Insights
The words this field uses loosely
Two suppliers can quote the same occupancy figure and mean different things by it. These are the definitions used everywhere on this site, so a number here can be compared with a number there.
Core terms
| Term | Definition | Why it gets confused |
|---|---|---|
| Occupancy | The proportion of a space in use at a given moment. | Often quoted as a daily average, which hides the peak that space is actually sized for. |
| Utilisation | Use of a space over a period, expressed against its capacity. | Used interchangeably with occupancy, though one is a moment and the other is a period. |
| Presence | Someone is physically there. | Presence is not use: a desk with a bag on it reads as occupied and supports no work. |
| Activity classification | What the space was being used for, not merely whether it was taken. | The measurement most often missing, and the one that changes the space requirement most. |
| Peak | The busiest realistic day, excluding genuine outliers. | Planning on the average guarantees a shortage one day a week. |
| Sharing ratio | Desks divided by people. | Quoted as a target when it is an outcome, it follows from the policy and the peak. |
| Enablement | How much the workplace helps or hinders the work. | Confused with satisfaction, which measures how people feel rather than what the building does. |
| No-show rate | Bookings made and not used. | Routinely a fifth to a third, and highest on the busy days that matter most. |
Definitions used consistently across this site and in every Workplaced report.
Each term in full
Occupancy
Formula, a worked example, and why the daily average hides the figure that sizes the building.
Utilisation
Seat-hours worked through, and the gap between a full calendar and a used room.
Presence
How it is expressed, how it is measured in aggregate, and why it is the weakest measure alone.
Activity classification
The categories, one floor's activity profile, and what it changes in a space programme.
Peak
Percentiles worked through on 600 people, and the cost of designing to the mean or the maximum.
Sharing ratio
Derived from the peak rather than chosen, with the calculation set out.
Enablement
Calculated per activity, and the survey round where satisfaction and enablement disagree.
No-show rate
Measured against observation rather than the calendar, and why Tuesday is the number to report.
Comparing two suppliers' occupancy figures?
Send us both and we will tell you what each one is actually counting. No meeting required.