Discover the ultimate guide to selecting the perfect workplace booking system with our comprehensive comparison. At Plan B Solutions, we understand that every organization has unique needs when it comes to managing their workspace efficiently. Our detailed analysis of the leading workplace booking systems across 10 key functional categories will empower you to make an informed decision. Whether it’s ease of use, pan-estate searching, or intelligent workplace sharing models, our comparison highlights the strengths and weaknesses of each system, ensuring you find the best fit for your workplace. Dive into the details and transform your workspace management today!
| A Comparison of the Leading Workplace Booking Systems across 10 Key Functional Categories | 5-Stars = Leading Solution 3-Stars = Good Solution 1-Star = Weak Area | |||||||||
| The ability to book multiple different resource types, from interactive floor plans, and calendar views showing gaps – not bookings, across multiple access points and with good levels of configurability are already assumed… | ||||||||||
| The first learning is that even the leading workplace booking systems are very different from each other. Every desk booking system has its strengths—the challenge is to choose the one that best complements how you want your workplace to work | ||||||||||
| NOTE: Which Functional Categories which are the most important for an individual implementation depend upon the specific requirements of that implementation | ||||||||||
| # | Category | Summary | Why is this important? | Booking System 1 | Booking System 2 | Booking System 3 | Booking System 4 | Booking System 5 | Booking System 6 | Booking System 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ease of Use | Overall… does it work well, does it make it easy for staff to search for and book what they want and does it fully integrate with the organisation’s existing systems? | An easy to use solution, from system login to resource check-out, will ensure that staff engage with the solution – they will find it easier to get what they want in the workplace more by using the system than by avoiding using the system. This will ensure that staff will rely on the booking system, trust what it says and continue to work with it – AND Estates and Facilities can trust the utilisation data it provides. |
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| 2 | Pan-Estate Searching | Are you able to immediately identify where there are spaces available that match your space specification / date / time requirements – even in a multi-site solution? | If a system makes you search every building one at a time then it’s not built for the future and it’s not built for the way large organisations work post-COVID. Imagine the frustration of searching one building at a time for what you want, only to find after separately searching every building that there is no availability for what you want in any building – then you have to change the date and/or time and start all over again. Nightmare! |
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| 3 | Support for Intelligent Workplace Sharing Models | What we look for is a suite of features designed to support different workplace operating models – how the desk sharing environment is designed to be shared – to achieve high in-team collaboration and minimise dead space. | Simply making desks bookable without addressing underlying space sharing operational inefficiencies will not turn a poorly performing office into a smart one. Our evidence shows that – compared with team zones – our latest workplace operating models facilitate MORE individual productivity and MORE team collaboration in 40% LESS workplace. |
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| 4 | Accurate Workplace Utilisation Tracking | This is utilisation tracking (not tracking of booking levels). Typically an intelligent booking system will support this through the deployment of a ‘check-in’ type functionality. | Implementations vary and can have considerable consequences for the likely accuracy of the reported utilisation figures. Accuracy is crucial – after all, you can’t manage what you can’t (accurately) measure. |
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| 5 | Two-Tier Workplace Avoidance Behaviour ‘Nudging’ |
Strong solutions will have a set of measures in place that ensure individuals (and teams) cannot perform block booking – i.e. desk ownership – by the back door. If desks are required to be shared because there is more people than desks then there cannot be the provision for staff to ‘own’ spaces – by simply getting to the booking system first. | If your booking system allows the workplace to become one where there are the ‘Haves’ and the ‘Have Nots’ then the solution is not working – because this means that an ever increasing number of desks will be the territory of individuals and the remaining, shrinking pool of shared desks will be shared by those staff who are trying to use the workplace in the right way. Abusers of the system are rewarded, good corporate citizens are punished, two groups of staff are set against each other and soon the solution completely fails. |
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| 6 | Powerful ‘Lattice’ Management Capabilities | Having three or so fixed settings – User, Super-User and Administrator won’t cut it in multi-site implementations, and are a definite no-go in the multi-organisational solutions like GovHub designed by Plan B Solutions for estate economy and sharing between public sector partners. | Highly configurable vertical and horizontal user and administration rights – the ‘lattice’ effect – ensures appropriate privileges everywhere so that all users are equal and abuses – which set user groups against each other – are not permitted. | *** | * | ***** | * | ***** | *** | *** |
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| 8 | ** | *** | * | **** | ***** | ** | *** | |||
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| 10 | ***** | ** | **** | *** | ** | * | **** | |||
Now that you've explored the intricacies of each booking system, it's time to take the next step towards optimising your workplace. At Plan B Solutions, we are committed to helping you create a seamless and efficient work environment. Our expert consultants are ready to assist you in implementing the ideal booking system tailored to your specific needs. Don't let inefficiencies hold your organisation back—embrace the future of workplace management with confidence.
Ready to revolutionize your workspace? Contact Us Today to learn more about how we can support your journey to a smarter, more productive workplace.