Why do employees book large conference rooms just to sit alone? Or crowd into office phone booths all day? These small signals tell a bigger story about how workplaces succeed — or fail — at supporting people.
Workplace design isn’t just about floor plans. It shapes how employees feel supported, valued, and heard. And while occupancy data shows how space gets used, only employee listening explains why those patterns emerge. Put together, the two reveal what employees need to stay engaged and connected.
On this episode of People Fundamentals, host Ashley Litzenberger is joined by Annie Cosgrove, director of analytics and insights at Density, a space analytics platform for measuring and improving workplaces. With an architect’s eye and a data leader’s mindset, Annie shares how organizations can pair analytics with employee voice to design spaces that foster collaboration, focus, and belonging.
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Your data always needs a ‘why’
At Density, Annie’s team uses occupancy analytics to understand how workplaces actually function. The numbers alone, however, don’t explain the why behind employee behavior. That’s why data must be paired with direct employee listening to uncover the full story.
“We use sensors that anonymously track how people use space,” Annie says. “Knowing how much your space is used and when and for how long, [...] it can tell you a lot about how it’s going, but it doesn’t give you the whole story. What’s really important is pairing sensor data with qualitative insights, actually talking to your employees, figuring out the ‘why’ to go along with that.”
This dual approach allows organizations to spot disconnects between design and reality. For example, when employees consistently book solo meetings, it’s often a signal that the environment isn’t offering the quiet focus space they need. As Annie notes, “Solo meetings in particular are really important to pay attention to, because what they often mean is that there aren’t the spaces that those employees need to do the work that they need to do.”
Different teams, different spaces
Office design isn’t one-size-fits-all. Different functions thrive in different settings, and providing choice is essential for both productivity and belonging.
“It can totally depend, and it doesn’t just depend on the company, it depends on the team,” Annie says. “An engineering team might really need a desk that’s dedicated to them so they can do continuous heads-down work, whereas a sales or a marketing team might not need that dedicated space, because they’re mostly in meetings collaborating.”
That’s why a mix of environments matters. “The most important thing is having a variety of spaces, having a menu of spaces for people to choose from, but measuring how your spaces are used can help you figure out what the personas that are really in play here,” she adds.
Thoughtful variety does more than boost productivity. It signals to employees that the workplace was designed with them in mind — removing friction, reducing negative experiences, and ensuring the right space is available when they need it.
Bathrooms, booths, and belonging
How employees actually use a space often tells leaders more than the floor plan ever could. Subtle patterns can uncover overlooked friction and point to culture gaps hiding in plain sight.
Bathrooms are an example. “We actually found that there were a few bathrooms that were seeing really high usage patterns at certain times. …Sharing this data with our customer helped them actually figure out a better cleaning schedules,” Annie recalls. Those kinds of details can shape daily experience.
Or, consider quiet rooms. “[With] one customer, we saw some evidence of those being used for collaboration. That’s the opposite. So people were always sitting next to each other, kitty-cornered. Again, not the intention of the space. It maybe means that they need a collaborative space instead of the quiet space.” Employees will always adapt spaces to fit their needs — sometimes in ways design never intended.
And then there are office phone booths, known as call booths. “In some ways, maybe the phone booth has been like a Band-Aid solution for offices that were not set up properly for our current work styles,” Annie says. “Spending all day in a little box — that can’t be the right solution.”
By pairing analytics with employee voices, leaders can see beyond the data points. The result is a workplace that evolves with real behavior, supports focus and collaboration, and signals to employees that their needs are recognized.
People in this episode
Annie Cosgrove: LinkedIn
