Q1 2024 Global Occupancy Benchmarks Report: Return to Office as Mandate or Magnet?
“As we move forward looking at the numbers and potentially moving towards stronger mandates or expectations around spending more time in the office, I do see that there is an obligation with leaders and with management within organizations to also help support and curate that time in the office.”
– Derrick Bock – Director of Workplace Strategy, HelloFresh
Many companies are now firming up their Return to Office policies, reshaping the company culture in the process. While long-term impacts are difficult to forecast with so much still evolving, an understanding of the data and trends can help balance optimization opportunities with increased employee engagement and a redefined workplace value proposition.
Key Findings
- APAC reached the highest occupancy rate since the pandemic
- However, visiting the office 2-3 days/week is now most popular worldwide, with a strong midweek preference persisting
- The most common Mobility Personas across each region were Hybrids and Flexibles
APAC Reached 45% Occupancy Rate in March 2024
Occupancy rates increased at least 2pp across all regions Q1 2024 vs Q1 2023.
Highest weekly average peak occupancy was North America at 38%, followed by APAC (37%), Europe (29%), and LATAM (23%). Europe was the only region which saw the weekly average peak occupancy decline.
LATAM Saw Significant Increase in Visit Frequency from 2023
Office visits of 2-3 days/week were more popular across all regions Q1 2024 vs FY 2023.
LATAM notably saw a 14pp increase in 2-3 days per week visits during this period.
Almost 60% of Office Visits Globally Lasted 6+ Hours
While ~60% of visits lasted 6+ hours, nearly 25% fell to within the 3-6 hour range, highlighting the ongoing importance of flexible work policies to meet evolving workplace demands.
Over 60% Embrace Hybrid or Flexible Work Arrangements
In 2024 Basking introduced Mobility Personas—a powerful way to understand the population in an office space based on their consistent mobility patterns when visiting an office, namely the Duration of Visits and the Frequency of Visits. By measuring what’s really happening and presenting the data in an easily accessible analysis, these profiles help teams better understand the variations and personas within their organization and can optimize based on actionable, real-time data.
In the first large-scale benchmarking of this analysis, over 60% of Mobility Personas qualified as Hybrids or Flexibles across all regions.
The next largest group was Infrequents, with the notable exception of North America, which demonstrated the highest concentration of On-Siters of any region at 23%.
Check out the full Q1 2024 Basking Global Occupancy Benchmarks Report to access all the trends and explore strategic opportunities for empowering CRE success. For a deeper dive into the data and key insights, don’t miss our Q1 2024 Benchmarks Webinar with HelloFresh Director of Workplace Strategy Derrick Bock.
Contact us to learn how we can help you assess your occupancy and maximize flexibility to support your utilization strategy.
