How it works
Planning produces many versions: scenarios, drafts and options for leadership. Once one is approved, it becomes the plan of record. Every other version stays a scenario until it is approved and replaces it.
Everything downstream works from the plan of record: move schedules, furniture orders, network and access changes, signs, and seat assignments in the booking system. When the plan changes, the new approved version replaces the old one and everyone is told what changed.
Keeping one plan of record avoids a common failure in large moves, where facilities, IT and the movers each work from a different spreadsheet. A version history shows what was approved, when and by whom.
How to measure it
- Keep one clearly labeled current version, with an approval date and an owner.
- Record every change after approval and tell the teams that work from it.
- Check after each move that live seat assignments match the plan of record.
Examples
- A restack has three scenarios. Leadership approves one, which becomes the plan of record that the movers and IT schedule from.
- A late headcount change updates the block plan; the revised version is approved and replaces the earlier plan of record.
Common mistakes
- Sharing drafts that people mistake for the approved plan.
- Changing the plan without telling the teams that carry it out.
- Letting live seating drift from the plan after the move, so the next plan starts from bad data.
How Kadence helps
In Kadence SpaceOps, teams build stack and space plans, compare scenarios side by side and export share-ready PDFs for stakeholders. When a plan is approved, SpaceOps publishes it to WorkOps, pushing it into live neighborhoods and assignments, so the booking system matches the plan.
SpaceOps · Scenario planning · Space management · Office move checklist
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a plan of record and a scenario?
A scenario is an option being tested. The plan of record is the one option that has been approved and that teams act on. A scenario becomes the plan of record only when it is approved.
Who owns the plan of record?
Usually the real estate or workplace planning lead, who controls changes and approvals. Facilities, IT, movers and team leads work from it but do not change it directly. Every change goes through that owner, so there is only ever one current version.
Why does a move need a single plan of record?
Because many teams act on it at the same time. If movers, IT and facilities each use a different version, people arrive at desks with no network, the wrong furniture or someone else already sitting there.
Related terms
- Stack planning A floor-by-floor plan of which teams occupy which floors and buildings, used to test moves and consolidations first.
- Block plan A floor-level layout that assigns each team to a zone of one floor, between the stack plan and the seat-level plan.
- Move management Planning, sequencing and carrying out workplace moves, from one desk change to a whole-team relocation.
- Scenario planning Modeling several possible futures for space, cost and teams, and comparing them side by side before committing to one.
- Restack Reassigning teams across the floors of a building to free space, absorb growth or improve adjacency, done as a sequence of moves.
- Space roster The authoritative list of who is assigned to which seat, zone or space at a point in time.
Kadence editorial team · Last reviewed