This year's survey showed an optimistic change of tune in the outlook for office spaces. Heading into 2024, many business leaders and facilities managers were worried about the future of their office spaces.

In fact, 82% were worried about their company's ability to keep its office space, whether due to a recession or underutilization. 

This year, things are feeling more positive, for both outlook and occupancy. 

According to Robin's customer data, overall office occupancy doubled in 2024, increasing from 30% in 2023 to 60%.

What’s more? We saw a nearly 40% decrease in companies planning to reduce their office space square footage in 2025, down from 75% to 46% since 2024.

As we kick off 2025, workplace leaders are less focused on shrinking spaces and more focused on investing in offices that make in-person work a more productive reality. In fact, 77% of respondents say their company is actively investing in new technology solutions to improve the office experience. 

Participants called out things like wayfinding tools, digital maps of office layouts and occupancy sensors, generally pointing to office solutions for day-to-day work. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, AI played a big role in responses, pointing to the idea of more automated office management functions (aka: invisible software). Of those not actively investing, most cited recent workplace investments.

The writing is on the walls: offices are here to stay, and flexible work is, too. Now, the companies that will emerge on top are the ones that take a serious look at what that means, from policies to processes and everything in between.

High-level conversations about the merits and misses of hybrid work often leave out the tactical measures needed to make it stick. On paper, flexible work should be an easy win. Best of both worlds, right?

Sure, but not without well-thought-out change management. Companies taking on the messy middle of this workplace evolution understand that there is a lot of trial and error involved. Chances are, most companies are on their second or third iteration of their in-office requirements. 

This stop-and-start trend for employees made the waters muddy for many. What was the expectation and what were the consequences for non-compliance?

As a result, organizations are now working hard to get things right this time around. Just take office policies, for example. Of our respondents: 

• 46% strongly suggest their in-office policy
• 42% mandate their in-office policy
• 12% let employees decide 

The clear split between mandated days and strongly suggested schedules is a hangover from the back-and-forth of RTO policies. Just last year, nearly 70% of people reported having a mandate in place. That’s a 20% decrease in mandates. 

Notably, the biggest portion of respondents reported “strongly suggesting” days in the office. When you consider the lack of clarity and compliance with in-person policies, it’s surprising that more companies have not clearly defined their expectations. In fact, the top challenge reported in our survey? “Compliance with policies.” 

People need to understand the office's intention today, how it differs from the past and what is expected of hybrid employees now. For example, can you reframe how you define work on in-office days? Setting expectations for the type of activity you expect when working in person ensures teams know what to expect and encourages the right behaviors. 

Clear is kind. Be descriptive of how things function now and be sure to keep communicating those intentions regularly. Otherwise, the office and working in person begin to feel like a liminal space, undefined and unfamiliar. 

Workplace Wins: Big companies like H&R Block and Google created internal playbooks to highlight new ways of working and thinking about office time.

What Needs To Change About Offices in 2025?

The return to office debate has been fraught with ideas about how things should work, but has also been marked by stop-and-start efforts to implement policies or new ideas. 

Yet, the actual work of making an office flow and function is more complicated, presenting a unique set of challenges for professionals responsible for office management. The biggest changes will generally need to focus on these key areas: people policies, workplace resources and office design. 

Policies are clearly a sore spot for organizations, and it’s possible part of that problem stems from confusion over who enforces and monitors office operations and activity. 

This is made clear by the range of roles listed as “owners” of workplace management and traffic. Survey participants cited: 

• Office Manager/Workplace Experience Team: 30%
• Facilities and IT Teams: 23% 
• HR/People Teams: 20%
• Department Managers: 20%
• Executive Team: 6%

If we want to get serious about office activity, we need to get serious about tracking foot traffic and understanding in-office behaviors. To do that, organizations must be clear on ownership and ready to take action when policies are not followed.

Next, we will dive into the more tactical conversations about making seamless office work a reality. That means looking past the policy headlines and getting into the logistics.

Most of the hiccups and challenges come from the logistics of managing a day in the office. IT complaints and resource management came in a close second, followed by a “lack of visibility into who is using the office and when.”

The remainder of the challenges were as follows:

• Outdated office resources 
• Juggling office resource management for a range of needs 
• Managing hybrid meeting tech 

Then, we asked respondents what isn’t working in today’s workplaces. They identified a range of challenges, which we’ve listed here from most problematic to least problematic: 

Companies are struggling to manage the logistics of hybrid work, and people are frustrated with the learning curve. But, interestingly enough, inconsistent office usage was ranked the least troublesome, again pointing to the uptick in foot traffic.

New investments for the year suggest that companies are committed to more effective in-office experiences. Whether it is via wayfinding tools or digital maps of office layouts to help employees navigate spaces, or occupancy sensors and badging automation for more accurate office reporting, workplaces are preparing for more day-to-day foot traffic. 

💡One word of warning: Don’t overcorrect for in-person work. While moving full steam ahead with more time in office spaces is great, IT managers should be sure to monitor remote connectivity. 

If you’re struggling to smooth out the kinks with hybrid work, you’re not alone. Technology is key to office function, but it’s not the whole story. 

Remember, there is one thing that you can’t recreate in your home office: being around your team. The people part of the equation is crucial. Unfortunately, it is also less predictable than improving WiFi connections or finding the right laptop stand.

When asked what kind of moments made teams want to return to the office, there were two commonalities: people and intention. Leading the charge were celebrations of any kind – think: product launches, company milestones, holidays, etc.

The second? Active team time, with an emphasis on the word “active.” Sure, it’s great to see people in person, but are there opportunities to interact meaningfully? 

The data confirms that seeing other people is a driving force behind increases in office activity. Yet, survey participants don’t cite employee interaction as one of the driving forces behind office decision-making. 

When asked, “What guides office decisions?” respondents overwhelmingly pointed to hybrid policies and data, followed by a small percentage citing “executive goals” and “employee needs.”

Office design remains critical for supporting employee needs and encouraging more peer-to-peer interaction. Today, designing high-performance workplaces requires everything from data-backed seating charts to modern SaaS solutions. 

Cross-functional teams, usually consisting of IT, Facilities, People, HR, Executive and Operations, are critical to ensuring you cover all your bases.  

Once the stage is set, you want things to run smoothly with or without daily IT support. Increasingly, companies are looking for workplace technology that is comprehensive but also consolidated and user-friendly for less technical teams. 

“I wanted to get the IT team out of the day-to-day management and put it in the hands of the local office admins and the local managing directors of the offices. To say it's your office and you got your map, so if you want to keep your map up to date and you want to have everything look right, you got the tools to do it.” 

- Dale Arnt, IT Operations Manager, VHB

In our 2024 Office Space Report, we made some predictions based on the data. Here’s how we fared: 

If context is king, then data is queen: ✅
And 2025 will only see workplace data garner more attention as companies look to the numbers to make decisions.

Office spaces will continue to contract: ❌
We got this one wrong and, honestly, we’re not mad about it. As we see in this year’s data, offices are on a mission to reinvent in-person work with a purpose.

More organizations will embrace flexible work: ✅
The proof is in the pudding, and we only see this trend growing.

Companies will rely on flexible workplace solutions: ✅
‍Technology continues to be the connective tissue between people and places. 

Incentives for office attendance will gain more popularity: ✅
Catered lunches, commuter benefits, on-site amenities - it might be cliche but if it ain’t broke . . . 

Top Takeaways for 2025

For 2025, we’re focused less on predictions and more on action. If you want your office to thrive, you need to be an active participant in making that your reality. Here’s what we’ve learned - from this data and the thousands of workplaces we support every day. 

Fundamental #1: People Power Places 

The biggest difference between a home office and a corporate office is face-to-face interactions. When people are asked to come into the office, they expect to see other people. Without these touchpoints, going into a workplace can feel less like a meeting point and more like a holding cell.

Let’s drop the illusion that the office is supposed to be this magical place of productivity. When people are in the office, the goal shouldn’t be heads-down, headphones-on task-completion – it should be about collaboration.

Without clear definitions, office visits often result in employees spending the day at desks on video calls. Introducing elements like planned team meetings, collaborative projects or designated office hours for specific tasks can make these visits more meaningful and productive.

‍Key Takeaway: Redefine expectations around office work. Empower people to connect. 

Fundamental #2: Structured Policies Prepare People 

There’s been a lot of conversations about whether or not working adults are being treated like children. At Robin, we think it’s less controversial than that. It’s about having guidance. Everyone needs structure. For example, companies like TraceLink have implemented structured hybrid schedules where specific teams come in on set days to encourage collaboration while reducing confusion. 

Policies like these clarify expectations and can help internal communications support smoother transitions in office dynamics. People are done with the feeling that hybrid work is a liminal space. It’s time for clarity and intention. Get ready to see more companies adopt some form of “structured” hybrid work.

Key Takeaway: Make up your mind on policies and attitudes toward office work, and stick with them. 

Fundamental #3: Preparedness Prevents (Most) Problems 

You know what you want, and you know how you want to present it. You have your people on board, and you’re ready to roll out. Don’t let excitement trick you into jumping the gun. 

Details matter. Curating the right office environment in 2025 may feel like more of a hospitality gig because, in some ways, it is. You need employees to have good experiences, and if they don’t, you risk losing a customer. 

Invest in technology or solutions that make office days easy and enjoyable. Think of interactive wayfinding maps, automated meeting room services and administrative tools for planning. 

Offices will continue reimagining themselves as cities across the U.S. begin to see a steady uptick in foot traffic. The difference between good and great will be finding the right infrastructure to support employee ease and executive engagement.

‍Key Takeaway: Workplace technology is the connective tissue between people and places. Eliminating friction in office spaces starts with better planning.

We’re calling for an end to the game of RTO stop-and-start. 

The future of work is now. It’s time for offices to shape up accordingly. 

Benchmarking will continue to be an important element of designing how, when, and where work happens, but we have enough data from the past four years to proceed confidently. Let’s recap:

What We Know Now

• Office occupancy is on the uptick: Office occupancy doubled from 2023 to 2024, showing a significant shift toward embracing in-person work.
• Workplace technology is crucial: 77% of companies are actively implementing solutions like wayfinding tools and workplace management platforms.
• Hybrid work requires iterations: Compliance with policies and ownership of office metrics remain critical hurdles.
• People want to see other people: Planned team activities and spontaneous collaboration motivate employees to return to offices.
• Structure is needed: The best organizations are catching on: 43% of US firms are Structured Hybrid, up from 20% in Q1 2023 and 38% in Q3 2024. 

What To Do Next 

• Ensure your office is ready: Evaluate how your spaces are being used and identify what is needed for better days together.
• Invest in consolidated technology: Focus on reducing barriers to productivity and fostering collaboration to create a seamless and effective hybrid work environment.
• Structure your policies: Establish clear expectations around in-office work, structure your requirements and communicate them consistently.
• Make authentic efforts to connect: Create a framework for meaningful in-office interactions to make visits more purposeful.
• Stay vigilant and track the data: Use data-driven insights to refine strategies over time.

Ready to step into the NOW of hybrid work? We’re here to help.