Bringing clarity and control to flexible working
As Devonshires moved towards more structured hybrid working, an informal approach to desk booking was becoming increasingly difficult to manage. An Excel spreadsheet and first-come-first-served seating meant employees could arrive to find that the desk they had booked was already occupied.
With Clearooms, the firm introduced a simple, scalable desk booking system that integrates with Microsoft 365, provides clear visibility of workspace and can be quickly adapted as teams and offices change.
“It only takes a moment to book your desk for the next two weeks, and you can easily do it on your phone wherever you are.”
MAXINE HINDS, IT Service Desk Manager, Devonshires
- Legal Industry
- 525 Users
- 145 Desks
- Multiple Uk Offices
BACKGROUND
Devonshires is a leading UK law firm, providing legal services across more than 20 specialist areas and supporting clients across a diverse range of sectors.
Founded in 1841, the firm now has more than 380 professionals across four UK offices. As teams increasingly adopted flexible working, the firm needed a more structured way to manage shared workspace and ensure teams could work together on their core office days.
THE CHALLENGE
Before Clearooms, desk booking was largely informal. A small number of desks were managed through an internal Excel spreadsheet, while elsewhere employees could simply arrive and take an available desk. This created uncertainty and made it difficult for growing teams to ensure they could sit together.
The firm needed a solution that would:
- Allow people to book desks on behalf of others
- Support recurring bookings and check-in
- Integrate with Microsoft 365 and provide Single Sign-On
- Identify desks with specific features such as dual screens or sit-stand capability
- Provide useful utilisation data
- Scale quickly as teams and offices changed
- Meet the firm’s security and compliance requirements
THE SOLUTION
Maxine Hinds was tasked with finding a solution that could meet the firm’s requirements quickly and within a clearly defined budget.
After researching a number of options, Clearooms stood out for its combination of functionality, transparent pricing, ease of use and scalability. Microsoft 365 integration provided Single Sign-On, while interactive floor plans allow employees to see available desks and identify those with specific facilities.
The platform also supports team-based workspace allocation, helping departments organise their seating around core working days.
“The scalability is really quick and easy. I’ve purchased a bigger licence because more teams are coming on board and it’s literally a click of a button adding the users and off they go.”
MAXINE HINDS, IT Service Desk Manager, Devonshires
IMPLEMENTATION
The implementation was straightforward, with the main challenge being the initial preparation of floor plans.
Before a wider rollout, Devonshire’s ran a one- month pilot with a small group of users. This provided an opportunity to gather feedback, test the configuration and establish the appropriate administration model.
Once the system was live, adoption was rapid, with little resistance from staff. Now, Clearooms is currently used across the firm’s London and Birmingham offices, with additional locations able to be added as required. The system is managed by the IT service desk, with additional administrators and departmental super-users able to manage permissions and support their teams.
The flexibility of the platform has also made it simple to respond to changes. When an additional floor with around 40 desks needed to be added, the configuration was completed within days.
The Results
Clearooms has replaced an unreliable manual process with a consistent and scalable approach to workspace management.
- Easy adoption A pilot rollout helped establish the system before wider implementation, with minimal resistance from users
- Rapid scalability New users, desks and locations can be added quickly as requirements change
- Better workspace visibility Interactive floor plans show desk locations and facilities at a glance
- Microsoft integration: Single Sign-On makes access straightforward for staff
- Improved administration: IT can manage the system internally, with departmental super-users supporting individual teams
- Responsive support Queries are dealt with quickly, with Maxine describing Clearooms support as exceptionally responsive
- FUTURE PLANS Devonshires expects its use of Clearooms to grow as additional teams and locations adopt more flexible working practices. The firm is also working to improve the quality of its utilisation data by encouraging staff to check in when they arrive, rather than relying on long-term block bookings. With Clearooms already embedded into the way its teams work, Devonshires has a flexible platform that can grow alongside the organisation.
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