Why do surveyors always focus on square
footage and size metrics — are we looking
at the right data to shape our business?
This question raises an interesting point — are
we measuring for measurement’s sake, and
are we measuring the right things for each
occupational need? All of us are awash with data
and analytics but is it usable and useful, or just
a set of interesting analyses and graphs?
For many occupiers size does matter, of course
it does, but we need to understand what the
information is for. Knowing that you have 500,000
sq ft in four buildings might be exactly what you need
to know but if you need to know how much space you
would need in one, single location it is not as much
help. Clearly workstations would be a better measure.
“If it doesn’t move, measure it”, seems to be the
mantra but ideally you should sit down with your
advisers and work out together what would be
useful to know: utilisation, staff working patterns
and occupational peaks and troughs, relative costs
of occupation, i.e. whatever is critical to developing
strategy for your business, for what matters to you.
Data on its own is meaningless, it is how you
analyse and cross reference it that counts and that
needs to be defined according to what purpose it
will serve. By identifying elements you have the
ability to control or change, and by measuring and
analysing the data surrounding them and their
linkages, you can avoid false economies and turn
data into knowledge to create informed strategies.
There are a myriad of analytical tools available today
but deciding on the raw data source is the key.
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