Occupancy and space planning
Understand space utilisation and workspace needs through data-informed analysis.
Occupancy management and space planning services
JLL’s occupancy management and space planning services help organisations understand how much workplace space they need, how effectively it is being used and how requirements may change over time.
We support corporate real estate, workplace, facilities and business leaders responsible for individual workplaces and wider property portfolios. Our approach combines workplace and portfolio data with strategic planning to replace assumptions with evidence and support more informed property decisions.
Whether an organisation is responding to hybrid working, adapting to the way AI is changing how work gets done, changing its workforce or reviewing its property portfolio, JLL can help align space with current and future business needs. We help organisations test different scenarios against real occupancy data, so they can plan for that change with evidence rather than assumptions. The intended outcomes include improved space utilisation, reduced property and operating costs, a better employee experience and more informed workplace and portfolio planning.
Occupancy planning leader
What our occupancy management and space planning services include
Bring together the information needed to understand the workplace and portfolio, including headcount, floor plans, space allocation and occupancy data.
Bring together the information needed to understand the workplace and portfolio, including headcount, floor plans, space allocation and occupancy data.
Review available workplace data
Improve data consistency and accuracy
Establish a reliable planning baseline
Analyse capacity, allocation, occupancy and utilisation across desks, rooms, floors, buildings and locations.
Analyse capacity, allocation, occupancy and utilisation across desks, rooms, floors, buildings and locations.
Identify underused or overcrowded areas
Compare performance across locations
Establish relevant benchmarks
Translate workforce plans and working patterns into requirements for desks, meeting rooms, collaborative areas, quiet spaces and amenities.
Translate workforce plans and working patterns into requirements for desks, meeting rooms, collaborative areas, quiet spaces and amenities.
Account for headcount and attendance
Define the required mix of settings
Consider accessibility and employee needs
Model how business and workplace changes could affect future space requirements.
Model how business and workplace changes could affect future space requirements.
Compare alternative configurations
Test growth and contraction scenarios
Assess consolidation, expansion or relocation options
Turn the analysis into recommendations for workplace and portfolio decision-makers, supported by consistent reporting.
Turn the analysis into recommendations for workplace and portfolio decision-makers, supported by consistent reporting.
Prioritise practical actions
Inform investment and property decisions
Monitor performance and changing requirements
Compare your workplace and portfolio against internal targets and peer organisations to understand how well space is being used.
Compare your workplace and portfolio against internal targets and peer organisations to understand how well space is being used.
Compare utilisation, attendance and space allocation with industry benchmarks
Understand the gap between target and actual space use
Set realistic targets and identify where to improve
How occupancy management and space planning supports your business
- Space that better reflects peak attendance
- Fewer overcrowded or consistently empty areas
- A workplace suited to changing working patterns
- More efficient use of the existing footprint
- Reduced avoidable property costs
- Stronger evidence for space decisions
- Better support for focused and collaborative work
- Less friction when finding suitable space
- A workplace aligned with employee needs
- Clearer future space requirements
- Better-informed investment and lease decisions
- Greater consistency across locations
- Better alignment between building services and demand
- Fewer resources used in consistently vacant areas
- Evidence to support workplace sustainability planning
Our occupancy management and space planning capabilities
We offer specialist capabilities that can support different workplace and portfolio requirements.
- Occupancy planning and management
Maintain accurate information about headcount, space allocation and changing occupancy requirements.
- Space utilisation analysis
Understand how desks, rooms, floors and buildings are used through occupancy and workplace data.
- Space planning and programming
Determine the quantity and mix of work settings needed to support employees and business activities.
- Occupancy technology and sensors
Use appropriate workplace technologies and data sources to develop a clearer picture of occupancy and utilisation.
- Scenario modelling and portfolio analytics
Compare potential workplace and portfolio options before making property and investment decisions.
- Workplace strategy
Connect workplace evidence with business priorities, employee requirements and longer-term organisational plans.
Occupancy management and space planning client stories
Client story
Transforming Omnicom Group’s workplace
Client story
Delivering a new London HQ for a global medical device leader
Client story
JLL Manchester workplace pioneers hybrid and circularity
View our expertise
Insight
Global Occupancy Planning Benchmark Report 2026
Guide
Unlock the power of workplace utilization data
FAQs about occupancy planning
Occupancy measures how many people are assigned to a space (capacity allocation). Utilisation measures how much of that space is actively used at a given time. The distinction is critical because the two metrics often tell very different stories about portfolio performance.
A building can be 100% occupied (every seat assigned) yet only 40% utilised (fewer than half those seats are in use on any given day). JLL's 2025 Global Occupancy Planning Benchmark Report found that global office utilisation averaged 54%—meaning organisations are actively using just over half the space they pay for. The gap between allocated and utilised space represents the single largest cost optimisation opportunity in most corporate real estate portfolios.
Leading organisations measure both metrics across multiple dimensions:
- Occupancy rate: Total assigned headcount divided by total seat capacity. JLL benchmark data shows the average office allocation rate now exceeds 111%—meaning more people are assigned than physical seats exist, reflecting the shift to seat-sharing models.
- Utilisation rate: Actual presence measured by sensors, badge data, or WiFi analytics against available capacity. JLL data shows Tuesday peaks and Friday drops to - a pattern consistent across hundreds of millions of square feet.
JLL's occupancy planning methodology integrates multiple data sources—sensors, badge systems, booking platforms, WiFi analytics, and HR headcount data—to produce a complete utilisation measurement framework that accounts for these measurement gaps.
Occupancy planning connects directly to business strategy by turning real estate from a fixed cost into a strategic lever that affects talent attraction, workforce productivity, capital allocation, and ESG performance.
- Talent and productivity: Workplace quality directly influences recruitment, retention, and daily productivity. Occupancy data reveals which space types employees actually use and prefer, enabling evidence-based design decisions that improve the work environment.
- Capital allocation: Occupancy insights inform the most consequential financial decisions in a CRE portfolio: which leases to renew, where to consolidate, when to expand, and how to balance owned, leased, and flexible space.
- ESG performance: Space optimisation reduces energy consumption and Scope 1/2 emissions—directly measurable outcomes that support corporate sustainability commitments and regulatory compliance.
- M&A readiness: During mergers, acquisitions, or restructuring, occupancy data provides the analytical foundation for integrating real estate portfolios quickly and making defensible decisions about which locations to retain.
JLL's consulting practice—combining workplace strategy, location strategy, and portfolio management—uses occupancy planning data as the quantitative foundation for strategic recommendations. JLL's partnership with Koch Industries demonstrates this integrated approach: JLL delivers occupancy planning, workplace strategy, experience services, and portfolio optimization across Koch's 140 million square feet in 50+ countries under a unified "LIFT" operating model.
Contact us about occupancy and space planning services
Unlock the power of our local expertise to transform your real estate challenges into strategic advantages, optimising your portfolio for enhanced value and performance.