How D-ploy Found a More Efficient and Flexible Office Model

D-ploy is an international company providing IT services and engineering solutions. It employs around 180 people in the Czech Republic, many of whom work remotely or directly at client sites. We spoke with Ivana Kučerová, Head of Strategic Portfolio & Vendor Management at D-ploy, about how the company rethought its office model and why it ultimately chose a serviced office solution.

During the pandemic, D-ploy enabled its employees to work fully remotely. Today, a large part of the team continues to work remotely or directly at client sites. This means the office no longer needs to serve as an everyday workplace for everyone. It does, however, remain an important hub for regular team collaboration and, in some cases, client meetings.

As the end of its existing lease approached, D-ploy did not simply ask where to move next or how many square metres it needed. Instead, the company used the opportunity to rethink its entire office model and align it more closely with how the business and its people actually work today.

The challenge: finding an office model that reflects how people work today

D-ploy had been based in a conventional 740 m² office in Prague’s Pankrác district, with 65 workstations. The location worked well for the company, and staying in Pankrác was important, primarily because of its proximity to key clients. However, the existing space and the way it was operated no longer reflected how employees were actually using the office.

D-ploy therefore began looking for a model that would combine a dedicated company base in Pankrác with more efficient use of space, less operational overhead and the flexibility to respond to future changes in the size of the team and the way it works.

When comparing the available options, the company looked beyond headline rent or cost per square metre. Instead, it considered the true total cost of ownership (TCO) of each office model. In addition to rent, this included investment in fit-out and furnishings, day-to-day operating costs, the security deposit, the internal capacity required to manage the office, and the costs associated with eventually exiting the lease.

D-ploy had fully fitted out, furnished and operated its previous office itself. In 2018, the initial investment in furnishing the space amounted to approximately CZK 1.75 million. On top of that, the company had to manage utilities, cleaning, refreshments, printers, maintenance and other aspects of day-to-day operations.

Internal resources were another part of the equation. According to D-ploy’s own calculations, office management accounted for approximately 15–20% of the capacity of the team responsible for running the workplace – time that could otherwise be spent supporting other teams and business functions.

The security deposit was also significant. Under its previous lease, D-ploy had approximately CZK 1.25 million tied up for seven years. When exploring new conventional leases, the company also encountered requirements for deposits equivalent to three months’ rent.

Future exit costs were another consideration. With an estimated reinstatement budget of around EUR 65 per m², restoring the previous premises to their original condition would have cost approximately CZK 1.1 million. Thanks to an agreement with the landlord, D-ploy ultimately managed to reduce the actual cost to around CZK 500,000.

TCO, however, was not the only criterion. Flexibility was equally important. D-ploy cannot know exactly how its team or working patterns will evolve over the next several years and did not want to commit to another model that would be difficult and expensive to adapt if its needs changed.

The solution: a dedicated office without the operational burden

D-ploy compared both conventional leases and serviced office options in Pankrác before ultimately choosing WorkLounge City Point.

Alongside cost efficiency and flexibility, the quality of the working environment itself played an important role. The previous office was large, dark and not particularly well suited to employees’ needs. The new space needed to be functional, but it also needed to be somewhere people felt comfortable and genuinely wanted to return to.

At WorkLounge, D-ploy has its own dedicated office space with 53 workstations, which employees use depending on when they are in the office. They also have access to shared WorkLounge amenities, including kitchens, lounges, phone booths and additional meeting rooms.

Compared with a conventional lease, D-ploy did not have to build and fit out an entirely new office from scratch. At the same time, it was able to customise selected elements of the workspace to suit its own requirements.

Day-to-day operations have also changed significantly. Cleaning, utilities, heating and cooling, maintenance and other operational requirements are handled by the WorkLounge team. D-ploy no longer needs to source individual suppliers and coordinate every operational issue itself.

The company retains the privacy and independence of its own dedicated workspace, while WorkLounge takes care of much of what is required to keep it running.

“That’s why we do it this way. Here, you pick up the phone and someone takes care of it.”

What changed with the new office model

By moving to a WorkLounge serviced office, D-ploy did more than simply move into a smaller office. It changed the way its workplace operates to better reflect the company’s current needs.

The result is a combination of greater cost efficiency, less operational overhead, more flexibility and a working environment that employees genuinely use.

A smaller office that people use more

The move brought another important benefit. Despite relocating to a smaller space, D-ploy has found that employees use the new office more frequently than they used the previous one.

The working environment itself plays an important role. D-ploy wanted an office where people would feel comfortable and that would naturally support team collaboration and face-to-face interaction.

WorkLounge community activities also encourage regular use of the office. Monday breakfasts, for example, have created another regular opportunity for D-ploy employees to come together in person.

The result is not simply more efficient use of space. The smaller office is better aligned with the way D-ploy works today while fulfilling its role as both a workplace and a place for people to connect more effectively than the significantly larger office it replaced.

It’s not just about the cost of an office. It’s about the entire model.

D-ploy’s experience shows that choosing an office should involve more than comparing monthly rent or cost per square metre.

True TCO also includes fit-out and furnishings, day-to-day operations, the internal resources required to manage the workplace, security deposits, ongoing investment and future exit costs. Beyond the financial side, companies also need to consider how easily their office can adapt as the business changes – and how effectively employees actually use the space.

For D-ploy, it was this combination of cost efficiency, lower operational demands, flexibility and a better working environment that ultimately made changing its office model the right choice.

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