In the context of the office environment, occupancy planning is the ongoing process of aligning people and workspace, ensuring the physical office environment evolves as organizational and employee needs change.

It focuses on how employees use space, where teams are located, and how effectively the workplace supports daily operations.

An occupancy planner works at both tactical and strategic levels to help organizations manage how employees use space.

On a tactical level, they respond to end-user requests such as moves, seating changes, or furniture adjustments.

On a strategic level, they think ahead, using data to model how space may be used over time and to help organizations plan for future changes, such as growth, downsizing, or shifts in how teams work.

Occupancy planning sits at the intersection of data and design. As a result, occupancy planners need to understand how the physical workplace operates and the data behind it.

On the physical side, this means understanding space planning best practices, spatial limitations, required clearances, and how design standards are applied within an existing space. Just because you could add a desk doesn’t mean that you should. This knowledge ensures that proposed plans are functional and realistic.

On the data side, occupancy planners work with a high volume of employee and workspace data. Spreadsheets and analytical tools make it possible to efficiently evaluate headcount, seating supply, and model future scenarios, which would be impractical to manage manually. Strong data skills allow planners to analyze options quickly and support decisions with clear evidence.