Right-Size, Don't Downsize: A 5-Step Framework for Reducing Office Space While Keeping Team Performance Intact

The numbers are difficult to ignore. According to data from CBRE and JLL, US office vacancy rates have remained elevated well above pre-pandemic levels, with a substantial share of that unused square footage belonging to companies that are still paying full rent on space their employees occupy only two or three days per week. For finance teams, that represents a significant and increasingly untenable line item. For HR and operations leaders, the challenge is more nuanced: how do you reclaim that cost without sending your teams the message that their workplace experience is an afterthought?

The answer lies not in aggressive downsizing but in deliberate rightsizing—a disciplined process of aligning your physical footprint with how your workforce actually operates today, not how it operated in 2019. The following five-step framework has been developed through AKA Office's work with mid-market and enterprise clients across the United States who have successfully navigated this transition.

Step 1: Conduct a Rigorous Space Utilization Audit

Before a single lease clause is renegotiated or a single desk is removed, you need accurate data on how your current space is actually being used. Anecdotal impressions—"the office feels empty on Fridays"—are not sufficient for decisions of this magnitude.

Effective space audits combine several data streams. Badge access records reveal when employees are entering and exiting the building and at what frequency. Desk and conference room booking system data shows which assets are being reserved versus which are sitting idle. Sensor-based occupancy tools, now widely available at accessible price points, provide real-time and historical data on space utilization at a granular level.

The goal is to produce a utilization heatmap: a clear picture of which spaces are consistently occupied, which are sporadically used, and which are effectively dormant. Most organizations conducting this analysis for the first time are surprised by the results. It is not uncommon to find that 30 to 40 percent of total square footage is consistently underutilized even on peak attendance days.

This data becomes the foundation for every subsequent decision in the framework. Without it, rightsizing is guesswork.

Step 2: Redesign the Layout Around Actual Work Patterns

Once utilization data has been analyzed, the next step is not simply removing the empty desks—it is redesigning the remaining space to serve the work patterns your audit revealed.

Hybrid workforces use offices differently than fully in-person teams. Employees who come in two or three days per week tend to prioritize collaboration, focused project work, and social connection over routine individual tasks, which they handle effectively at home. This shift has significant implications for layout.

Organizations that have successfully rightsized their footprints consistently report moving away from assigned individual workstations toward flexible, activity-based zones. These include collaboration areas with writable surfaces and movable furniture, quiet focus rooms for heads-down work requiring fewer distractions, and social spaces that encourage the informal interactions that sustain culture.

A manufacturing firm headquartered in Columbus, Ohio reduced its total office square footage by 28 percent while simultaneously increasing employee satisfaction with the physical workspace by redesigning its remaining space along these principles. The key insight: employees do not miss the space they lost. They notice and appreciate the quality of the space they have.

Step 3: Address Employee Concerns Before They Become Resistance

Workplace change initiatives that skip this step frequently encounter the same outcome: a technically sound plan that fails in execution because employees feel it was done to them rather than with them.

The concerns that arise most predictably during office rightsizing fall into a few categories. Employees worry about losing a sense of personal space and ownership. Managers worry about losing proximity to their teams. Both groups worry that reduced office space signals reduced organizational investment in their experience.

Proactive communication—delivered before decisions are finalized, not after—significantly reduces the intensity of these concerns. Town halls, departmental listening sessions, and structured surveys give employees a channel for input that, even when it does not change the ultimate outcome, generates meaningful goodwill. People who feel heard are substantially more adaptable than people who feel managed.

It is also worth equipping managers with specific talking points and data. When a team lead can explain to their direct reports that the office is being redesigned based on actual usage data—and that the resulting space will be better suited to the collaborative work they come in for—the narrative shifts from loss to improvement.

Step 4: Integrate Flexible Workspace Solutions to Fill the Gaps

Rightsizing a headquarters or primary office does not mean eliminating every workspace option outside of it. For employees who live far from the main location, or who need a professional environment on days when they are not traveling to the primary office, flexible workspace solutions provide a cost-effective complement.

Coworking memberships, on-demand office day passes, and partnerships with flexible workspace networks give organizations the ability to provide employees with professional work environments across a broader geographic footprint without the fixed overhead of additional leases. Several US-based companies have negotiated enterprise-level arrangements with national coworking providers that allow employees to book workspace in dozens of cities at a fraction of what a traditional satellite office would cost.

This approach also gives organizations a practical buffer during the transition period. As employees adjust to a smaller primary office, the availability of nearby coworking options reduces friction and demonstrates that the organization's commitment to supporting productive work has not diminished—only its approach has evolved.

Step 5: Establish Metrics and Revisit Regularly

A rightsizing initiative is not a one-time event. Workforce composition, hybrid attendance patterns, and business needs evolve continuously, and your space strategy should be reviewed on a regular cadence to remain aligned with those realities.

Define your success metrics before the transition concludes. Cost per square foot and total real estate spend are the obvious financial indicators. Equally important are occupancy rates in your redesigned space, employee satisfaction scores related to the physical work environment, and productivity indicators relevant to your business model.

Organizations that conduct quarterly space reviews and are willing to make iterative adjustments consistently outperform those that treat the initial redesign as a permanent solution. The companies achieving the strongest long-term outcomes—cost savings in the range of 20 to 35 percent of prior real estate spend, alongside maintained or improved engagement scores—are those that treat their office as a living asset rather than a fixed infrastructure cost.

The Bottom Line

Rightsizing office space is one of the most consequential operational decisions a US business can make in the current environment. Done poorly, it signals to employees that the organization views their workplace experience as a budget line rather than a strategic investment. Done well, it produces a leaner, more purposeful physical environment that serves your hybrid workforce more effectively than the space it replaced—while generating meaningful, sustainable cost savings.

At AKA Office, we partner with organizations at every stage of this process, from initial space audits through redesign, implementation, and ongoing optimization. A smarter workspace is not necessarily a larger one. It is one that has been built—or rebuilt—with intention.