Office layout

Ohio9

Are there any jobs at all that don't use open office layout to maximize "collaboration"? . I work in IT for 2 years and went to multiple job interviews only to reject the offers because of ridiculous office layout which absolutely destroy any kind of focus. In my current job, I'm able to work from home at least 1 day per week but it is soul destroying when I'm in the office. I'm extremely productive and can do 4 days of work in 1 day if I work from home but in the office, the amount of distractions and the lack of privacy is out of this world. I sometimes close myself into one of the conference rooms but that's a band aid and not a solution.
So, is there any hope to find a company that does not use this stupid layout which destroys productivity for everyone?

Studies also show that employees dislike open offices due to distractions and lack of privacy.

Foweva Awone

I used to work in audit so was in and out of lots of different offices all the time, sorry to tell you the vast majority are like this. In fairness, giving everyone their own office would be a ridiculously inefficient use of space. Many offices allow you to use headphones, which is a universal signal for others to leave you alone. Your best bet is to find an office that allows working from home options.

TheBoyConor

You could be introverted. It is not really normal to want to work in complete seclusion and it is not healthy.
you could consider seeing a counsellor or a GP at least about how you can treat your introversion.

Purple Mountain

TheBoyConor wrote: »

You could be introverted. It is not really normal to want to work in complete seclusion and it is not healthy.
you could consider seeing a counsellor or a GP at least about how you can treat your introversion.

That's a totally random reply!

dartboardio

TheBoyConor wrote: »

You could be introverted. It is not really normal to want to work in complete seclusion and it is not healthy.
you could consider seeing a counsellor or a GP at least about how you can treat your introversion.

Not normal in whos eyes?

And plus, define normal.

Being happier working alone is not 'unhealthy' or weird :V

Foweva Awone

TheBoyConor wrote: »

You could be introverted. It is not really normal to want to work in complete seclusion and it is not healthy.
you could consider seeing a counsellor or a GP at least about how you can treat your introversion.

Introversion is not something negative, it's certainly not something that needs to be "treated" or cured. :rolleyes:

KaneToad

TheBoyConor wrote: »

You could be introverted. It is not really normal to want to work in complete seclusion and it is not healthy.
you could consider seeing a counsellor or a GP at least about how you can treat your introversion.

Being introverted is not a medical problem!
I also much prefer working alone and love my own company.

tracey01

My last two jobs were large companies with open plan layout. It was the silence that got to me. In a room with 20 to 30 people sitting at their desk not saying a word.
The last place was the worst as there were 5 desks close on each row and when you walked in no one said hello, except maybe one or two people. And that would be the maximum level of social interaction for the day. It was a very uncomfortable silence. Head phones helped a bit but I was working with people who had been in the company for 15/20 years and I just couldn't imagine this being the rest of my working life!

I started looking for a job closer to the small town where I live and got lucky and found one in a very small company. I share an office with 2 others. Still not much talking but its no longer that weird uncomfortable silence. Everyone greets each other in the morning and is chatty at different times of the day.

I will never go back to working for a large company if I can avoid it at all.

TheBoyConor

Well it was my first thought on reading that the op cannot function in a more open, social and collaborative environment.

I don't know about it not being negative. It surely is not conducive to colaboration or team working. It is recognised by the WHO as being a disorder - "Introversion disorder of childhood" being the one I can find on ICD.

dazed+confused

TheBoyConor wrote: »

You could be introverted. It is not really normal to want to work in complete seclusion and it is not healthy.
you could consider seeing a counsellor or a GP at least about how you can treat your introversion.

I'm like that and I don't think I need outside intervention.

I think the only reason I feel like this is because most people are noisy cünts.

KaneToad

TheBoyConor wrote: »

Well it was my first thought on reading that the op cannot function in a more open, social and collaborative environment.

I don't know about it not being negative. It surely is not conducive to colaboration or team working. It is recognised by the WHO as being a disorder - "Introversion disorder of childhood" being the one I can find on ICD.

Introversion disorder is indeed a disorder. Introversion is not a disorder. There is a world of difference.

Collaboration & team working is perfectly achievable for introverts.

Your definition of "social" may be vastly different to someone else's.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90285582/everyone-hates-open-plan-offices-heres-why-they-still-exist

Ohio9

Foweva Awone wrote: »

I used to work in audit so was in and out of lots of different offices all the time, sorry to tell you the vast majority are like this. In fairness, giving everyone their own office would be a ridiculously inefficient use of space. Many offices allow you to use headphones, which is a universal signal for others to leave you alone. Your best bet is to find an office that allows working from home options.

How would you say most were? Fully open or semi open? My worst nightmare would be to accept a job and then realize that I would be sitting in the middle of a straight row with 10 desks. I currently work in a semi open but it still is distracting as there is traffic non stop and I sit 5 meters from the main door which doesn't stop opening and closing. I want to move jobs but couldn't function in a fully open office.

Ohio9

I am definitely an introvert but I get on very well with my team and communications are not an issue at all. I just cannot focus, do my work and I feel like I'm being watched all the time. Well I am because people are passing all the time and seeing exactly what I'm doing.
I can't imagine sitting inches beside someone else and seeing what they're doing on their screen at all times. In my current job I have significant space between desks and cannot see what my colleague is doing.

I have anxiety and I'm afraid to do anything that might get suspected as not working hard enough (reading something).

I genuinely belive that open offices were made to ensure that employees do not slack off. Basically, everyone watches everyone and management is happy under the guise of increased collaboration

TheBoyConor

open offices are that way because it is the most efficient use of space and the cheapest type of office layout the assemble.

I think getting treatment for your anxiety issues is more important that trying to get your employer to set up an office for you in an isolated office.

Ohio9

tracey01 wrote: »

My last two jobs were large companies with open plan layout. It was the silence that got to me. In a room with 20 to 30 people sitting at their desk not saying a word.
The last place was the worst as there were 5 desks close on each row and when you walked in no one said hello, except maybe one or two people. And that would be the maximum level of social interaction for the day. It was a very uncomfortable silence. Head phones helped a bit but I was working with people who had been in the company for 15/20 years and I just couldn't imagine this being the rest of my working life!

I started looking for a job closer to the small town where I live and got lucky and found one in a very small company. I share an office with 2 others. Still not much talking but its no longer that weird uncomfortable silence. Everyone greets each other in the morning and is chatty at different times of the day.

I will never go back to working for a large company if I can avoid it at all.

Yes, exactly!

I currently work in a semi open office with 2 other people nearby but it would be soul destroying if I had to sit in a row of like 10 people all day and seeing their monitors. I'd probably quit very soon afterwards. Would be like hell for me.

This is exactly why I'm afraid to accept new jobs. I could earn 40% more but if I end up in that kind of situation then I'd rather not work at all.

Ohio9

TheBoyConor wrote: »

open offices are that way because it is the most efficient use of space and the cheapest type of office layout the assemble.

I think getting treatment for your anxiety issues is more important that trying to get your employer to set up an office for you in an isolated office.

I cannot afford anxiety treatment, any kind of treatments are very expensive. I work very well alone or at least with some amount of privacy. I can also work very well with people but up to a point only, not 8+ hours per day.

This is why I'm wondering if there are many semi or cubicle offices in Ireland.

TheBoyConor

Has your emloyer got an employee asssitance program? They are oblliged to make a reasonable accomdation for any disabilities and health problems. You might be able to ask them if they can help with treating the anxiety.

Deagol

TheBoyConor wrote: »

open offices are that way because it is the most efficient use of space and the cheapest type of office layout the assemble.

I think getting treatment for your anxiety issues is more important that trying to get your employer to set up an office for you in an isolated office.

Mother of sweet divine - 'tis amazing that some people think that anyone who isn't like them has something wrong with them that needs curing. I'd hate to know your opinions on LGBT people..

I'd be 100% with the OP. I don't need to 'collaborate' - (which incidentally I think many times is code for either 'I'm too lazy to look up the answer to a query so I'll annoy a co-worker' OR 'I'm too stupid to understand the question so I'll pretend I'm a good team player and ask someone smarter to do my work for me') - with anyone in the normal course of a day's work. If I'm in my office (Which is rare luckily for me) I normally get about 25% of the amount I'd get done if I was in the home office.

And I've talked to many others in my building who have a similar story - they'd get a lot more done if they didn't have to be in the office for meetings.

Oh - and it's been shown in many studies that open plan offices reduce productivity and depress people:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jiawertz/2019/06/30/open-plan-work-spaces-lower-productivity-employee-morale/#63ca047361cd

https://www.fastcompany.com/90285582/everyone-hates-open-plan-offices-heres-why-they-still-exist

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/325959

https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/new-harvard-study-you-open-plan-office-is-making-your-team-less-collaborative.html

kickfacer

TheBoyConor wrote: »

It is not really normal to want to work in complete seclusion and it is not healthy.

Deeply offended by this. Post reported.

Alkers

While most places will have open plan offices, I've seen a few where the IT departments are separate with their own shared office between a few people or with a store room etc

Ohio9

Deagol wrote: »

Mother of sweet divine - 'tis amazing that some people think that anyone who isn't like them has something wrong with them that needs curing. I'd hate to know your opinions on LGBT people..

I'd be 100% with the OP. I don't need to 'collaborate' - (which incidentally I think many times is code for either 'I'm too lazy to look up the answer to a query so I'll annoy a co-worker' OR 'I'm too stupid to understand the question so I'll pretend I'm a good team player and ask someone smarter to do my work for me') - with anyone in the normal course of a day's work. If I'm in my office (Which is rare luckily for me) I normally get about 25% of the amount I'd get done if I was in the home office.

And I've talked to many others in my building who have a similar story - they'd get a lot more done if they didn't have to be in the office for meetings.

Oh - and it's been shown in many studies that open plan offices reduce productivity and depress people:

100% agreed. I'm not anti social or anything like that, I enjoy going out with few of my coworkers (we're a small team) and never had any problems with communications or team work.

As studies have shown, I am obviously not alone in this. Everyone is getting distracted and their productivity is affected. I wish some companies would realize this.
I'm working hard towards my own company now so hope it will at least bring some success. I would be much happier if I took a 50% pay cut but wouldn't have to work in an open office.

I literally rejected offers because of their cattle like office styles.

listermint

There's a stark difference to your opening post to then later post explaining that you are worried people are looking at your work wondering if you are working or not.

You need to work on that itself.


Word of advice , no one is looking at your screen and no one cares what your working on as long as your output is good. Office or not you have some hangups and anxiety that need attention.

facehugger99

I don't thinks it's an introvert/extrovert thing, some people are just very easily distracted.

If I'm working on something, I can totally focus in on it. It really wouldn't matter what was going on around me.

I've worked with a lot of people who are the opposite, where any kind of noise or movement breaks their concentration.

Blinkers and Noise-canceling headphones are probably your best best. Open plan is not going away anytime soon.

seannash

Yeah gotta be honest its here to stay.
I get what you are saying but noise canceling headphones are fantastic for concentration and if they don't do the job play white noise through them


https://mynoise.net/NoiseMachines/whiteNoiseGenerator.php


Most places are moving towards a mixture of working from home and office based work. Dont dismiss a place until you've investigated what their stance is on this

Thisonedone

Most office based companies would have the majority of their costs as salaries and a very small percentage of their costs as rent. Yet for some reason they are obsessed with maximising the value they get from their rent to the detriment of their main asset- people. Bizarre short sighted thinking, but I do think a lot of companies are slowly coming round to how ridiculous this is, especially as more and more studies come out showing how bad open plan offices are for productivity and employee well being. Allowing staff to work from home is a win win for both parties, employers get to keep their rent costs down and employees get privacy and a quiet distraction free environment.

rn

Open plan is rarely done for cost reasons. It's done for output reasons. Complex systems' development is littered with productive developers, that produce little or no output.

Open plan helps increase output by breaking down some of barriers to communication.

That said people do need quiet time and focus time, as well as collaboration time and open plan goes against that. I heard ceo of teamwork.com say that they offer all their developers private offices. They are the only company I've heard saying that and they are in Cork.

There are a number of companies offering majority of time work from home and only hot desks in the office. These could also be an option for you. Happy job hunting.

Soilse

Have worked in an open plan office for years hate it, being seen as a recluse when I want to actually work and not waste my days gossiping or other random conversations that they do do pass the day. I have a long commute not interested in wasting my time listening to others find it hard to concentrate at times and very stressful when I'm busy. Others in the team do remote work the odd days but for dome reason they would rather I turn up and suffer

Aglomerado

I find it annoying most of the time too, I'm sitting beside a passageway where everyone walks past my desk to get to theirs. One colleague introduced themselves to me recently saying 'I see you every day but I don't know you'. I replied that 'everyone walks past my desk so I don't bother looking up'. (I'm relatively new in this area and am very introverted so I don't go out of my way to get to know people unless I need to for work stuff).

There's also a toilet nearby which most people use because it saves them the walk to the main toilet area, so the door near me is constantly flapping.

I'm a middle manager in the public sector and I work in a technical role. I also have staff and I allow them as well as myself to use headphones if needed. But some people have accused me of being rude and aloof because I might be absorbed in work while listening to music or white noise and I might not hear them first time. I can't win!

Not much gossip or sh*t talk here though it's a professional environment & people are mostly pleasant and friendly. In my last job I was surrounded by a clique and almost went crazy. There was very little personal space there too, which, in fairness, I do have now.

One more promotion and I get my own office! With a DOOR! And WALLS! Luxury!