Dive Brief:

• JLL is collaborating with Microsoft to pilot and test a new, AI-powered connected workplace app that aims to support hybrid workplace models and evolving workforce needs.

• The application, Microsoft Places, is designed to help employees and teams coordinate in-person office time for better collaboration and connection, providing employers with occupancy and space utilization trends that facilities management teams can use to improve workplace experience, per a May 13 news release. JLL said it has been piloting Places, as part of a private preview, at its global headquarters in Chicago since March.

• “A data-driven approach to facilities management combined with human insight delivers the best outcomes for occupiers and workers,” Jim Whittaker, senior group product manager at JLL Work Dynamics, said in the release. “Technology is the beating heart of a dynamic workplace,” he said, noting that insights gained through technology can be turned into actions that can keep employees “engaged, comfortable and inspired.”