Using Data to Improve the Office
- Akosua Hansen
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
"If you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it." At first glance, this might sound like a line for engineers or analysts. However, in our world, it’s about space. The kind people work in, move through, avoid, and return to. It’s about the office, and the invisible stories it tells every day.
At Dojo, we regularly talk with companies that are trying to reimagine their workplaces: a return-to-office shift, a new headquarters, or a shrinking footprint. Leaders come to us saying, “We built our office for collaboration, but no one’s collaborating.” Or, “We designed our office for focus, but the rooms are always empty.”
These aren't small problems, they're signals. Our job it to turn these signals into insight, so you can improve what you couldn't see before.
Assumptions ≠ Insight
Workplace strategy has long relied on qualitative input: surveys, manager feedback, or “how we’ve always done it.” But today’s office environment is more complex than ever. Hybrid schedules blur the line between presence and productivity, team formations shift quickly, and cultural expectations evolve with every new hire and every new generation.
When your office strategy is built on assumptions, you’re designing for yesterday’s needs. You may think a 10-person conference room is a must-have until you realize it’s empty 90% of the time. You may assume employees love working in open collaboration areas until data shows they’re booking small focus rooms instead. These blind spots are costly. They lead to wasted space, underwhelming experiences, and missed opportunities to reinforce company culture in a tangible, physical way.
True insight comes from seeing how people behave, not just what they say they want. That requires a shift from static planning to dynamic awareness and quantitative insight.
Measurement is Listening at Scale
Measurement is often misunderstood as surveillance or micromanagement. But in the context of the workplace, it is something far more empowering. It is a way to listen. To observe, without judgment, how your space is used, when it's used, and why certain areas succeed while others fail. It turns vague frustrations into actionable patterns.
When you measure workplace behavior, you build a living blueprint of how your organization moves and operates. You learn when employees collaborate most effectively. You see which environments spark energy and which ones sap it. Measurement doesn’t take away the human element. It amplifies it by helping leaders design for the actual experience, not just the imagined one.
At scale, this kind of listening creates alignment. Between facilities teams and HR. Between leadership and employees. Between what your company wants to be and how it shows up in space.
Make Smarter Decisions Without the Guesswork
Lord Kelvin’s quote is simple but powerful. Without measurement, there is no clear path to improvement. In the workplace, that means leaders are often making decisions without the insight they need, relying on assumptions instead of evidence.
At Dojo, we believe measurement turns good intentions into smart action. It is not about micromanaging space, but understanding it. When you can see how people actually use the office, you can reduce waste, support better collaboration, and respond more effectively to change.
You cannot fix what you cannot see. But with the right visibility, you can design a workplace that truly works, for your people and your business.