---
title: "Activity based working"
url: https://doorjames.com/glossary/activity-based-working/
language: en
updated: 2026-09-22
type: glossary
section: resources
description: "Activity based working describes an office concept in which people choose their work setting by the task at hand – focus room, project area, collaboration zone or desk."
translations: de=https://doorjames.com/de/glossar/activity-based-working/
formats: https://doorjames.com/glossary/activity-based-working/index.md https://doorjames.com/glossary/activity-based-working/index.json https://doorjames.com/glossary/activity-based-working/index.jsonld
bookDemo: https://meet.doorjames.app/public-schedule/99469a6d66d20f7fdd5ee19182a8f8bd (30 min, Microsoft Teams)
---

# Activity based working

> Activity based working describes an office concept in which the work setting is chosen by activity rather than by person or department. The office provides different zones for that: focus desks, project areas, collaboration zones, phone booths and informal spaces. Desk sharing is the precondition, not the goal.

## The difference from desk sharing

Desk sharing answers who owns a desk – namely nobody permanently. Activity based working answers which kind of setting suits which task. The two are often confused because one rarely works without the other: zones for different activities presuppose that nobody claims a fixed seat.

## What it means for the software

When space is differentiated by activity, one asset type is no longer enough. You need attributes to filter by – quiet zone, screen setup, phone booth, project area for six people – and the ability to set different rules per zone: a focus pod is booked by the hour, a project area for a week.

## Typical pitfalls

The most common is a zone concept on paper that is not enforced in reality: if people take calls in the focus zone, it is no longer a focus zone. The second is too fine a grid – too many zone types overwhelm employees and administrators alike.

## Related pages

- [Desk sharing](https://doorjames.com/glossary/desk-sharing/)
- [Desk booking](https://doorjames.com/features/desk-booking/)
- [Parking & assets](https://doorjames.com/features/parking-and-assets/)

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