Which office model fits your RTO policy and budget?

Let’s get something straight—your RTO policy isn’t just about getting people back to desks.

It’s about rethinking what the office even means.

The world has changed.

The way we work has changed.

So why are we still clinging to a one-office model built for 1995?

The old HQ-centric strategy—where everyone commutes into the same building, day after day—isn’t just outdated. It’s a liability. It’s rigid, expensive, and often half-empty. And yet, many real estate leaders are still designing return-to-office policies around it.

Let’s stop asking how to bring people back to the office.

Start asking how to give them better ways to work—everywhere.

The HQ trap: Why most RTO policies are financial dead weight.

Once upon a time, the HQ was the beating heart of a company. It symbolized culture, collaboration, and brand identity.

Today? It’s a cost center with a branding problem.

• Long leases.
• High fixed costs.
• Vacancy rates that would make your CFO wince.

The average HQ utilization rate has dropped to 30–40%, yet companies are still paying for 100% of the space. That’s not just inefficient—it’s absurd.

In a hybrid world, forcing everyone into one building doesn’t drive connection. It drives attrition, overhead, and wasted potential.

The smarter alternative: RTO built around flexibility.

Progressive companies aren’t mandating a mass return to a central office.

They’re designing RTO policies that offer choice.

That build networks of workspace, not monuments.

That prioritize resilience, not rigidity.

Here are four flexible workspace strategies that leading enterprises are using to build modern, shock-absorbing return-to-office policies:

1. 1. Flexible private office.
      
      The agile alternative to traditional leases.
      No long-term commitments. No CapEx.
      Ready-to-go workspaces for regional teams or fast-changing headcount—scalable up or down, with predictable costs.
      
      
   2. Managed office.
      
      Get a branded, private office experience with a turnkey setup and flexible terms. Ideal for companies that want a presence without permanence.
      
      
   3. Hub-and-spoke model.
      
      One size fits no one.
      A centralized collaboration hub + smaller, regional spokes = less commuting, more engagement, and better space efficiency.
      Some enterprises are cutting 90% of HQ-related costs by decentralizing.
      
      👉 For more, read: Rethinking HQ – Why hub-and-spoke is driving RTO success.
      
      
   4. On-demand workspace.
      
      Book what you need, when you need it. From a solo desk near home to a meeting room downtown—on-demand workspace is the ultimate flexible layer in your portfolio. Some companies are cutting real estate costs by 80% with this model alone.
      
   
   

Why a flexible RTO policy matters more than ever.

Let’s be blunt: the traditional office lease is a trap.

It locks you into fixed costs in an unpredictable world.

A modern RTO policy gives you options:

• To flex your footprint as business needs evolve
• To match space to actual demand, not legacy assumptions
• To align real estate strategy with talent strategy

At LiquidSpace, we make it easy to do just that—with scalable workspace options across thousands of locations, powered by our DASH License (a simple, standardized agreement that replaces lease pain with click-to-book speed).

RTO policy workspace models: A side-by-side comparison.

RTO policy = real estate strategy. And it better be agile.

Let’s stop treating RTO like a compliance checklist.

It’s your chance to rebuild your workplace strategy from the ground up—with flexibility, speed, and cost efficiency baked in.

The companies winning in 2025 won’t be the ones that force people back.

They’ll be the ones that unlock agility—everywhere work happens.

Your move: Build a better RTO policy.

✅ Download the guide:

RTO: Making It Work – A strategic playbook for future-ready workplace planning.

✅ Talk to a workplace planning expert:

Explore your options. Model the ROI. Build a portfolio that flexes as fast as your business does.

👉 Claim your strategy session

TL;DR?

Old RTO policies push people into buildings.

Modern RTO strategies build networks of choice.

The future of work isn’t fixed.

And neither should your office be.