
5 Answers
5
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
15
down vote
Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems, no matter whether the office is too small or not.
I've worked at a company that had 20-40% fewer seats than employees. Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time. It was a drama. The most important part of the day was securing you had a chair.
Your company is probably expecting to grow. This could explain why they want to introduce the system already now.
Or maybe they just want people to "network more". But that's not the way to reach that.
answered 1 hour ago
385703
5,75831038
2
If the company believes that many of their employees are out on call, remote, or occasional office visitors, then they might believe they are reducing the footprint of the office space, by having desks to accommodate the attending employees, without reserved desks to accommodate the unlikely to be present employees. The problem is, at times when all hands meetings are held, you have too few desks under this plan for your employees.
– Edwin Buck
1 hour ago
2
@EdwinBuck, in the case of occasional office visitors, it's still better to have a few seats reserved for "occasional visitors" than make everybody fight for seats and take all their things with them every evening because some people aren't in the office most of the days.
– 385703
1 hour ago
1
I didn't have to read past "Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems" to agree. As good as the intentions might be for the company, I have yet to meet someone in person who found it a positive experience in the long run. Perhaps there are industries where there are more part-time workers where it actually does solve some problems?
– Kozaky
58 mins ago
"Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time" - that's just bad management. Hot desking can certainly resolve the problem of having less seats as long as there's a mechanism to report when people work from home to ensure that people who come in have a desk.
– UKMonkey
53 mins ago
@UKMonkey: We had such a mechanism. But still, many people seem to decide in the morning whether they will come or not. Also, the company didn't calculate the number of seats we needed appropriately. There were simply not enough seats for everybody.
– 385703
51 mins ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
up vote
15
down vote
Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems, no matter whether the office is too small or not.
I've worked at a company that had 20-40% fewer seats than employees. Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time. It was a drama. The most important part of the day was securing you had a chair.
Your company is probably expecting to grow. This could explain why they want to introduce the system already now.
Or maybe they just want people to "network more". But that's not the way to reach that.
answered 1 hour ago
385703
5,75831038
2
If the company believes that many of their employees are out on call, remote, or occasional office visitors, then they might believe they are reducing the footprint of the office space, by having desks to accommodate the attending employees, without reserved desks to accommodate the unlikely to be present employees. The problem is, at times when all hands meetings are held, you have too few desks under this plan for your employees.
– Edwin Buck
1 hour ago
2
@EdwinBuck, in the case of occasional office visitors, it's still better to have a few seats reserved for "occasional visitors" than make everybody fight for seats and take all their things with them every evening because some people aren't in the office most of the days.
– 385703
1 hour ago
1
I didn't have to read past "Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems" to agree. As good as the intentions might be for the company, I have yet to meet someone in person who found it a positive experience in the long run. Perhaps there are industries where there are more part-time workers where it actually does solve some problems?
– Kozaky
58 mins ago
"Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time" - that's just bad management. Hot desking can certainly resolve the problem of having less seats as long as there's a mechanism to report when people work from home to ensure that people who come in have a desk.
– UKMonkey
53 mins ago
@UKMonkey: We had such a mechanism. But still, many people seem to decide in the morning whether they will come or not. Also, the company didn't calculate the number of seats we needed appropriately. There were simply not enough seats for everybody.
– 385703
51 mins ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
up vote
15
down vote
up vote
15
down vote
Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems, no matter whether the office is too small or not.
I've worked at a company that had 20-40% fewer seats than employees. Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time. It was a drama. The most important part of the day was securing you had a chair.
Your company is probably expecting to grow. This could explain why they want to introduce the system already now.
Or maybe they just want people to "network more". But that's not the way to reach that.
answered 1 hour ago
385703
5,75831038
Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems, no matter whether the office is too small or not.
I've worked at a company that had 20-40% fewer seats than employees. Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time. It was a drama. The most important part of the day was securing you had a chair.
Your company is probably expecting to grow. This could explain why they want to introduce the system already now.
Or maybe they just want people to "network more". But that's not the way to reach that.
answered 1 hour ago
385703
5,75831038
answered 1 hour ago
385703
5,75831038
answered 1 hour ago
385703
5,75831038
answered 1 hour ago
385703
5,75831038
5,75831038
2
If the company believes that many of their employees are out on call, remote, or occasional office visitors, then they might believe they are reducing the footprint of the office space, by having desks to accommodate the attending employees, without reserved desks to accommodate the unlikely to be present employees. The problem is, at times when all hands meetings are held, you have too few desks under this plan for your employees.
– Edwin Buck
1 hour ago
2
@EdwinBuck, in the case of occasional office visitors, it's still better to have a few seats reserved for "occasional visitors" than make everybody fight for seats and take all their things with them every evening because some people aren't in the office most of the days.
– 385703
1 hour ago
1
I didn't have to read past "Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems" to agree. As good as the intentions might be for the company, I have yet to meet someone in person who found it a positive experience in the long run. Perhaps there are industries where there are more part-time workers where it actually does solve some problems?
– Kozaky
58 mins ago
"Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time" - that's just bad management. Hot desking can certainly resolve the problem of having less seats as long as there's a mechanism to report when people work from home to ensure that people who come in have a desk.
– UKMonkey
53 mins ago
@UKMonkey: We had such a mechanism. But still, many people seem to decide in the morning whether they will come or not. Also, the company didn't calculate the number of seats we needed appropriately. There were simply not enough seats for everybody.
– 385703
51 mins ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
2
If the company believes that many of their employees are out on call, remote, or occasional office visitors, then they might believe they are reducing the footprint of the office space, by having desks to accommodate the attending employees, without reserved desks to accommodate the unlikely to be present employees. The problem is, at times when all hands meetings are held, you have too few desks under this plan for your employees.
– Edwin Buck
1 hour ago
2
@EdwinBuck, in the case of occasional office visitors, it's still better to have a few seats reserved for "occasional visitors" than make everybody fight for seats and take all their things with them every evening because some people aren't in the office most of the days.
– 385703
1 hour ago
1
I didn't have to read past "Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems" to agree. As good as the intentions might be for the company, I have yet to meet someone in person who found it a positive experience in the long run. Perhaps there are industries where there are more part-time workers where it actually does solve some problems?
– Kozaky
58 mins ago
"Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time" - that's just bad management. Hot desking can certainly resolve the problem of having less seats as long as there's a mechanism to report when people work from home to ensure that people who come in have a desk.
– UKMonkey
53 mins ago
@UKMonkey: We had such a mechanism. But still, many people seem to decide in the morning whether they will come or not. Also, the company didn't calculate the number of seats we needed appropriately. There were simply not enough seats for everybody.
– 385703
51 mins ago
2
2
If the company believes that many of their employees are out on call, remote, or occasional office visitors, then they might believe they are reducing the footprint of the office space, by having desks to accommodate the attending employees, without reserved desks to accommodate the unlikely to be present employees. The problem is, at times when all hands meetings are held, you have too few desks under this plan for your employees.
– Edwin Buck
1 hour ago
If the company believes that many of their employees are out on call, remote, or occasional office visitors, then they might believe they are reducing the footprint of the office space, by having desks to accommodate the attending employees, without reserved desks to accommodate the unlikely to be present employees. The problem is, at times when all hands meetings are held, you have too few desks under this plan for your employees.
– Edwin Buck
1 hour ago
2
2
@EdwinBuck, in the case of occasional office visitors, it's still better to have a few seats reserved for "occasional visitors" than make everybody fight for seats and take all their things with them every evening because some people aren't in the office most of the days.
– 385703
1 hour ago
@EdwinBuck, in the case of occasional office visitors, it's still better to have a few seats reserved for "occasional visitors" than make everybody fight for seats and take all their things with them every evening because some people aren't in the office most of the days.
– 385703
1 hour ago
1
1
I didn't have to read past "Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems" to agree. As good as the intentions might be for the company, I have yet to meet someone in person who found it a positive experience in the long run. Perhaps there are industries where there are more part-time workers where it actually does solve some problems?
– Kozaky
58 mins ago
I didn't have to read past "Hotdesking doesn't solve any problems" to agree. As good as the intentions might be for the company, I have yet to meet someone in person who found it a positive experience in the long run. Perhaps there are industries where there are more part-time workers where it actually does solve some problems?
– Kozaky
58 mins ago
"Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time" - that's just bad management. Hot desking can certainly resolve the problem of having less seats as long as there's a mechanism to report when people work from home to ensure that people who come in have a desk.
– UKMonkey
53 mins ago
"Battles for chairs cost us (and company...) plenty of time" - that's just bad management. Hot desking can certainly resolve the problem of having less seats as long as there's a mechanism to report when people work from home to ensure that people who come in have a desk.
– UKMonkey
53 mins ago
@UKMonkey: We had such a mechanism. But still, many people seem to decide in the morning whether they will come or not. Also, the company didn't calculate the number of seats we needed appropriately. There were simply not enough seats for everybody.
– 385703
51 mins ago
@UKMonkey: We had such a mechanism. But still, many people seem to decide in the morning whether they will come or not. Also, the company didn't calculate the number of seats we needed appropriately. There were simply not enough seats for everybody.
– 385703
51 mins ago
 |Â
show 1 more comment
up vote
5
down vote
Ask your management. They're the ones that implemented it.
Start with your boss. Tell her what you told us.
"Kate, I see that when we move to the new office we're going to be doing hot desking. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem. Do you know what's behind this decision?"
answered 1 hour ago
Andy Lester
998511
3
The question asks what problems hot-desking solve, so this seems more like a comment than an answer.
– Dukeling
26 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
5
down vote
Ask your management. They're the ones that implemented it.
Start with your boss. Tell her what you told us.
"Kate, I see that when we move to the new office we're going to be doing hot desking. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem. Do you know what's behind this decision?"
answered 1 hour ago
Andy Lester
998511
3
The question asks what problems hot-desking solve, so this seems more like a comment than an answer.
– Dukeling
26 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
5
down vote
up vote
5
down vote
Ask your management. They're the ones that implemented it.
Start with your boss. Tell her what you told us.
"Kate, I see that when we move to the new office we're going to be doing hot desking. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem. Do you know what's behind this decision?"
answered 1 hour ago
Andy Lester
998511
Ask your management. They're the ones that implemented it.
Start with your boss. Tell her what you told us.
"Kate, I see that when we move to the new office we're going to be doing hot desking. The new location will be large enough to accommodate the company size; there will be enough desks for everyone, space is not a problem. Do you know what's behind this decision?"
answered 1 hour ago
Andy Lester
998511
answered 1 hour ago
Andy Lester
998511
answered 1 hour ago
Andy Lester
998511
answered 1 hour ago
Andy Lester
998511
998511
3
The question asks what problems hot-desking solve, so this seems more like a comment than an answer.
– Dukeling
26 mins ago
add a comment |Â
3
The question asks what problems hot-desking solve, so this seems more like a comment than an answer.
– Dukeling
26 mins ago
3
3
The question asks what problems hot-desking solve, so this seems more like a comment than an answer.
– Dukeling
26 mins ago
The question asks what problems hot-desking solve, so this seems more like a comment than an answer.
– Dukeling
26 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
5
down vote
I am not a fan of the hot desk principle, but here are a few reason why people might be for it:
- Tidier working area. If people can't keep their belongings at
their desk, the desks are typically clutter free - Fresh perspective. Some people actually think differently when
they are moved around. I don't, but I know people who claim where
they sit affect them - Collaboration with new people. Depending on your field, this may
encourage to work with more people than before and it could cause a
rise in productivity
Again, I am not for hot desking; these are just reasons I have heard in the past.
edited 21 mins ago
padd13ear
31
answered 1 hour ago
SaggingRufus
8,21652546
4. Smaller office space (eg 20% less chairs than people with the 20% working from home) requires hot desking.
– UKMonkey
51 mins ago
@UKMonkey that is correct, but OP asked for reasons other than that
– SaggingRufus
50 mins ago
I agree totally with this one. I'd only also add that it can be useful for organisations spanning several offices when organising meetings if there aren't any dedicated meeting/board rooms in said office.
– JTPenguin
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
5
down vote
I am not a fan of the hot desk principle, but here are a few reason why people might be for it:
- Tidier working area. If people can't keep their belongings at
their desk, the desks are typically clutter free - Fresh perspective. Some people actually think differently when
they are moved around. I don't, but I know people who claim where
they sit affect them - Collaboration with new people. Depending on your field, this may
encourage to work with more people than before and it could cause a
rise in productivity
Again, I am not for hot desking; these are just reasons I have heard in the past.
edited 21 mins ago
padd13ear
31
answered 1 hour ago
SaggingRufus
8,21652546
4. Smaller office space (eg 20% less chairs than people with the 20% working from home) requires hot desking.
– UKMonkey
51 mins ago
@UKMonkey that is correct, but OP asked for reasons other than that
– SaggingRufus
50 mins ago
I agree totally with this one. I'd only also add that it can be useful for organisations spanning several offices when organising meetings if there aren't any dedicated meeting/board rooms in said office.
– JTPenguin
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
5
down vote
up vote
5
down vote
I am not a fan of the hot desk principle, but here are a few reason why people might be for it:
- Tidier working area. If people can't keep their belongings at
their desk, the desks are typically clutter free - Fresh perspective. Some people actually think differently when
they are moved around. I don't, but I know people who claim where
they sit affect them - Collaboration with new people. Depending on your field, this may
encourage to work with more people than before and it could cause a
rise in productivity
Again, I am not for hot desking; these are just reasons I have heard in the past.
edited 21 mins ago
padd13ear
31
answered 1 hour ago
SaggingRufus
8,21652546
I am not a fan of the hot desk principle, but here are a few reason why people might be for it:
- Tidier working area. If people can't keep their belongings at
their desk, the desks are typically clutter free - Fresh perspective. Some people actually think differently when
they are moved around. I don't, but I know people who claim where
they sit affect them - Collaboration with new people. Depending on your field, this may
encourage to work with more people than before and it could cause a
rise in productivity
Again, I am not for hot desking; these are just reasons I have heard in the past.
edited 21 mins ago
padd13ear
31
answered 1 hour ago
SaggingRufus
8,21652546
edited 21 mins ago
padd13ear
31
edited 21 mins ago
padd13ear
31
edited 21 mins ago
padd13ear
31
31
answered 1 hour ago
SaggingRufus
8,21652546
answered 1 hour ago
SaggingRufus
8,21652546
answered 1 hour ago
SaggingRufus
8,21652546
8,21652546
4. Smaller office space (eg 20% less chairs than people with the 20% working from home) requires hot desking.
– UKMonkey
51 mins ago
@UKMonkey that is correct, but OP asked for reasons other than that
– SaggingRufus
50 mins ago
I agree totally with this one. I'd only also add that it can be useful for organisations spanning several offices when organising meetings if there aren't any dedicated meeting/board rooms in said office.
– JTPenguin
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
4. Smaller office space (eg 20% less chairs than people with the 20% working from home) requires hot desking.
– UKMonkey
51 mins ago
@UKMonkey that is correct, but OP asked for reasons other than that
– SaggingRufus
50 mins ago
I agree totally with this one. I'd only also add that it can be useful for organisations spanning several offices when organising meetings if there aren't any dedicated meeting/board rooms in said office.
– JTPenguin
3 mins ago
4. Smaller office space (eg 20% less chairs than people with the 20% working from home) requires hot desking.
– UKMonkey
51 mins ago
4. Smaller office space (eg 20% less chairs than people with the 20% working from home) requires hot desking.
– UKMonkey
51 mins ago
@UKMonkey that is correct, but OP asked for reasons other than that
– SaggingRufus
50 mins ago
@UKMonkey that is correct, but OP asked for reasons other than that
– SaggingRufus
50 mins ago
I agree totally with this one. I'd only also add that it can be useful for organisations spanning several offices when organising meetings if there aren't any dedicated meeting/board rooms in said office.
– JTPenguin
3 mins ago
I agree totally with this one. I'd only also add that it can be useful for organisations spanning several offices when organising meetings if there aren't any dedicated meeting/board rooms in said office.
– JTPenguin
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
Hot Desking is useful if team structure changes often, or if people are working from home for the majority of their time and their presence days can be coordinated company-wide. That's a lot of ifs.
I've seen exactly one working example for each of these:
one customer building test and measurement equipment organizes work items as short-lived projects, where they build teams with domain experts for each of the layers in their software stack (UI, remote control, settings data model, measurement data processing, hardware control). Each is chosen from a pool, and the team works together for a few weeks. Desks are allocated for the project duration, then switched around.
one customer has 80% home office as standard. Each team meets once per week in the office to coordinate and review. Desks are allocated to the team for this one day. Company laptops are standardized, and docking stations are provided on each desk, so people bring in their laptop only, no cables or accessories.
I've also seen it fail miserably in an environment where 50 people shared 40 desks. Basically, people showed up at 7 AM to get one of the free desks, then tried to stay awake using lots of coffee.
answered 30 mins ago
Simon Richter
26114
So what happened to the last 10 people who didn't get a free desk? "I guess you are working from home today, sorry about the wasted commute"? How does that last beyond day 1?
– Myles
41 secs ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
Hot Desking is useful if team structure changes often, or if people are working from home for the majority of their time and their presence days can be coordinated company-wide. That's a lot of ifs.
I've seen exactly one working example for each of these:
one customer building test and measurement equipment organizes work items as short-lived projects, where they build teams with domain experts for each of the layers in their software stack (UI, remote control, settings data model, measurement data processing, hardware control). Each is chosen from a pool, and the team works together for a few weeks. Desks are allocated for the project duration, then switched around.
one customer has 80% home office as standard. Each team meets once per week in the office to coordinate and review. Desks are allocated to the team for this one day. Company laptops are standardized, and docking stations are provided on each desk, so people bring in their laptop only, no cables or accessories.
I've also seen it fail miserably in an environment where 50 people shared 40 desks. Basically, people showed up at 7 AM to get one of the free desks, then tried to stay awake using lots of coffee.
answered 30 mins ago
Simon Richter
26114
So what happened to the last 10 people who didn't get a free desk? "I guess you are working from home today, sorry about the wasted commute"? How does that last beyond day 1?
– Myles
41 secs ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
up vote
1
down vote
Hot Desking is useful if team structure changes often, or if people are working from home for the majority of their time and their presence days can be coordinated company-wide. That's a lot of ifs.
I've seen exactly one working example for each of these:
one customer building test and measurement equipment organizes work items as short-lived projects, where they build teams with domain experts for each of the layers in their software stack (UI, remote control, settings data model, measurement data processing, hardware control). Each is chosen from a pool, and the team works together for a few weeks. Desks are allocated for the project duration, then switched around.
one customer has 80% home office as standard. Each team meets once per week in the office to coordinate and review. Desks are allocated to the team for this one day. Company laptops are standardized, and docking stations are provided on each desk, so people bring in their laptop only, no cables or accessories.
I've also seen it fail miserably in an environment where 50 people shared 40 desks. Basically, people showed up at 7 AM to get one of the free desks, then tried to stay awake using lots of coffee.
answered 30 mins ago
Simon Richter
26114
Hot Desking is useful if team structure changes often, or if people are working from home for the majority of their time and their presence days can be coordinated company-wide. That's a lot of ifs.
I've seen exactly one working example for each of these:
one customer building test and measurement equipment organizes work items as short-lived projects, where they build teams with domain experts for each of the layers in their software stack (UI, remote control, settings data model, measurement data processing, hardware control). Each is chosen from a pool, and the team works together for a few weeks. Desks are allocated for the project duration, then switched around.
one customer has 80% home office as standard. Each team meets once per week in the office to coordinate and review. Desks are allocated to the team for this one day. Company laptops are standardized, and docking stations are provided on each desk, so people bring in their laptop only, no cables or accessories.
I've also seen it fail miserably in an environment where 50 people shared 40 desks. Basically, people showed up at 7 AM to get one of the free desks, then tried to stay awake using lots of coffee.
answered 30 mins ago
Simon Richter
26114
answered 30 mins ago
Simon Richter
26114
answered 30 mins ago
Simon Richter
26114
answered 30 mins ago
Simon Richter
26114
26114
So what happened to the last 10 people who didn't get a free desk? "I guess you are working from home today, sorry about the wasted commute"? How does that last beyond day 1?
– Myles
41 secs ago
add a comment |Â
So what happened to the last 10 people who didn't get a free desk? "I guess you are working from home today, sorry about the wasted commute"? How does that last beyond day 1?
– Myles
41 secs ago
So what happened to the last 10 people who didn't get a free desk? "I guess you are working from home today, sorry about the wasted commute"? How does that last beyond day 1?
– Myles
41 secs ago
So what happened to the last 10 people who didn't get a free desk? "I guess you are working from home today, sorry about the wasted commute"? How does that last beyond day 1?
– Myles
41 secs ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
If some employees are not regularly at that office (e.g. mostly-remote workers), a hot desking system allows the desk space to be used more efficiently. I believe this was the original reason for the system; it allows the company to save on office space that goes unused.
On days when there are several people out (e.g. popular times of the year to take holidays), the ones who are in can sit closer together for collaboration instead of feeling like the place is a ghost town.
If people are on teams that change relatively often, or on multiple teams, they can have the close desk proximity to one team while they are working with that team, and then easily change when working with a different team (e.g. a different day or a different week) without disruption of moving offices.
If people aren't allowed to keep things at the desk, it also makes for a tidier workspace and reduces the probability that an important paper will get buried under a mound of others on someone's desk.
Of course, hotdesking introduces new challenges such as the time cost of getting things set up every day and having to access a closet or cubby for the things one might otherwise keep in/at/on a desk. However, forcing people to get up and walk around more might also reduce healthcare costs and associated loss in productivity from the health issues caused by long constant sitting.
answered 7 mins ago
WBT
8311916
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
If some employees are not regularly at that office (e.g. mostly-remote workers), a hot desking system allows the desk space to be used more efficiently. I believe this was the original reason for the system; it allows the company to save on office space that goes unused.
On days when there are several people out (e.g. popular times of the year to take holidays), the ones who are in can sit closer together for collaboration instead of feeling like the place is a ghost town.
If people are on teams that change relatively often, or on multiple teams, they can have the close desk proximity to one team while they are working with that team, and then easily change when working with a different team (e.g. a different day or a different week) without disruption of moving offices.
If people aren't allowed to keep things at the desk, it also makes for a tidier workspace and reduces the probability that an important paper will get buried under a mound of others on someone's desk.
Of course, hotdesking introduces new challenges such as the time cost of getting things set up every day and having to access a closet or cubby for the things one might otherwise keep in/at/on a desk. However, forcing people to get up and walk around more might also reduce healthcare costs and associated loss in productivity from the health issues caused by long constant sitting.
answered 7 mins ago
WBT
8311916
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
up vote
0
down vote
If some employees are not regularly at that office (e.g. mostly-remote workers), a hot desking system allows the desk space to be used more efficiently. I believe this was the original reason for the system; it allows the company to save on office space that goes unused.
On days when there are several people out (e.g. popular times of the year to take holidays), the ones who are in can sit closer together for collaboration instead of feeling like the place is a ghost town.
If people are on teams that change relatively often, or on multiple teams, they can have the close desk proximity to one team while they are working with that team, and then easily change when working with a different team (e.g. a different day or a different week) without disruption of moving offices.
If people aren't allowed to keep things at the desk, it also makes for a tidier workspace and reduces the probability that an important paper will get buried under a mound of others on someone's desk.
Of course, hotdesking introduces new challenges such as the time cost of getting things set up every day and having to access a closet or cubby for the things one might otherwise keep in/at/on a desk. However, forcing people to get up and walk around more might also reduce healthcare costs and associated loss in productivity from the health issues caused by long constant sitting.
answered 7 mins ago
WBT
8311916
If some employees are not regularly at that office (e.g. mostly-remote workers), a hot desking system allows the desk space to be used more efficiently. I believe this was the original reason for the system; it allows the company to save on office space that goes unused.
On days when there are several people out (e.g. popular times of the year to take holidays), the ones who are in can sit closer together for collaboration instead of feeling like the place is a ghost town.
If people are on teams that change relatively often, or on multiple teams, they can have the close desk proximity to one team while they are working with that team, and then easily change when working with a different team (e.g. a different day or a different week) without disruption of moving offices.
If people aren't allowed to keep things at the desk, it also makes for a tidier workspace and reduces the probability that an important paper will get buried under a mound of others on someone's desk.
Of course, hotdesking introduces new challenges such as the time cost of getting things set up every day and having to access a closet or cubby for the things one might otherwise keep in/at/on a desk. However, forcing people to get up and walk around more might also reduce healthcare costs and associated loss in productivity from the health issues caused by long constant sitting.
answered 7 mins ago
WBT
8311916
answered 7 mins ago
WBT
8311916
answered 7 mins ago
WBT
8311916
answered 7 mins ago
WBT
8311916
8311916
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
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4
The only real problem that is solved: how to minimize the cost of office space and office moves required as a company grows. Everything else is fluff.
– Joe Strazzere
1 hour ago
2
what is "hot desking"?
– BÈþòøћ
1 hour ago
@BÈþòøћ google.com/…
– GrumpyCrouton
56 mins ago
@BÈþòøћ when you don't have an assigned desk and you there either a daily/weekly desk chart or you just take a free desk when you get in
– SaggingRufus
51 mins ago
1
I included a definition of the term, "Hot desking", so people that are unaware of it's meaning (like myself) can quickly get up to speed
– DarkCygnus
30 mins ago