Workplace Planner/Strategist

About the role

The Space Planner / Workplace Strategist supports the Susquehanna Real Estate and Facilities team in planning, analyzing, and implementing space planning initiatives across the company's global real estate portfolio. This role combines data-driven occupancy planning with workplace strategy, ensuring space solutions align with business goals, workplace trends, and operational needs.

Responsibilities

• Lead space planning efforts across multiple locations, managing requests from intake through implementation in partnership with Workplace Design.
• Partner closely with Workplace Design and Human Resources (HR) to translate occupancy data, business requirements, and planning assumptions into design-ready test fits and space plans.
• Develop and maintain space planning standards, methodologies, and documentation to ensure consistency across the portfolio.
• Serve as the subject matter expert for space data, drawings, and occupancy analytics, ensuring accuracy across all tools and platforms.
• Translate business requirements into test fits, stacking plans, blocking diagrams, and seating layouts.
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders, including business leaders and HR to understand headcount forecasts, team adjacencies, and workplace needs.
• Develop, maintain, and update test fits, space plans, occupancy plans, and layouts in alignment with company standards and design guidelines.
• Maintain accurate space data, drawings, and occupancy records within IWMS and CAD platforms.
• Analyze space utilization, density metrics, and occupancy trends to inform planning decisions and recommended improvements.
• Support moves, adds, and changes (MAC) planning and execution, ensuring minimal disruption and strong stakeholder communication.
• Support scenario planning and capacity modeling aligned with growth projections and workplace strategy.
• Ensure space plans reflect current headcount, departmental adjacencies, growth projections, and operational needs.
• Demonstrate an informed understanding of space requirements, planning assumptions, and overall workplace strategy objectives.
• Prepare occupancy plans, reporting, and presentations for internal stakeholders and leadership.
• Proactively identify risks, constraints, and inefficiencies, and drive solutions in ambiguous or evolving conditions.
• Engage in regular communication with internal partners to confirm space needs and expectations remain aligned.
• Coordinate, attend, and actively participate in planning and project meetings.
• Ensure consistency and accuracy of space information across drawings, reports, and systems.
• Contribute to broader workplace strategy initiatives, including space optimization and evolving work models.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, Interior Design, Facilities Management, or a related field required.
• 5-7+ years of experience in occupancy planning, space planning, or facilities planning within a corporate environment.
• Advanced proficiency in CAD-based space planning tools (AutoCAD required, experience with Revit or BIM tools preferred).
• Advanced Excel skills for data analysis and reporting (pivot tables, lookups, data validation required).
• Experience developing test fits, stacking plans, and occupancy scenarios from concept through implementation.
• Strong understanding of space planning principles, including density metrics, circulation, space measurement standards (BOMA and equivalent).
• Experience managing and maintaining space data within IWMS or space management platforms (e.g., Planon; FM:Systems; Manhattan, Archibus, or similar).
• Demonstrated ability to analyze utilization data and translate insights into actionable, business-aligned space solutions.
• Proven capability to manage space planning workflows, including request intake, prioritization, and stakeholder communication.
• Strong technical judgment to identify conflicts, inefficiencies, or gaps in space plans and proactively propose solutions.
• Demonstrated ability to work with limited direction and to make informed planning decisions aligned with organizational strategy and constraints.
• High attention to detail with strong organizational and problem-solving skills.
• Experience supporting moves, relocations, or workplace transformations or large-scale reconfigurations preferred.
• Ability to handle ambiguity, using sound judgment and initiative to define problems, prioritize effectively, and drive progress with limited guidance.
• Strong, context-aware communication skills, with the ability to clearly articulate the trade-offs of a plan or approach.
• Solutions-oriented with a collaborative approach to help drive outcomes for the organization while meeting individual business needs.