Why Places focuses on in-person collaboration

Brennan McReynolds, Product Strategy Lead for Microsoft Places, at Microsoft, shares what changed during Places’ first full year in general availability and what is coming next as hybrid work patterns continue to shift.

• How Places supports flexible work planning in Microsoft Calendar and Microsoft Teams, including building and room context

• The evolution of desk booking on maps, location check-in signals, and improving confidence in finding the right space

• Why Places is focused on in-person connection and collaboration, not desk booking for everyone

• How the Places directory and Microsoft Graph APIs enable partners to manage buildings, floors, rooms, desks, and maps at scale

• Three integration patterns: spatial data in and out, occupancy and check-in signals, and extensible experiences like visitor management and digital signage

• How location context feeds Work IQ and future Copilot experiences for planning, scheduling, and room selection

Thanks to Brennan for his valuable insights.