Flexible office planning for teams: More than 80% of Australian companies offer part-time work as flexible arrangements.; Use concurrent-use calculations to estimate desk needs when people work together in person.; Match spaces to work types: concentrated work, calls, meetings and equipment use.
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Workspace Security

Flexible office planning for teams

Plan a team office around shared work, attendance, suitable spaces and location access, then review how the arrangement works.

Desk Operations · · 5 min read

Plan a flexible office around the work people must do together, the days they attend and the space they can reliably use. Decide what must happen in person before choosing desks, rooms or locations.

Define what the office must support

List individual work, team sessions, client visits, private conversations and tasks that need equipment on site. Record who must attend each activity, how often it happens and whether those people need to be there together.

Check current working arrangements and discuss proposed changes with affected employees before changing office days or locations.

Allow for changing work patterns

Flexible arrangements can involve different workstyles and attendance days. Sensa Interiors, citing Statista research, reports that more than 80% of Australian companies offer part-time work as part of flexible arrangements and more than 50% offer flexitime. Treat these figures as context, not as a forecast of your team’s attendance: use your own agreed work patterns to plan capacity.

Review whether the workplace can support a mix of individual work, collaboration and remote participation as team needs change. An adaptive environment can use modular furniture and spaces that accommodate different team sizes and activities.

Australian Flexible Work Trends (2026)

Part-time work offered
80% of Australian companies
Flexitime offered
50%+ of Australian companies
Working from home supported
As per ATO guidelines on remote work arrangements

Plan for people present together

Use attendance by day and, where useful, by time of day. Start with the busiest repeatable pattern, then examine planned team days, new starters and other credible changes. Keep uncertain assumptions visible. The desk estimate needs to cover people who require a work point at the same time; a meeting may also create desk demand before and after it.

Treat desks and meeting space separately. Spare desks cannot replace a room needed for a group discussion, and people attending a workshop do not all need desks during the workshop. The separate desk-estimation article develops the concurrent-use calculation.

Match spaces to the work

Decide where people will focus, make calls, work together and meet visitors. Check whether those uses can coexist on a busy day. Shared workstations need to suit the people using them, including their setup and adjustment needs.

Work pattern / Planning question

Concentrated work
Can people find a suitable work point when they arrive?
Calls and group work
Where can people speak without disrupting quiet work?
Team and visitor meetings
Is suitable space available when the group needs it?
Equipment and materials
Where can they be used and kept between visits?

The shared-workspace article covers the daily allocation rules and layout decisions in more detail.

Make the space adaptable

Check that the technology and infrastructure support the work planned for each setting, including remote collaboration where needed. An accessible workplace with room for cross-functional interaction can help people use new tools together; reliable connectivity matters when colleagues are joining from elsewhere. Consider these needs alongside the physical space so a flexible location can support the work, not just provide a place to sit.

Plan for changes in group size and activity without making every area serve every purpose. Flexible meeting spaces and communal areas can support collaboration, while the ability to move between spaces or withdraw can suit different workstyles. Use these as options in the overall space mix, then check that they remain workable on the team’s busiest shared days.

Choose the location model

One hub may give the team a dependable gathering place. Several flexible locations may suit smaller groups working in different areas. Neither model guarantees shorter journeys, lower spending or room for the whole team.

Compare the same ordinary week and shared days under each option, using the access rights in the proposed offers. If the team will use several sites, identify where everyone will meet when necessary.

Flexible Office Models: Hub vs. Multiple Locations

  • One Hub LocationProvides a dependable gathering place; ideal for team cohesion and consistent access. May not reduce travel or costs if distant from some employees.
  • Multiple Flexible LocationsSuits smaller groups across regions; supports local access but requires coordination for shared team days.

Set operating rules and review them

Explain how people find a desk, request a room and resolve a clash. Give someone responsibility for recurring shortages and for contacting the workspace operator about access or facility failures. Account for agreed working hours and individual requirements when setting allocation rules.

Discuss proposed changes with affected workers, including work arrangements and facilities. If the plan includes working from home, include that setting in the planning discussion.

Before committing, ask for written confirmation of the space, users, hours and booking rights the plan depends on. If possible, introduce the arrangement in stages. Record shortages and unsuitable work points, then review the plan when recurring problems or changes in the team show that it needs adjusting.

Planning a Flexible Office: Key Steps

  • Define office-supported activitiesList individual, team, client and equipment-based tasks with attendance requirements.
  • Review current and proposed arrangements with staffConsult affected employees before changing office days or locations.
  • Confirm space, users, hours and booking rights in writingBefore committing to the plan.
  • Introduce changes in stagesMonitor shortages and unsuitable work points, then review as needed.

Review against changing needs

Review whether changes in workforce needs or technology have altered the mix of settings the team needs. Update the plan and its operating assumptions if they have.

Adapting the Workspace for Changing Needs

  1. Identify workforce or tech changesMonitor shifts in team size, hybrid patterns or new collaboration tools.
  2. Reassess space mix and allocation rulesCheck if current layout supports new work patterns.
  3. Update operating assumptionsRevise desk estimates, meeting room needs and access protocols.
  4. Communicate and revalidateDiscuss updates with teams and obtain feedback before finalising.

In this guide

  1. Estimating desks from actual attendance patternsEstimate team desks from simultaneous attendance, regular peaks and planned changes, with a clearly hypothetical worked example.
  2. Planning shared workspace for a hybrid teamAssign shared desks, quiet work, calls and group activities clear spaces and rules for a hybrid team's office days.
  3. Comparing one office hub with several flexible locationsCompare one team hub with several flexible sites using shared-work needs, confirmed access rights and busy-day scenarios.

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