Calculating How Much Office Space Your Business Needs

When your business is considering a move, or just starting out, you need to plan carefully when you calculate how much space you will need. Either too much or too little can have a dramatic impact on your bottom line, but there are some techniques you can use to determine exactly how much space you need. First, you need to assess your current situation, and then decide what are your expectations for the growth of your business over the next few years by considering the following questions:

• How many people do I currently employ?
• Does each employee need an individual desk or is sharing possible?
• Do I expect to add any staff in the next couple of years?
• Over what period of time will I add the staff?
• What kind of staff will I be adding, executive, administrative, or sales?

In general, the amount of office space you need is estimated according to head count and your industry type. The customary range for office space is 150-350 square feet (SF) per person employed. It is the type of space you need to accommodate your business that plays a large part in narrowing that range.

At the lower end of the range is the open space plan, which has no private offices. Call centers and sales offices generally use this configuration and have desks or workstations grouped together. At the high end of the range is the traditional hard-wall or private office layout. Law offices, for example, almost all have private offices, large conference rooms, and support rooms such as libraries, kitchens and file rooms. But, for your foray into the office hunt, the general approach of using 250 square feet per person to estimate the amount of space you will occupy is a great place to begin.

The Sundance Company is here to help your company find the ideal commercial real estate space in the Boise Valley. Call us at 208-322-7300 or check out The Sundance Company website to view property photos, search for office space or learn more about Sundance’s start-to-finish capabilities. The Sundance Company has more than 1.5 million square feet of office and industrial space available in prime Boise Valley locations.

About The Sundance Company
Established in 1976, The Sundance Company has the experience to help you with your commercial real estate needs in Boise, Meridian, Nampa, and the greater Treasure Valley. If your requirements include property management, leasing, real estate development, project planning, construction or space planning then look to us. The Sundance Company has more than 1.5 million square feet of office and industrial space available in prime Boise and Meridian locations. More information is available at www.sundanceco.com or 208.322.7300.