Property Paradox: Space for Office Workers Continues to Decline, Even as Companies Expect Hiring to Increase in Months Ahead, Marketwatch, August 6, 2013

Survey Conducted by CoreNet Global Indicates "Collaborative Space Bubble" May be Looming

ATLANTA, Aug 06, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE via COMTEX) -- The average amount of space per office worker globally has dropped to 150 square feet or less, from 225 square feet in 2010, according to a recent global survey conducted by CoreNet Global, a leading association of corporate real estate managers at large companies throughout the world. The study is part of CoreNet Global's ongoing advocacy of quality working environments and work experiences, and the group's call to action to measure quality of life per square foot.

At the same time, companies in the survey indicated that employment levels will increase in the second half of 2013 - triggering a "property paradox," in which more workers are using less individual space.

The survey underscores how today's increasing mix of workers in the office and teleworking, assigned to team and individual projects, along with the rapid emergence of space-on-demand, co-working and other 'third places,' is combining to enable the balance of less space per office worker while more jobs are added.

Because of these fast-changing trends, CoreNet Global continues to advocate that companies create and implement workplace strategies that are integrated with the goals and business plans of the enterprise and that address the needs of employees and the type of work that is being performed. . .

Nearly two-thirds of companies responding to the survey report the average space per person is currently 150 square feet or less. Slightly over half of the respondents project an average of 100 square feet or less per worker as the norm in five years.

A leading factor is the monumental shift among corporate offices toward open space floor plans with fewer assigned cubes and assigned individual offices. In the survey, more than 80 percent of the respondents said their company has moved in this direction. . . . 

The press release goes on to state that the downward trend in office space per worker appears to be reaching an endpoint as the balance between space for "focus work" and "collaborative work" appears to nearing. 

Trends or not, Fairfax County continues to plan for 300GSF per office worker--twice that detailed in this survey.