Agile room booking
Agile room booking encompasses the technologies and workplace policies that streamline the meeting room reservation process in an agile workspace. It helps employees find the right meeting space for their needs so they can do their best work while on-site.
What are the benefits of agile room booking?
Agile room booking is key to enabling a flexible working environment. With agile room booking software, employees can reserve meeting rooms and work spaces in advance. Some technology will even show room schedules on display screens located outside of meeting rooms. This makes it easy to see which rooms are available and which are in use.
Agile room booking also helps maximize meeting spaces by preventing any bottlenecks or double-bookings. It manages the flows of people trying to use meeting spaces by directing all booking through a streamlined platform. That means employees will more fully utilize meeting rooms at all times of day.
Further, it encourages collaboration by simplifying the meeting planning process. When the meeting planning logistics are a breeze, employees can focus on getting together to brainstorm, strategize, and work.
How do I implement an agile room booking system?
There are several ways to make the room booking process agile. One of the best ways is to implement room booking software. This will help employees easily find and book available meeting rooms. Here are some of the features your room booking system should provide to keep things agile:
- Schedule displays – Employees can easily see a room’s upcoming schedule and whether it’s available. If it is, they can book the room on the spot. Usually, screens are color-coded for easy interpretation. For example, a display screen may have a red background, with a text overlay specifying who has the meeting room and for how long. This allows anyone walking by to easily see that the room is reserved and get the full picture of when it will be available.
- Check-in and out – Employees can secure their room by checking into it at the start of the meeting. When they’re done, they can “end the meeting” and free up the space for others. This would turn the display from red to green, easily indicating to employees passing by that the room is free to book. This enables a balance of impromptu, collaborative gatherings with planned out meetings, ensuring your meeting spaces are being used for all purposes.
- Mobile booking – Employees can book a room using their mobile devices. If your software has location-based functionality, it will allow employees to find the nearest available room. For instance, let’s say you’re a hybrid employee planning your on-site day. You want to set up several check-in meetings with different members of your team. Mobile booking would allow you to reserve the meeting room for the day in advance, right from your phone. You could then send calendar invites to your teammates to line up those check-ins. When you come to the office in the morning, you’ll have a guaranteed space for your day of meetings—indicated by a meeting room display screen confirming your reservation.
- Admin alerts – If any connectivity issues with the room booking system arise, admins will immediately receive an alert so they can explore the problem and fix it fast. This ensures that displays are always up and running for employees.
You should also create a set of workplace policies and best practices for booking meeting rooms. For example, you may ask employees to end their meetings before leaving the room. This way, if the meeting ends early, people looking for a room can book it. It also helps show the cleaning staff that the room is available to be sanitized.
Who should implement agile room booking?
Agile room booking improves employee experience from end to end: starting with mobile reservations and ending with efficient meetings. Agile room booking also improves the workplace manager experience. It organizes your employees and maximizes the use of your space. This means your company can get more work done while ensuring employees are satisfied with their on-site experience.
More companies have transitioned to permanent hybrid work models. This means that an increasing number of employees will be coming and going from the workplace, trying to make the most of their limited on-site time. Agile room booking will continue to become the norm, helping keep workplaces streamlined and organized. So, who should implement agile room booking? Every workplace that aims to stay relevant, increase productivity, and retain talent.
—
In an increasingly flexible working world, ensure the workplace continues to meet employee needs—and continues to be a place where they can get good work done—with flexible technology like agile room booking.