Hot desking has been kind of a hot topic for a while now. Yes, you heard right - hot desking. It’s a trend popular among management as well as coworkers and it doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon. Don’t worry, we’ll explain exactly what it entails and why you should give it a go.
So, what is it?
Basically, hot desking is a workplace structure you can apply to your office. Maybe this goes without saying but in the centre of this structure stands the desk. Hot desking allows coworkers to share desks as opposed to everyone having their own. Some say it stems from the expression “hot racking”, which is when sailors sleep in the same bunks but at different times based on their shifts. It lets you step into the office in the morning and book a desk that’s available.
Pros of hot desking
Why should you try it then? Well, because there are a lot of pros to hot desking. And the pros are not just organizational; they're personal as well.
Hot desking means:
1. Increased collaboration
If there is one thing we know it’s that collaboration is beneficial for organizational success, as well as personal growth. Hot desking makes you move around more and talk to people you might not have talked to normally and enables more collaboration.
2. Room for everyone
If you’re an office that has a lot of people coming and going hot desking is perfect for you. Let’s say some of your coworkers work from home sometimes or visits from offices in other cities, they can book a desk, work among their coworkers and feel just as welcome as everyone else.
3. Better safety
With the help of hot desking you can make sure your office is safer for your coworkers. You can make sure people don’t sit too close to each other and minimize the risk of spreading viruses. Basically it can help you with social distancing in the office.
If you want to know more about this, check out our guide about how to return to the office.
4. Shared knowledge
Another hot desking pro is that knowledge travels better through the office. When you only sit in one place all the time the discussions and exchanges only happen with the people around you. By hot desking knowledge travels further and faster.
5. Cleaner desks
When you don’t “own” the desk, you have to clean it before you leave. It improves the whole impression of the office and has positive effects on productivity. At Meetio we have a “clean desk policy” – check it out!
6. Being your own boss (for a little bit...)
You decide where you sit and when you sit there. It’s more flexible and gives you more independence.
7. Money saved
Optimizing your space by hot desking actually saves you money. In some cases up to 30%. Money that could be spent on much more useful things.
Don’t forget that everyone isn’t cut from the same cloth. Some of your coworkers could perceive hot desking as stressful and might want more comfort and security. Don’t ignore that, hear everyone out and think about what could be done to benefit everyone. Save some space for those who want to have their fixed desk and implement hot desking section by section to make sure everyone is happy.
To get an even more comprehensive guide to hot desking – download our guide below!
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