Opening up to a new work culture

An increasing number of companies are going in for a customised open office design as it promotes connectedness and improves productivity

Big companies have always invested heavily in office design. Now, they are investing smartly in it. For, assisted by research, they have found out ‘swanky’ and ‘effective’ can be two very different things. For the sake of clarity, an effectively designed workspace fosters connectedness, cross-pollination of ideas, creativity, productivity and a sense of belonging.

An increasing number of companies, especially those that work hard on creating a powerful organisational culture, are going in for an open office design, as it seems to promote these objectives. In a typical open plan, many departments are brought together in an expansive space. The underlying philosophy: doing away with physical barriers is the first step towards pulling down psychological barriers. An office space that accommodates various stakeholders is likely to promote systems thinking. A variety of businesses adopt the open office design, but not before tailoring it to suit their specific requirements and challenges.

Mobile workstation

“From the basic bullpen model, open office design has come a long way. Mobile work station is a classic example of how much the design has evolved. A mobile workstation allows for variety. It’s based on the bullpen design, but has many added features. The team members are seated in the middle of the bullpen, and are surrounded by cabins meant for the managers. Here’s what makes the mobile work station different. The section for the team members lends itself to different configurations. It could be configured differently depending on changing situations and requirements,” says Ponni M. Concessao, an architect who is working in the area of office spaces.

Fluid seating

Another concept that is gaining ground is fluid workstation. Kiruba Shankar, who runs an IT company, believes fluid seating promotes exchange of ideas across teams. “In a fluid seating arrangement, nobody has a designated seat. Every day, everyone has to find a seat. This system gets people to connect with members of other teams,” explains Kiruba.

As most employees can now carry out almost all of their tasks with laptops, such innovations are possible.

Detractors of open office design like to point out that it eats into an employee’s privacy, and that certain jobs cannot be carried out satisfactorily without an element

Bunker offices

“Workstations have to be created with the profession in mind. An open workstation with an air of informality will work for an IT company. For a legal firm, where confidentiality has to be maintained, private spaces may be required. Does it mean open office design is effective only in certain situations? Not at all. Elements of privacy can be introduced in an open plan. In the Nordic countries, there is the concept of bunker offices, which seems to address this issue. Sometimes, employees may be looking only for audio privacy. The problem of noise in an open plan can be tackled by improving acoustics. There are MNCs that invest hugely in cutting out noise and they achieve amazing Noise Reduction Coefficients. With technology, visual privacy can be achieved at will. The transparent partition glass can be made frosted or misted by the touch of a button,” says Ponni.

As it marries privacy and community, open office design can be used in various formats, which include throwing managers and team members together, says Kiruba.

“We are now talking about participatory leadership, where the leader works closely with his team. How about the leader relinquishing his cabin and joining the team, taking his seat in an open office? It will inspire great confidence in the team.”

Source | The Hindu | 5^th August 2015

An increasing number of companies are going in for a customised open office design as it promotes connectedness and improves productivity

Big companies have always invested heavily in office design. Now, they are investing smartly in it. For, assisted by research, they have found out ‘swanky’ and ‘effective’ can be two very different things. For the sake of clarity, an effectively designed workspace fosters connectedness, cross-pollination of ideas, creativity, productivity and a sense of belonging.

An increasing number of companies, especially those that work hard on creating a powerful organisational culture, are going in for an open office design, as it seems to promote these objectives. In a typical open plan, many departments are brought together in an expansive space. The underlying philosophy: doing away with physical barriers is the first step towards pulling down psychological barriers. An office space that accommodates various stakeholders is likely to promote systems thinking. A variety of businesses adopt the open office design, but not before tailoring it to suit their specific requirements and challenges.

Mobile workstation

“From the basic bullpen model, open office design has come a long way. Mobile work station is a classic example of how much the design has evolved. A mobile workstation allows for variety. It’s based on the bullpen design, but has many added features. The team members are seated in the middle of the bullpen, and are surrounded by cabins meant for the managers. Here’s what makes the mobile work station different. The section for the team members lends itself to different configurations. It could be configured differently depending on changing situations and requirements,” says Ponni M. Concessao, an architect who is working in the area of office spaces.

Fluid seating

Another concept that is gaining ground is fluid workstation. Kiruba Shankar, who runs an IT company, believes fluid seating promotes exchange of ideas across teams. “In a fluid seating arrangement, nobody has a designated seat. Every day, everyone has to find a seat. This system gets people to connect with members of other teams,” explains Kiruba.

As most employees can now carry out almost all of their tasks with laptops, such innovations are possible.

Detractors of open office design like to point out that it eats into an employee’s privacy, and that certain jobs cannot be carried out satisfactorily without an element

Bunker offices

“Workstations have to be created with the profession in mind. An open workstation with an air of informality will work for an IT company. For a legal firm, where confidentiality has to be maintained, private spaces may be required. Does it mean open office design is effective only in certain situations? Not at all. Elements of privacy can be introduced in an open plan. In the Nordic countries, there is the concept of bunker offices, which seems to address this issue. Sometimes, employees may be looking only for audio privacy. The problem of noise in an open plan can be tackled by improving acoustics. There are MNCs that invest hugely in cutting out noise and they achieve amazing Noise Reduction Coefficients. With technology, visual privacy can be achieved at will. The transparent partition glass can be made frosted or misted by the touch of a button,” says Ponni.

As it marries privacy and community, open office design can be used in various formats, which include throwing managers and team members together, says Kiruba.

“We are now talking about participatory leadership, where the leader works closely with his team. How about the leader relinquishing his cabin and joining the team, taking his seat in an open office? It will inspire great confidence in the team.”

Source | The Hindu | 5^th August 2015