Hot desk

Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript.

Feifei Hello and welcome to The English We Speak. I’m Feifei and with me is Rob.

Rob Hello everyone. Hi Feifei, how are you?

Feifei I’m very well, Rob, thank you. Which cool phrase have you brought to share with us?

Rob I’d like to introduce the phrase ‘to hot-desk’ and the idea behind hot-desking in modern offices.

Feifei I know this one, Rob. To hot-desk or hot-desking is an increasingly popular way of working to save office space.

Rob Yes, not like before, where everyone had their own desk, in a hot-desking office there are certain number of desks and computers available for people to use, and anyone who needs them can use them.

Feifei This way, companies can save space by reducing the overall number of desks it needs to provide because not everyone is at work every day.

Rob That’s right. Throughout the year, there are always people on leave, away from the office or off sick. It’s more common to see hot-desking in big organisations.

Feifei Let’s hear some examples of people talking about hot-desking.

Examples BBC New Broadcasting House is a hot-desking environment. People just sit wherever there is a free computer.

Hot desks should be kept clean and tidy at all times because you don’t know who will use them next.

Many modern office workers are expected to hot-desk.

Rob So we heard people using ‘hot desk’ in three different ways.

Feifei Yes. Remember hot-desking is the noun form of the verb ‘to hot-desk’.

Rob When you write ‘to hot-desk’, don’t forget ‘hot’ and ‘desk’ needs to be hyphenated.

Feifei The actual desk we use to do hot-desking is called a ‘hot desk’ - without the hyphen between the two words.

Rob OK, I think that’s enough ‘hot-desking’ for now.

Feifei Oh wait, Rob. I haven’t got a desk today, I need to go and find a hot desk! Bye!

Rob Good luck! Bye bye.