Open Office Design and Purpose
An open office is designed with a vast open space that allows co-workers to see and hear each other without cubicles, office walls, or doors separating them. Common ways to implement the open workspace concept are using benching, which looks like long dining tables with colleagues working alongside and across from each other, or using sets of small, panel-less cubes.
The open office concept was created by a team in Hamburg, Germany, in the 1950s to improve employee communication. The main idea behind the open office is that it fosters collaboration and enables more accessible and spontaneous communication. The downside to the concept is the lack of privacy and frequent inability to find a quiet, uninterrupted workspace.
Many use the concept of hoteling, meaning that employees take a workstation daily on a first-come, first-serve basis. This arrangement allows co-workers to move around and work next to each other if they are tackling a project together. Wireless internet is essential as employees are set up daily in various office spots.
Hoteling also means that employees do not have a place they can consistently call “home” when they come into the office, which may be difficult for some employees.
Recent developments include office designers creating open offices that feature more flexible spaces with moveable partitions and couches. The more flexible open office designs offer privacy within the overall workplace design, with nooks and crannies available where employees can escape for more private meetings or quiet work. Ideally, open offices should have seamless transitions between solo and teamwork; “flow” is a common descriptor for this concept.
Is an Open Office Right for Your Company?
Although the idea of an open office, with its sense of closeness and collaboration, might sound attractive, whether it is a good fit for your employees depends on their work. The topic can lead to volatile discussions, and the concept is polarizing among many workers who either love it or hate it.
Depending on personality types and whether their specific jobs require a more significant portion of team collaboration or silent concentration, employees in various jobs will react differently to the transition to an open office. Before tearing down those walls and installing endless lengths of narrow tables, here are some pros and cons to consider.
The Pros
Open office arrangements can provide many benefits for the right company.
- Community and camaraderie: Open offices foster teamwork and a sense of togetherness among co-workers. If primary tasks require working closely with colleagues, an open office can be the perfect setup to facilitate efficient work.
- Creativity: Collaboration can be easier to accomplish when everyone works nearby, and spontaneous discussions between members of different departments may occur. When there are no walls to separate them, employees can create together and build on each other’s ideas.
- Costs: After transitioning to an open office format, you can fit more employees into less square footage, reducing overhead costs due to the need for less space. Although this should probably not be your primary reason for transitioning, overhead cost reduction can be a benefit if the format works for you.
The Cons
Although open offices can facilitate creativity and communication among teams that need to work together closely, there are also disadvantages to switching to this office design.
- Lack of privacy: Although open offices are meant to bring everyone together, sharing a workspace can lead to a frustrating lack of privacy and resentment of colleagues for annoying habits, such as pen-clicking or taking personal phone calls. Also, the deep, spontaneous conversations in an open office are usually limited to short bouts of small talk due to the number of listening ears.
- Too much noise: Some employees, recognizing that others can easily overhear conversations or be disrupted by the noise, may be reluctant to discuss with co-workers, preferring to use email instead, even if they are sitting nearby. The closeness of fellow employees also frequently causes headphones to go on in an attempt to shut out noise and disruptions, thwarting the goal of eliminating barriers between employees.
- No place to keep personal belongings: Many open offices don’t assign desks or workspaces, although a general area may be designated for each department or team. The lack of a consistent, assigned space to stash belongings and feel at home can be counterproductive and stressful for many people. Assigned lockers are sometimes provided so employees can leave items at the office.
- Distractions: An open office can stifle productivity and creativity for employees who don’t need constant interaction with colleagues to get their jobs done. Any task that requires concentration is more difficult, and meeting deadlines can be near impossible for employees who are frequently interrupted because they can’t close a door.
- Illness and sick leave: With employees sharing ample space, spreading illness among co-workers increases. Studies show a higher frequency of sick leave among employees in an open office than in private offices.
Open Office Design and Purpose
An open office is designed with a vast open space that allows co-workers to see and hear each other without cubicles, office walls, or doors separating them. Common ways to implement the open workspace concept are using benching, which looks like long dining tables with colleagues working alongside and across from each other, or using sets of small, panel-less cubes.
The open office concept was created by a team in Hamburg, Germany, in the 1950s to improve employee communication. The main idea behind the open office is that it fosters collaboration and enables more accessible and spontaneous communication. The downside to the concept is the lack of privacy and frequent inability to find a quiet, uninterrupted workspace.
Many use the concept of hoteling, meaning that employees take a workstation daily on a first-come, first-serve basis. This arrangement allows co-workers to move around and work next to each other if they are tackling a project together. Wireless internet is essential as employees are set up daily in various office spots.
Hoteling also means that employees do not have a place they can consistently call “home” when they come into the office, which may be difficult for some employees.
Recent developments include office designers creating open offices that feature more flexible spaces with moveable partitions and couches. The more flexible open office designs offer privacy within the overall workplace design, with nooks and crannies available where employees can escape for more private meetings or quiet work. Ideally, open offices should have seamless transitions between solo and teamwork; “flow” is a common descriptor for this concept.
Is an Open Office Right for Your Company?
Although the idea of an open office, with its sense of closeness and collaboration, might sound attractive, whether it is a good fit for your employees depends on their work. The topic can lead to volatile discussions, and the concept is polarizing among many workers who either love it or hate it.
Depending on personality types and whether their specific jobs require a more significant portion of team collaboration or silent concentration, employees in various jobs will react differently to the transition to an open office. Before tearing down those walls and installing endless lengths of narrow tables, here are some pros and cons to consider.
The Pros
Open office arrangements can provide many benefits for the right company.
- Community and camaraderie: Open offices foster teamwork and a sense of togetherness among co-workers. If primary tasks require working closely with colleagues, an open office can be the perfect setup to facilitate efficient work.
- Creativity: Collaboration can be easier to accomplish when everyone works nearby, and spontaneous discussions between members of different departments may occur. When there are no walls to separate them, employees can create together and build on each other’s ideas.
- Costs: After transitioning to an open office format, you can fit more employees into less square footage, reducing overhead costs due to the need for less space. Although this should probably not be your primary reason for transitioning, overhead cost reduction can be a benefit if the format works for you.
The Cons
Although open offices can facilitate creativity and communication among teams that need to work together closely, there are also disadvantages to switching to this office design.
- Lack of privacy: Although open offices are meant to bring everyone together, sharing a workspace can lead to a frustrating lack of privacy and resentment of colleagues for annoying habits, such as pen-clicking or taking personal phone calls. Also, the deep, spontaneous conversations in an open office are usually limited to short bouts of small talk due to the number of listening ears.
- Too much noise: Some employees, recognizing that others can easily overhear conversations or be disrupted by the noise, may be reluctant to discuss with co-workers, preferring to use email instead, even if they are sitting nearby. The closeness of fellow employees also frequently causes headphones to go on in an attempt to shut out noise and disruptions, thwarting the goal of eliminating barriers between employees.
- No place to keep personal belongings: Many open offices don’t assign desks or workspaces, although a general area may be designated for each department or team. The lack of a consistent, assigned space to stash belongings and feel at home can be counterproductive and stressful for many people. Assigned lockers are sometimes provided so employees can leave items at the office.
- Distractions: An open office can stifle productivity and creativity for employees who don’t need constant interaction with colleagues to get their jobs done. Any task that requires concentration is more difficult, and meeting deadlines can be near impossible for employees who are frequently interrupted because they can’t close a door.
- Illness and sick leave: With employees sharing ample space, spreading illness among co-workers increases. Studies show a higher frequency of sick leave among employees in an open office than in private offices.
The Last Word
Ultimately, whether an open office design will work for your company depends on many factors, including costs, workplace culture, and, most importantly, whether the primary need in each department is low sound levels or easy collaboration. Contact an InsureGood Advisor today for more resources around workplace productivity.
