The professional landscape is in constant flux. Recent global shifts have fundamentally altered our approach to work, leading a significant number of organizations to embrace various forms of flexible working.
Our comprehensive guide to office and workplace terminology will help you navigate the nuances of renting office space and understand all the terms you might encounter.
Activity-Based Work Solutions (ABW): A workspace strategically designed to accommodate diverse working styles and tasks. It may integrate dedicated desks with meeting areas, soundproof phone booths, collaborative brainstorming zones, and open coworking spaces.
Agile working: Often used interchangeably with flexible working, agile workers enjoy a degree of autonomy over their work location and schedule, balancing time spent in the office with remote work.
Air quality: Refers to the level of purity within an office environment, indicating its freedom from pollutants. Factors such as air conditioning systems, proximity to vehicle traffic, ventilation efficiency, and humidity levels can all influence an office’s air quality.
Amenities: The supplementary facilities provided with an office. These can include, but are not limited to, high-speed WiFi, shower facilities, secure bicycle storage, dedicated event spaces, private phone booths, fitness centers, meditation rooms, and coffee machines.
Assigned workspace: A desk specifically allocated for an individual’s exclusive, continuous use, as opposed to a hot-desking arrangement.
Biophilic design: An interior design approach that incorporates elements of the natural world. This includes features like living plants, abundant natural light, textures derived from nature, ambient natural sounds, and organic materials such as bamboo and wood.
Breakout space: A designated area within an office intended for non-work-related activities. It typically features comfortable seating and often softer lighting, primarily for use during breaks.
Campus HQ: A large-scale workspace concept modeled after a university campus. It features extensive open-plan areas for collaboration, a central canteen, and leisure facilities such as yoga studios and gyms.
CAT A Fit-out: Pertains to the fundamental internal components of a building. This includes essential electrical and mechanical services, air conditioning systems, lighting installations, lifts, and common lobbies.
CAT B Fit-out: Encompasses the additional elements and finishing touches applied once the CAT A fit-out is complete. This covers items such as lightbulbs, shelving units, wall coverings, and all other personalized additions that make a business feel settled and productive.
Coffice: A portmanteau for a coffee shop that also functions as a workspace, often providing desk space for patrons.
Conference/Meeting/Boardroom: A room specifically designed and equipped for meetings or conferences. Sizes vary widely, from intimate two-person meeting rooms to expansive conference rooms capable of accommodating 15 or more individuals. These spaces are typically furnished and include essential audio-visual equipment like LED screens and speaker systems.
Coworking: A work arrangement where individuals or different companies operate side-by-side within the same shared space. Coworking desks are commonly long, bench-style setups that may feature partitions to facilitate both focused individual work and collaborative efforts at different times.
Cubicle: A partially enclosed, partitioned area within an office intended for private use. Cubicles gained popularity in the 1990s but have largely receded in favor of more open-plan, collaborative workspace designs.
Enterprise space: A dedicated workspace solution tailored for larger corporations with substantial resources and a need to accommodate a considerable team. Such spaces are often leased on a long-term basis.
Flexible office space: An office offered with adaptable contractual terms, such as a coworking space or a serviced office. Businesses may have the option to rent space on a monthly rolling basis and easily expand as their team grows.
Flexible lease: In contrast to a traditional lease, which typically spans between 5-10 years, a flexible lease can be as short as 12 months, with even shorter-term options potentially available.
Flexible working: A modern work approach that grants employees greater discretion over the ‘when’, ‘where’, or ‘how’ of their work. This can include working from home, working from a nearby coworking space, adopting a hybrid work model, or adjusting typical start and finish times.
Focus/Huddle room: A compact meeting room used by teams for collaborative discussions and strategic planning. Huddle rooms often incorporate audio-visual equipment to enable seamless participation for remote team members.
Games room: A designated room within an office building allocated for recreational activities. It might feature amenities such as a ping-pong table or table football.
Hot Desking: A system that allows a member or employee to utilize any available desk within a workspace. This arrangement is popular among freelancers and employees who attend the office on a part-time basis.
Hub and spoke: An office strategy where the ‘hub’ serves as the company’s central headquarters, acting as the primary location for meetings and collaboration. The ‘spoke’ refers to various other workspaces utilized by employees, which can include satellite coworking spaces or ‘third spaces’ like cafes.
Hybrid working: A contemporary work model where employees divide their time between working from home and working from the office.
KIT Day: Short for ‘keep in touch day’, a KIT Day permits employees on extended leave to maintain connection with their organization and potentially undertake some work.
Leased office/Traditional office: Office spaces secured through a long-term lease agreement, typically spanning several years. Tenants may incur an exit fee if they terminate the lease prematurely.
Light Industrial: A type of commercial property commonly designed to house warehouses and manufacturing operations. These spaces may feature provisions for forklift access and include loading bays.
Managed Office: A hybrid solution that strikes a balance between a serviced office and a traditional lease. Managed offices provide occupiers with a customizable space that includes a range of services and facilities tailored to their needs.
Mobile employee: An employee who spends 20% or less of their typical working day at a designated desk.
Nap pods: Private, enclosed areas within a workspace where occupiers can retreat for a short period of rest during the working day.
Office Timeshare: Similar to a holiday timeshare, an office timeshare involves a workspace being shared between two or more different organizations. For example, one organization might use the office Monday-Wednesday, while another occupies it Thursday-Friday.
Occupants: Refers to the tenants or individuals who work within a building.
Open plan: A large, undivided working area without partitioned rooms. Open-plan workspaces generally feature extensive bench desks, dedicated breakout zones, and individual work pods or phone booths for privacy when needed.
Pet friendly: An office environment with a specific policy that permits occupiers to bring their dogs to work. Such policies usually include rules ensuring dogs are fully trained and compatible with other animals.
Phone booths: Small, quiet, noise-proofed pods that occupiers can use to make or receive calls without disturbing others or being disturbed themselves.
Private offices: Enclosed, private workspaces designed to accommodate a single company. In a serviced workspace context, private offices often come fully furnished and decorated.
Self-contained: Describes an office unit that includes its own private bathroom and kitchen facilities, meaning it has all the essential amenities a business needs to operate independently.
Sensors: IoT (Internet of Things) technology deployed to monitor building occupancy and usage patterns. Sensors are sometimes utilized to optimize building systems, such as lighting and temperature, to improve energy efficiency.
Serviced offices: Fully furnished and equipped office spaces that can be rented on a flexible basis. Amenities in serviced offices are typically shared among all occupiers within the building.
Shared space: Any area utilized by multiple individuals and businesses. Coworking spaces are a prime example, often featuring open-plan layouts with a mix of hot desks and dedicated desks.
SMART Buildings: A SMART building leverages technology to track its performance and usage in real-time. Various systems, from air quality monitoring to security, can be controlled from a centralized, automated platform.
SMART Office: An office outfitted with the latest smart technology, such as sensors that continuously monitor occupancy and automatically adjust heating and lighting settings based on actual usage.
Soft seating: Typically found in breakout areas, soft seating provides office workers with comfortable spots for relaxation – or alternative locations to work from their laptops for a change of scenery.
Square footage: The standard metric used to measure the floor area of a building. While it can vary, approximately 50 square feet per person is often allocated for desk space in an office.
Sublet: The act of leasing office space that is already subject to an existing lease agreement. Sublets are often for shorter terms than the original lease.
Third space: Refers to an additional location an individual utilizes for work, distinct from their primary office (‘first space’) or home (‘second space’). Examples of a third space might include a train, a coffee shop, a library, or another external environment.
Welcome desk: Often the initial point of contact for visitors entering a serviced office or coworking space. Similar to a traditional reception desk, it provides a welcoming point for guests, typically where they sign in using a tablet or similar system.
Workshop: A type of commercial property designed to house practical, hands-on businesses such as carpenters, metalworkers, and mechanics. These spaces often include areas for storing parts and materials.
Workstation: Another term for a desk space, encompassing an individual’s desk, stationery, and any other equipment or technology required for their job.
Video conferencing: A live, interactive connection between two or more individuals over the internet, utilizing platforms like Zoom. Video conferencing has surged in popularity recently and is an essential tool for remote or hybrid working models.
Virtual office: A solution tailored for businesses that do not require a physical workspace. Depending on the package, a virtual office can include a professional business address, call handling services, and limited access to hot-desking facilities.