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Desk sharing
Desk sharing is an office concept in which desks are not permanently assigned but used by several people in turn and booked when needed.
In short
Desk sharing is an office concept in which desks are not permanently assigned to individuals but used in turn by several employees. Anyone coming to the office books a free desk – usually through software with an interactive floor plan. The number of desks is therefore lower than the number of employees.
Why organizations switch to desk sharing
The trigger is almost always economic: if employees are in the office two or three days a week on average, a permanently assigned desk stands empty half the time. At city-centre office rents that is a substantial sum. Desk sharing turns that observation into a concept: fewer desks than people, bookable flexibly.
The second, less frequently named reason is teamwork. Fixed desks cement the seating plan of the past; bookable desks allow people to regroup around projects.
What decides success in practice
Desk sharing rarely fails on software. It fails on three points: an unrealistic ratio, missing rules for peak days, and storage. A workable introduction clarifies in advance how many desks are planned per person, what happens on a busy Tuesday, and where personal belongings live – often in bookable lockers.
Related terms
Hot desking is often used synonymously but strictly means “first come, first served” without booking. Activity based working goes further: there the desk is not just shared but chosen by activity – focus room, project area, collaboration zone.
From the definition to your own offices
Terminology is where an evaluation starts, not where it ends. Thirty minutes with the product open turns the concept into your floor plan.