Hi, Thomas. From what we can see here at my company, hoteling is alive and well... if maybe just now starting to peck its way out of its shell. We produce a line of facility and resource scheduling systems for which there is a module designed specifically for hoteling, and are seeing more interest in that component now than ever before So, our experience is that the wave is really beginning to build. Granted our perspective is a bit biased (!), but we think hoteling is a great concept... for employers, employees and the environment.

The buzz may have died around the term "hoteling," but what is perhaps most important to take into account is that the "mobile worker" has evolved from those initial concepts. A revolution has happened in the way people work thanks to the technology that has untethered workers from the office. It's a global playing field where more and more workers are in a variety of settings. And the most advanced companies are redesigning their offices to create these flexible workplaces. In fact, Gartner Group predicts by 2010, only 40% of all work will be done in a corporate facility.

With this phenomenon, however, come new technological challenges. Companies need advanced web-based real estate solutions that integrate into their IT organization's existing infrastructure and enable them to leverage the benefits of an distributed workforce. CapitalOne, HP, and Bank of America are examples of forward-looking companies that view corporate real estate as a strategic business tool, not only to optimize the management of corporate real estate but to create competitive advantages by supporting the new design of the workplace.

The corporate real estate function has been long overlooked as a strategic asset. With the changing face of the workplace, it may just become one of the most important assets to command the full attention of the boardroom.

I can confirm the paradigm shift occurring in the global workplace. Technology has enabled the office worker to work anywhere, anytime and many are taking full advantage. Why? Employees are now able to be closer to their clients and still be connected to the office. Armed with a mobile phone, a Blackberry and a laptop workers can more easily balance the demands of their work and personal life by working when and where they need to in order to accomplish their business objectives. Savvy corporations are embracing the concept and downsizing their office facilities by forty to sixty percent. We recently completed occupancy/utilization studies at dozens of office facilities around the world for a major technology company. The data showed that at any given time roughly half the workforce assigned to the facilities was not present in the buildings…. This was not the case at one or two locations, but rather at every conventional office facility we measured.

Today, as Nick mentions, progressive companies like HP and Capital One are indeed capitalizing on the opportunity and gaining a huge advantage over less agile competitors. How big of an advantage? You can do the math: With the cost to provide a conventional office to an employee ranging from $6000 to $10,000, a corporation that has 20,000 office workers and reduces half the space stands to deliver between $60 and $100 million to the bottom line. With numbers like that, this is a trend that will only accelerate over the next few years.

Wow! What a concept...I wish I'd know about that back then...my engineering team was on the road 20-25 days per month that when we did come in to the office it was to plan the execution of the next phase of our projects...and we were more in the "Hosteling" environment... luggage and backpacks stuffed with test gear and networking components...5 to a 2-person cube! It's nice to know and like your team members, especially when everyone was all grubbed up with a 5 day shadow! (maybe that's why the kept us together...to keep us away from the civilized world!
Inetworkyou@gmail.com from Portland, OR