- Easily and quickly find and book a specific workspace in government offices across the country.
- The workspace management system (WMS) provides anonymous data-driven insight to better align the work environment with usage and contribute to hybrid working, talent attraction, sustainability, and responsible use of space.
The Dutch central government wants every government employee to be able to perform his or her work at a location that suits them best by 2027. Hybrid working goes without saying. Workspace management supports this development. After a unique European tender with dialogue days with suppliers and user tests with government employees, the central government chose Spacewell as its partner for the implementation of a workspace management system (WMS).
André Weimar, Director of Government Procurement, Facilities and Housing Policy, Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations: “Hybrid working has really changed the use of government offices. We think it is important that our people have much better insight into the current availability of workplaces and meeting rooms and that they can make reservations, which allows us all to use the offices better and more easily. The WMS also provides the ability to find and reserve workspaces closer to home, for example, making it easier to collaborate in different parts of the country. Across organizational boundaries, both inside and outside government, more in participation with society. Also, the insights from the WMS help to start using our offices more efficiently.”
Flexibility and security
With the WMS, employees can see in advance and in real time on digital floor plans where workstations are available in a government office, including the facilities for each spot.
Martijn Cové, Mandated Client Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations: “The WMS offers government employees convenience, flexibility and security. Everyone can use one and the same app to reserve a workspace in government offices across the country. That means, for example, that one time you might work or meet as a team in Amsterdam and another time in Utrecht or Leiden. Whichever is most convenient in terms of travel time, team composition or activities.”
Valuable Insights
Carina van den Heuvel, Key Account Manager Spacewell: “At Spacewell, we are very excited about this project and the way the collaboration came about, including user testing during the selection phase so that government employees had a voice in the choice of WMS. This can only benefit adoption. With the data from reservations and sensors, we can increasingly fine-tune the work environment to the wishes and needs of employees. We are truly happy to contribute to this with our Workplace solution.”
Privacy guaranteed
For both the central government and selected partner Spacewell, privacy is essential. To measure actual occupancy, sensors detect whether “something” or “nothing” is present in a space. Without cameras. The data from reservations, occupancy and sensors are anonymized and not traceable to individuals.
Workspace Management System pilots in government offices
The contract with a potential duration of 20 years will start in fall 2023 with a pilot in government offices in Den Bosch, Eindhoven, Utrecht, Amsterdam, The Hague, and Leiden. This will involve installing 14,500 motion sensors in eight government offices from fall 2023, until mid-2024. The investment for the pilot phase is €1.5 million. Based on the insights and experiences from the pilot, a decision will be made at the end of 2024 whether the Workspace Management System will go ahead and be rolled out in more government offices.
About the Dutch Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations
The Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations is responsible for, among other things, government office housing, good employment practices, and the trend toward hybrid working. For more information on the government’s vision of hybrid working, visit www.watwerktvooronsrijk.nl (in Dutch).
