Do you look at how other universities use their campus space?
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It’s also tricky. To do it right, you need to know whether your own results truly match those shared by others.
For example, a university may report a space utilisation figure of 35%.
But does this result only account for general teaching space? Does it represent a peak period, rather than an average across all teaching weeks? Does the university deliver subjects that are similar to your own?
These are all things to consider when comparing space use.
So how can you benchmark effectively? By starting with a robust internal process. If you’re clear on what you’re measuring and why, it becomes easier to then benchmark yourself against universities who are measuring the same things.
On our Space Management Basecamp Level 1 course we teach a seven-step process to help you get your benchmarking activity off to a flying start.
Here’s a snippet:
1. Delve into the data
What data will you need to carry out your benchmarking exercise? How will you identify your data sources? How will you collect and present your data?
2. Stick to meaningful metrics
How will you identify good versus bad metrics? What are your outliers and how will you include these? How can you effectively compare your metrics to those of other universities?
3. Have a follow-up plan
How do you decide what changes to make, based on what you discover? How will you measure success?
Taught by our very own space management gurus, this 5-day, CPD-accredited course also covers space data modelling, space management data principles, how to evaluate demand and so much more too.
Why not also check out our regular newsletters, which are full of space management tips and insights? They’re a great way to help you take your skills to the next level! Simply
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