What is a hybrid workplace?

A hybrid workplace is a working model that allows for a "work from anywhere" policy. Typically, employees work from home or the office, but they also have the option to work from a "third workplace".

What is desk booking software?

Desk booking software helps employees reserve a designated desk or meeting room in a hybrid work setup. They can easily plan their week through a shared reservation system and secure a specific desk.

Why should I use a desk booking system?

Using a desk booking system can significantly simplify everyone's work life. With this system, employees no longer need to stress about finding a desk matching their schedule and preferences, and they can focus on their work without worrying about arriving at the office only to find the only available workstation in a noisy, open space.

What is desk sharing?

Desk sharing refers to the practice of sharing desks in the workplace. It does not necessarily mean that two people simultaneously sit at the same desk. Instead, two employees use the same desk at different times throughout the day or week. This is a common practice in hybrid work environments where only some employees visit the office daily. Instead of assigning a desk to each person, which would leave it empty when they are not present, desk-sharing ensures maximum utilization of available office space by keeping the desk occupied.

What is the correct desk sharing ratio?

A desk-sharing ratio indicates the number of individuals who use one desk. For instance, if two people use the same desk at different times during the week, the ratio would be 2:1. In traditional office settings where employees report to work daily, the balance is usually 1:1. However, with the changing nature of work, such ratios are likely to shift as remote and flexible work models become more widely accepted. To determine the appropriate desk-sharing ratio, business leaders should consider the size of their team, team members' roles, the frequency of their presence in the office, and projected team growth. Additionally, leaders must determine the minimum number of desks that can be made available at any given time without impeding collaboration and employee attendance.

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Enterprise-grade security. Built for trust.

deskbird is built to meet the security, privacy, and compliance requirements of enterprise IT and legal teams, without slowing down your evaluation.

TRUSTED BY 10,000+ offices in more than 80 countries

Identity & access management

deskbird integrates with all major identity providers out of the box.

SSO/SAML 2.0

Supported with Azure AD/Entra ID, Okta, Google Workspace, and all major IdPs. Employees log in with existing credentials. No additional passwords.

SCIM provisioning

Automatic user lifecycle management. Users are created, updated, and deactivated in deskbird the moment their directory entry changes. Zero manual maintenance for IT.

Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)

Granular permission levels by location, floor, room, department, or role. Custom admin roles built around your org structure.

Multi-factor authentication (MFA)

Enforced at the IdP level. deskbird does not bypass MFA policies set by your organisation.

Built for teams who need to know where the data goes

Data architecture & residency

Where your data lives

All deskbird data is processed and hosted exclusively in the EU via the Google Cloud Platform (ISO 27001 certified infrastructure). Subprocessors with entities outside the EU operate on EU-based infrastructure and any access to personal data is strictly controlled and governed by GDPR-compliant safeguards (e.g., SCCs or adequacy decisions).

Data isolation

Each customer's data is logically isolated. deskbird operates a multi-tenant architecture with strict data separation between organisations, preventing unauthorized access to customer data across tenants.

Data retention & anonymization

Personal transactional data (desk bookings, room bookings, check-ins) is automatically anonymized after 6 months by default. Custom anonymization windows are available for Enterprise customers to match your internal data retention policy.

Right to deletion

deskbird supports GDPR Article 17 (Right to Erasure) requests.

Security controls

Encryption

All data is encrypted in transit (TLS 1.2+) and at rest (AES-256). API communications are secured via TLS.

Penetration testing

deskbird undergoes annual third-party penetration testing across both its web and mobile applications. The resulting reports are available through our Trust Center.

Incident response

deskbird maintains a documented and regularly tested incident response plan, supported by continuous monitoring and automated detection mechanisms. In the event of a security incident, deskbird follows a structured process to rapidly identify, contain, investigate, and resolve the issue. Affected customers are notified without undue delay upon becoming aware of a personal data breach. Post-incident reviews are conducted to ensure continuous improvement.

Subprocessors

A full list of deskbird subprocessors is available and updated whenever changes are made. Customers are notified of subprocessor changes in advance. All data is hosted exclusively within the EU, this also applies to our subprocessors.

Documentation for your security review

At deskbird, transparency and security are core to how we operate. To give our customers and partners complete visibility into our security and compliance practices, we maintain a dedicated Trust Center

Employee privacy

deskbird gives organizations full control over what employees, colleagues, and managers can see. Every visibility and analytics setting is configurable per group, department, or location, so privacy rules match your internal policies, not the other way around.

Anonymous bookings

Other employees cannot see who booked which desk or workspace. Admins can enable anonymous bookings globally as the organization-wide default, so no employee needs to opt in manually.

Private profiles

Employee profiles and activity are only visible to colleagues the employee has explicitly approved. Without that approval, no profile data or booking history is exposed.

Private meetings

Room bookings can be marked as "private." When enabled, meeting titles and participant lists are hidden from anyone viewing the floor plan or room calendar.

What managers can see

Managers access aggregated utilization data only. deskbird does not provide per-employee surveillance dashboards. All analytics operate at group level; individual usage or behavioral data is never exposed. Reporting is designed to inform space planning decisions, not monitor individuals.

Configurable anonymization & data retention

Personal transactional data (desk bookings, room bookings, check-ins) is automatically anonymized after a defined retention window. Data is deleted according to a documented deletion policy. No indefinite storage takes place. Enterprise customers can set custom anonymization timelines to match internal data governance requirements.

Works Council compliance

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Works Council (Betriebsrat) readiness

deskbird supports the co-determination requirements German and Austrian works councils expect for desk sharing and workplace monitoring tools. Configurable anonymization, no individual-level tracking, and full audit trails on data access give works councils the transparency needed to review and approve rollout before go-live.

Betriebsvereinbarung template

deskbird provides a non-binding Betriebsvereinbarung template for desk sharing and flexible work. It covers scope and objectives, booking processes and usage rules, data protection and access rights, health protection, ergonomics, and workspace design, as well as conflict resolution and change management procedures. The template is designed as a starting point. All rules, including data retention, behavioral guidelines, and special accommodations, are defined jointly between employer and works council.

Transparent documentation for Works Council review

Data protection provisions, access rights, and technical implementation details are documented in a way that supports works council review and approval processes. Special provisions for employees with particular needs (e.g. accessibility, health) can be integrated.

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