A new report finds that offices are dwindling in size while companies use less and less of their occupied space.
According to the 2022 Office Space Report from workplace software firm Robin Powered, 46% of businesses are using just half of the office space they own or are leasing. Additionally, 48% said they are using less space than they did pre-pandemic.
“What makes this even more significant is that 60% of those currently utilizing half of their office space or less had already downsized their original space from before the pandemic,” the report stated.
This number is expected to grow even further, with the report showing that 46% of respondents said they would continue reducing their office footprint next year. Of these businesses, 59% said they will slash half or more of their office space.
For those operating under a hybrid arrangement, 83% are doing so to slash their costs, with 73% stating they would switch to this model before taking other cost-cutting measures.
“There is no one-size-fits-all solution,” said David Smith, head of occupier research at Cushman & Wakefield.
“In some cases, occupiers have expanded their footprints because they have been hiring and see this as an opportunity to lock in high-quality space at attractive long-term rates. In other situations, occupiers have reduced the size of their office space, many times upgrading the quality of the building and space in the process.”
