HOW?

The Building Blocks of the Hoteling System
Hoteling is a system. In order for it to be a successful system, all parts making up the system must be present and collaborated. A deficiency in any one part of the system can lead to failure.
FURNITURE
Furniture should be:
  • free-flowing
  • flexible (on wheels)
  • ergonomic
  • standardized (to prevent "midnight borrowing" and competition over specific work areas)
Source: Steelcase, Sensor Seating
TECHNOLOGY
Key words for technology:
  • state-of-the-art
  • speed
  • quality of connection
  • availability to all employees
Source: DELL Catalog, March 2001.
COMMUNICATION
Communication needs to:
  • be initaiated from the very beginning
  • be constant
  • include all employees
  • promote employee involvement
  • clarify organizational goals and protocols
  • provide feedback loops
MANAGEMENT ATTITUDES
Management needs to be:
  • CONSISTENT
  • accepting
  • ready to take risks
  • trusting
  • communicative
  • approachable
OFFICE LAYOUT
Some of the hoteling's space savings should be reallocated to support teamwork and informal interaction. It is imperative to recognize the fact that a primary reason why "hoteliers" come into the office is for:
  • scheduled meetings
  • group work sessions
  • informal interaction
  • "catching up"12
TRAINING
Training needs to be:
  • immediate
  • thorough
  • administered to ALL employees: old and new
RESERVATION SYSTEM
Hoteling reservation systems are key to ensuring that employees will have a workstation to work at when they come into the office.
Desk/Flex
by Nortel and PRM Inc.
  • web- or kiosk-based scheduling software
  • directs phone calls to assigned workstations
  • the program displays a floorplan of the office and highlights available workstations
  • only takes 10 seconds
  • www.deskflex.com13
3V Resource Reservation System
  • Internet/intranet or kiosk-based system
  • can reserve space, equipment, storage, and food
  • directs phone calls to assigned workstations
  • easy-to-use graphical interface of a clock and calender allows employees to point-and-click to reserve a space
  • www.agilquest.com5
FlexiMove
by IBM
  • web-based software
  • directs phone extensions, voice-mail, and message-waiting functions to assigned workstations
  • locates people online, regardless of where seated
  • www.as.ibm.cam/acas/fleximove5
HOTELING STAFF
Role of Office Maids:
  • bring personal files to assigned stations
  • make sure station is clean and equipped with all amenities
  • sometimes, set up employee's personal belongings and files!
STORAGE
Since employees do not have assigned space, they need somewhere to store personal files and other belongings necessary to them while working in the office.
Employees can reserve a space by:
  • calling a voice-mail system
  • calling the "concierge"
  • accessing the reservation system
Since storage space is very expensive ($1,000 worth per year based on the square footage they occupy!14), employees are usually limited to one of the following:
  • locker rooms
  • file cabinets
  • totes (mobile file cabinets that can be wheeled to any work station)
MEASURE & MONITOR
It is imperative to constantly measure and monitor the hoteling system so that any dysfunctional aspect can be immediately improved.
Measure results such as:
  • time saved
  • productivity
  • utilization
  • overall satisfaction
  • work effectiveness