Open Space Offices

Chaos Black

Who thought it would be a good idea to adopt this human Petri dish experiment as the norm in modern offices?! Does anyone actually prefer it to closed offices?

To a paint a picture, it’s winter, colleagues to your right, left, front and back, the air is dry, heating too dam high and once one person comes down with the latest plague, everyone gets a dose! The open space is supposed to promote collaboration. Hah! It’s like working in a loud call centre and the game is can you concentrate whilst Mary two rows down is discussing her consistency of ****s and John to your left is having an argument with the wife on his phone.

Sometimes I go toilet just to think.

Everyone is entitled to their opinions, but in mine, anyone who likes open space offices, is a masochist!

MLC_biker

Interesting article on the topic Why You Can Focus in a Coffee Shop but Not in Your Open Office https://www.hbrascend.in/topics/why-you-can-focus-in-a-coffee-shop-but-not-in-your-open-office/

Chaos Black

That is pretty interesting. If the evidence shows open space offices are counter productive, then why keep them? (lower initial costs I guess..)

Also isn't data protection a big thing now?! I have all kinds of confidential data on my monitor that others would not have access to, and visa versa.

Archeron

Bang of other people's farts

poo poo

Have you brought this up with HR? Your creativity and health are suffering and may lead to increased sick days!

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

poo poo wrote: »

Have you brought this up with HR? Your creativity and health are suffering and may lead to increased sick days!

It's civil service clerical work, so it doesn't matter.

But if we did away with open plan offices, how would we smell our colleague’s microwaved fish lunch?

4068ac1elhodqr

'Cube Farms' horrible.

Not just call centers, but even well paid specialist professionals suffer from this most lazy use of spatial design concepts.

poo poo

Houston Easy Steakhouse wrote: »

It's civil service clerical work, so it doesn't matter.

You dont really need to go in at all then do you??

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

poo poo wrote: »

You dont really need to go in at all then do you??

Not me, the OP.

Aint Eazy Being Cheezy

Chaos Black wrote: »

That is pretty interesting. If the evidence shows open space offices are counter productive, then why keep them? (lower initial costs I guess..)

Also isn't data protection a big thing now?! I have all kinds of confidential data on my monitor that others would not have access to, and visa versa.

Privacy filter

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Chaos Black wrote: »

I have all kinds of confidential data on my monitor that others would not have access to, and visa versa.

And you keep it secure by locking the screen when not at your desk etc. That is no different than if you had an individual office, to be fair.

_Brian

Oh Jesus it’s the bain of my life.

I only spend maybe 10% of my time in our office but it’s a truly horrible place. Cramped spaces, no privacy, idiots shouting on the phone, one guy just watches tv programs, one group just openly moan and bitch about whoever isn’t in the office at that time, swearing, constant childish sexual innuendo.

I can’t stand the place. My boss is a decent guy and he feels the same. I’m just gone to the stage I just nip in to collect post and use the printer. The rest of my time I spend out on the road.

I’ve worked in similar spaces before but we had high sided dividers so you had some privacy and we had an agreement to keep phone conversations quiet.

_Kaiser_

We've recently moved buildings and the new one was designed largely around this concept. There are very few actual offices with short-term meeting rooms being the preferred solution by whoever designed the place.
I've worked in "cube farms" before which at least had high-sided partitions between every 4 desks, but this one just has what are effectively benches with a low divider between rows.

It's grand I suppose if you sit at your desk all day taking calls or similar... If you deal with confidential information, calls and mails about the team/department you manage, or work say in HR, internal Finance, Recruitment etc.. not so much!

It's annoying me so much that I'm actively looking for another job. It's not the sole reason, but it's helped bring things to a head for me lately.

Hector Bellend

You cant pick your nose in peace

the purple tin

On the bright side they inspired the excellent comedy series the office.

poo poo

the purple tin wrote: »

On the bright side they inspired the excellent comedy series the office.

And that other one,

The office

the purple tin

poo poo wrote: »

And that other one,

The office

The american version you mean?

Beasty

poo poo wrote: »

Have you brought this up with HR?

One thing I've found with HR is they always like changing things "for the better", and every new HR director looks to put their stamp on an organisation. For example, when I started, they were called Personnel - then they became Human Resources, then Human Capital, and then back to HR

Of course open plan allows you to get more people into the same space - improve efficiency, reduce costs. Then a change at HR results in a "review" of things, and the new HR director decides you need "private" cubicles to discuss confidential matters. Then a new head of HR come along keen to make his impression and decides it would be better to get rid of a few staff, freeing up space to allow "shared" offices....

Of course, the HR director must have his own office to allow him to consider these "innovations" in private

Not that I'm complaining - had my own office for the past 30 years:)

poo poo

the purple tin wrote: »

The american version you mean?

Really?

whisky_galore

Our offices were converted from self contained separate offices to a mix of open plan and individual offices....the boss and management kept their own offices but "steerage class" were funted into open plan hell. Can't concentrate when someone else is talking loudly or making noise. It's a complete pain in the hole. And the other annoying thing is the amount of eavesdropping the boss does on the conversations of others.

Gunslinger92

The worst thing about it for me is that quite often I'd be dying for some fresh air and would love to open the window but one person who sits in my section is always, always cold. never wears a jumper or cardigan either! Gah

uck51js9zml2yt

Gunslinger92 wrote: »

The worst thing about it for me is that quite often I'd be dying for some fresh air and would love to open the window but one person who sits in my section is always, always cold. never wears a jumper or cardigan either! Gah

You don't have to be in open plan to have those idiots. The true is in the reverse as well. Too hot but wearing a jumper and window/ door closed.


We're moving to an open plan building this year. Should be fun!

Kamili

Its the two guys opposite me snorting up their runny noses making pig grunting noises and coughing up the phlegm that I can deal with.

Vulgar and disgusting.

astrofool

It's mad, there's some genius out there who is managing to convince highly paid professionals that the best working environment is a Dickensian workshop layout, despite most innovation coming from wholly different working environments.

I also suspect this same person accidentally ordered thousands and thousands of benches, which seem to be replacing the classic L desk, despite the bench having less workspace area, while largely taking up the same amount of space.

It's a trend that some companies are now backing away from as productivity drops, but there is still some idiots who haven't caught up with it yet, and think it's edgy and that products are delivered by pushing people closer and closer together rather than actually doing work. (I'll just grab that idea cloud above your head, push it into our idea cloud code generator and ship it and start making mega bucks!!, we're so innovative and collaborative!)

moonlighting_1

While working at a computer i need piece ,quite and privacy. Most modern offices are a joke.
I was in face-book down in Dublin and my jaw dropped at the open space design. the whole place reminded me of a kindergarten.
so glad when i work on my own projects i can do it from home.

Reati

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

We've recently moved buildings and the new one was designed largely around this concept. There are very few actual offices with short-term meeting rooms being the preferred solution by whoever designed the place.
I've worked in "cube farms" before which at least had high-sided partitions between every 4 desks, but this one just has what are effectively benches with a low divider between rows.

It's grand I suppose if you sit at your desk all day taking calls or similar... If you deal with confidential information, calls and mails about the team/department you manage, or work say in HR, internal Finance, Recruitment etc.. not so much!

It's annoying me so much that I'm actively looking for another job. It's not the sole reason, but it's helped bring things to a head for me lately.

Somewhere in South County Business park by any chance?

namloc1980

Work in an open plan office and the constant interruption from others is absolutely the most annoying pay. I can't get 5 minutes work done without someone coming over. They just assume as it's open plan you're available to answer their query whenever they want. And most of the time it's stuff they should be referring to in their procedures etc.

Birneybau

Hector Bellend wrote: »

You cant pick your nose in peace

That's what the disabled toilet is for.

Also, earphones are a godsend in open plan office.

Ush1

Houston Easy Steakhouse wrote: »

And you keep it secure by locking the screen when not at your desk etc. That is no different than if you had an individual office, to be fair.

It's totally different. Random people can't see your screen in an individual office.

seamus

The problem here is multi-factorial. Some types of work flows best in an open plan; work where interaction is constant and necessary. Things like call centres, admin jobs. Places which suit colleagues being able to chat openly and approach each other without barriers.

Of course, someone decides that if this model works for one type of employee, then it must work for them all. And before you know it, everyone is working in an open plan desk, because why wouldn't it be OK that colleagues can just walk up and talk to the people they need to, regardless of what they're doing? Who doesn't benefit from permanent personal interaction?

It's cheaper of course than putting up partitions too, so the balance sheet looks good.

But then the complaints come in - the engineers can't focus, the accountants have to wear headphones to drown out their colleagues, marketing are constantly being bombarded with stupid drive-by questions.

"Can we have offices?"

"Oh, no, then the call centre will feel like you're being treated favourably! If we give marketing an office, everyone will want one! Offices are for management only, and it has to stay like that in order to be fair".

Open-plan was already popular when I started working, but I've seen it eroding further and further over time. From the cube farme, they took down one wall, so now you only had three - the wall in front and on either side.

Then they lowered the height of the walls, so you could see everyone around you.

Then they took away the two side walls, so you just have one big long desk that everyone sits at.

Next thing the divider in the middle will be removed.

Then they'll get rid of any additional monitors, so that everyone is just working off a laptop around a big communal table and it feels like you're in a permanent meeting.

In all seriousness I'd take a €5k pay cut for a cubicle with a door of any kind. Not even a roof, just a cubicle with five foot walls and a poor excuse for a door.