4 reasons why every office needs a well-crafted indoor mapping system.
Navigating the modern office building can feel like participating in a particularly elusive scavenger hunt. Which conference room? Second or third floor? Is this the one with the comfy pillows or ridiculously long table? We’ve all been there—and we probably showed up late.
Suffice it to say that most office buildings weren’t designed with easy navigation in mind. In fact, a Steelcase Workplace Survey found that 40% of employees waste up to 30 minutes per day looking for a space to meet. And this was before Covid-19.
As the pandemic ebbs and flows, our on-again, off-again return to the workplace can feel downright disorienting. Hybrid work has left a growing number of employees without a dedicated workstation, instead changing locations each time they come to the office. New desk, new floor, new logistical challenges.
No one wants people wasting time wandering the halls in search of a workspace. To be successful, the hybrid working model needs to be thoughtfully and professionally managed. Whether people are new to the office, visiting colleagues on another campus, or simply looking for an open meeting room, a good wayfinding system allows for a smooth return and can help companies avoid productivity losses.
The right indoor mapping solution can have a demonstrably positive impact on your company's performance. Here are just a few reasons why every organization should spend quality time navigating the new in-person workplace experience.
1) You’ll improve employee productivity
Find and book a nearby meeting room or desk
In the new hybrid workplace, collaboration will be the major reason employees come to the office. To make the most of their time, people will need the ability to locate and book a meeting space quickly.
Interactive indoor maps provide more than just a map—they act as an end-to-end solution for finding and booking the right room at the right time.
The first step is helping employees navigate the premises and identify the nearest meeting room. Interactive maps give people access to information on a room’s equipment and capacity. Once they find a good fit, they will be given real-time meeting room availability and be able to book the room directly. Ideally, this information will be easily available on mobile, laptop, or tablet, and integrate seamlessly with corporate calendars such as Outlook and Google Calendar.
No more wandering the halls in search of an open conference room only to be kicked out by the group that actually booked it. That’s a ton of saved time and productivity.
Avoid unnecessary interruptions
Speaking of getting kicked out of a conference room, interruptions at work affect our productivity, our ability to concentrate, and are likely to reduce motivation. It is also a significant additional cost. Research shows it takes an average of about 25 minutes to return to the original task after an interruption.
Indoor mapping can help reduce time lost through unnecessary interruptions. Visitors and company guests are empowered to navigate using the interactive map on the reception kiosk desk or on their smartphone. This means they can find their way to an office or meeting room without interrupting other staff.
By scheduling emails or text messages with a map link, employers can allow visitors and employees to anticipate their visit to the office and get an estimated walking time from their parking spot to a meeting room prior to their arrival. This minimizes stress and makes it easier to be on time.
2) You’ll reduce real estate costs
The potential of indoor mapping goes far beyond traditional wayfinding.
Indoor maps are a valuable asset for smart buildings, creating the ability to detect where energy consumption is being wasted and identify unused space. The map makes it easy to resize offices according to occupancy.
Optimize office layout/spaces
With the increase of flexible work, offices are bound to become less busy and workspaces may need to be redesigned to reduce real estate costs.
Vacant workplaces represent a significant expense and result in an unnecessary use of resources. To reduce waste and cost, it is essential to analyze the percentage of occupancy and the occupants' patterns. By combining indoor maps with occupancy sensors installed in the building, you can generate a visual interface or heat map to monitor the usage of the different rooms and desks. With a better understanding of where people linger most, you can make smart decisions about what stays and what goes.
Create a sustainable environment
The use of indoor maps and IoT (internet of things) sensors is key to creating a more sustainable office. Together, they can tell you which room is overheated, which air conditioner is running when no one’s around, and which lights are on while the space is unoccupied.
By tracking carbon emissions and energy consumption through graphs and assessing environmental impact through data visualization and detailed dashboards, you can simplify the work of site managers and significantly reduce company real estate costs.
Easy incident reporting
Indoor maps allow people to report incidents such as IT infrastructure issues or a broken video projector in a meeting room in just a few clicks. Cleaning departments can also use them to see which assets, equipment, or areas need to be cleaned. The result is a better cleaning experience at a lower cost and optimization of the time spent by cleaning staff.
3) You can increase on-site safety and security
Covid-19 raised the stakes on workplace safety and the role technology can play in maintaining public health. Besides technological solutions such as contact tracing, indoor mapping can be used to create a safer work environment.
Pandemic management
Indoor mapping makes it possible to check the occupancy status of the different workspaces and manage room capacity. Before coming to the office, employees can access the interactive floor plan that complies with physical distancing protocols and select their seat. When on-site they can easily follow their route and spot places where hand sanitizers are located.
Facility managers can re-adjust the number of open desks, redefine the capacity of each meeting room, or create one-way routes to ensure a smooth flow of traffic for a safe working environment.
4) Boost your brand
People are always looking for evidence their employer has their best interests at heart.
When a job candidate encounters a well-organized working environment with an easy-to-use navigation system, they can tell the company is modern and employee focused. Once on board, indoor maps make it easy to find a colleague's desk—or wherever they need to go—without wasting time. This is especially helpful in fast-growing companies or those with a flexible work model, where people’s locations may change.
No one likes feeling lost—especially in the workplace, where being secure and comfortable in your surroundings has a direct effect on your ability to do your best work. By adopting interactive map solutions, you can save your employees time, help them be as productive as possible, reduce building running costs, and improve employee acquisition and retention rates. The path is clear—indoor mapping is a win-win for everyone.
