A Quick Guide to Hot Desking Etiquette

When visiting another’s home or renting a short-term condo for vacation, there are policies for guests in place. How many people can be there, curfew for noise, and other rules applied to ensure the care and maintenance of the home.

And in the office, there have always been courtesy rules meant to maintain employee spaces as well as respect between employees during working hours.

With the introduction of hot desking into many offices post-pandemic, what are the rules? Are there hot desking policies to think about?

Yes. Even if unspoken, the following hot desking etiquette rules should apply to ensure every employee can feel respected, comfortable, and productive.

5 Hot Desking Dos to Follow

1. DO: Reserve a desk in advance whenever possible

One of the most important rules of hot desking is made of two parts. The first part is to always make sure to book a desk in advance. Not doing so can result in people fighting for space, loss of productivity, and disconnecting teams who need to collaborate.

The second part of this rule is to follow the office’s outlined procedures and guidelines when booking. Every employee should go through an onboarding process to learn how to use the booking software and review the company’s hot desking policies. This is extremely important to ensure the company can maintain a flexible working environment that employees can thrive in.

While a hybrid workplace needs to be adaptable, it’s a common courtesy to try to book a hot desk in advance whenever possible.

2. DO: Use your hot desk booking system’s reservation features

Some booking systems may offer a real-time floor map that can help employees plan where they want to sit. Using all the features of a booking system is a good best practice. Doing so can help ensure employees get the workspace(s) they need, when they need them, without issue.

With Resource Central for example, floor plans are customized to match the office’s unique layout and they update in real-time so employees can book in advance but also make changes or book quickly on-site if needed. And with the Workspace Booking app, colleagues can also search for each other and book desks nearby to reserve areas for collaboration. Moreover, the Workspace Booking app works with Resource Central so an employee can always book a desk anywhere, anytime.

3. DO: Be respectful – of others, of the space

Screaming on phone calls. Loudly gesturing. Making a mess and not cleaning it up. Leaving your trash and papers askew at the end of the day.

Hot desking means sharing – the desk and the space. It’s important to be respectful of our hot desking neighbors. This means keeping music to low volumes (or better yet use headphones). Take loud or multi-people calls in another space, such as a meeting room or huddle space. It also means leaving the desk as clean as you found it – or better. At the end of your workday, be sure to dispose of all trash, remove any personal belongings and clean up any messes you’ve made. If any technologies or tools have been harmed or are not working, be sure to alert a supervisor or administrator ASAP.

Being respectful of your neighbors and the space is important. Doing so allows a company to continue with a hybrid workplace model and to make every employee feel safe, secure, and valued.

4. DO: Keep a clean, tidy space

With the COVID-19 pandemic still fresh in minds, another important best practice when hot desking is to keep our space clean and tidy. Wipe down surfaces with antibacterial or disinfecting wipes before and after use. Help keep liquids and foods away from computers and phones, and if you make a mess, immediately clean it up.

Hot desking often means different employees work at different spaces every day, so helping to maintain a sanitary environment is key to everyone’s health and safety.

5. DO: Consider when collaboration needs another space

Hot desking arrangements in the office may influence when you should and should not book a desk or desks.

The final DO of hot desking is to think about how you’re using the workspace and if another kind of workspace is better to book.

For example, if you are holding an annual creative branding meeting booking five desks near each other may not be the best idea. And in fact, doing so could hinder people from sharing ideas or feedback. In some cases, booking a hot desk may not be the right move. Instead, a huddle space may be better suited here.

While some hot desking booking solutions are only for desks, Resource Central allows employees to book everything from single desks to meeting and conference rooms. When considering office hot desking, think carefully about the purpose of the workspace and if you need multiple ones to accommodate a team.

4 Hot Desking Do NOTs to Avoid

1. DON’T: Make the space personalized

When setting up a flexible workspace environment, hot desks are set up as individual workspaces that can be booked on-demand. But contrary to their individual nature, it’s not a good practice to personalize them.

Hot desks are shared spaces, and you won’t have the same one every time. Don’t bring personal photographs, knick-knacks, pen holders or anything else and then leave them. Your hot desk is there for on-site work but is not a personal space to live in.

2. DON’T: Create an unsanitary, smelly environment

An obvious “don’t” is to not make the hot desking space unclean or gross. If you spill food or liquid, clean it up immediately. Don’t leave dirt or pencil and eraser shavings all over the desk surface, and don’t get food bits in the keyboard if it’s communal.

To help maintain a clean work environment, try to keep foods and liquids to the breakrooms or lunch areas. And if you do bring either to your desk, consider their fragrance as it can negatively impact your neighbors for the day and leave a lingering odor for whomever uses the hot desk the next day.

3. DON’T: Work at “off-limits” workspaces

One of the unique features of Resource Central is the ability for administrators to turn off workspaces – meeting rooms, hot desks, etc. The reason for this, is so that administrators can help maintain a workspace arrangement that adheres to employee health and safety requirements.

Coming off the pandemic, this is extremely important. That’s also why it’s a huge no-no to work at any off-limit hot desk or other space. Not only is this extremely disrespectful to others, but you could be putting colleagues at risk in doing so.

4. DON’T: Think you don’t need to book

Today’s workplace is flexible, in many ways, but that doesn’t mean it allows you to just take any workspace you want. Every employee who uses an office’s hot desking arrangement should adhere to the hot desking policy and booking system rules. Don’t think because you’re a flexible worker that you can just grab a desk anytime, anywhere.

Part of the reason Resource Central works with the Workspace Booking app and on-site QR code scanning is to ensure it is easy to book a workspace quickly – even if it’s last minute. The floor plan also is there to help employees respect each other’s choices and space by blocking off reserved workspaces and only showing available desks in green.

Continue Learning About Workspace Management Best Practices

There are a lot of different types of flexible workspaces, and hot desking etiquette is only one part of successfully managing them.

For more information about how to manage different workspaces, as well as the benefits when you do, click here.

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