NIH Hoteling Program

Discover telework at NIH and discover creative productivity. http://telework.od.nih.gov

What is Hoteling?

"Hoteling" is the practice of providing office space to employees on an as-needed rather than on the traditional, dedicated basis. Hoteling changes the traditional model for how office space is used. Rather than assign permanent office space to each employee, hoteling is a system for assigning just-in-time temporary office space to employees.

Why is the practice spreading?

Hoteling minimizes the square footage of the office. The lower the square footage of an office, the lower the cost to lease the space.
Many of today's knowledge workers spend more than half their time away from their offices (travel, meetings, annual/sick leave, and/or flexible work arrangements).
Office hoteling provides employees with the flexibility to work from more than one location.
Allows for more flexible staffing options.
Enhances quality of work life for employees.

NIH Best Practices

A number of ICs have successfully implemented hoteling in their organizations for many of the reasons cited above. If your IC is interested in implementing a hoteling pilot program, below is a list of best practices and recommendations that will help you get started.

Pre and post implementation surveys for the participants, managers and coworkers to assess the attitudes and perceptions towards teleworking / hoteling.
Hoteling policies and practices must consider the needs and expectations of the users to the maximum extent possible. The criteria for participation must be well defined and administered in an equitable manner.
Obtain NIH senior leadership's visible support for telework and hoteling through the use of e-mail messages and other communication forums to promote awareness and participation in NIH's telework program.
Suggest extramural-related occupations that may be conducive to a telework arrangement as possible "hoteling" pilot participants. Examples may include Scientific Review Officers, ethics specialists, grants management specialists, and the like.
Offer incentives for ICs to participate in the hoteling pilot, such as a reduction in rent for freed office space or the ability to hire additional staff without increasing space requirements.
Explore an initiative to "double-up" appropriate offices when planning lease replacement space.
Invest in IT equipment (such as laptops with docking stations, and videoconferencing equipment) and infrastructure (e.g., IT band-width) to support hoteling participants.

NIH Hoteling Resources

NIH Hoteling Lessons Learned and Tips

NIH Hoteling Pilot

The NIH Telework Focus Group was established in the spring of 2007, as a result of the Facilities Working Group's (FWG) recommendation to explore the use of telework, particularly "hoteling" to reduce NIH's dependency on leased office space. Hoteling allows for the opportunity to save on the amount of space that the IC needs to carry out its mission by reducing the overall amount of space utilized per employee.

Based on the Presidential Memorandum of June 10, 2010 which mandates $3 billion in space –related cost savings by the end of 2012, HHS has adopted Teleworking / Hoteling as one of the four areas where savings should be realized.

Pilot programs at NIH typically define "hoteling" as teleworking from a remote location (typically an employee's home or a telecenter) at least 2 - 3 days or more a week and requires that the employee relinquish his/her dedicated on-site office space in exchange for a shared desk space that the employee schedules for use on the day(s) they report to the on-site office.

If your IC is interested in implementing a hoteling pilot, please use the questionnaire provided below to develop an effective pilot program that produces measurable results.