Could there be anything less surprising in the built environment media world than another article pointing out the flaws of the open office workplace layout? By now, the shortcomings of this office style are well known, thanks to a number of great articles from all sorts of publications, including us.
How about a different kind of open office article, one that supports them? A recent survey of over 1500 workers by resume and cover letter writing company ResumeLab actually points to open office layouts as the most satisfactory layout, according to the respondents. This is very interesting given the various downsides open offices are known for, which all tend to impact the workers themselves: less concentration, less collaboration, and more busy work, amongst other things.
Office managers must have read the results with a wide smile on their faces. Open office layouts are cost effective compared to other layouts, and seeing that a lot of workers actually seem to buy into the idea should be very reassuring indeed.
It does beg the question, though: how can this be? Perhaps the answer is simple. What is actually good for people (in this case, workers) and what seems good aren’t always the same. Take smoking, for example. Intriguingly, workplaces that used an open floor plan with some private offices had the highest acceptance rate (in other words, the least number of employees who wanted a change of office type) and were also considered highest in terms of being welcoming, comfortable and collaborative. In contrast, employees acknowledged the privacy shortcomings of office layouts.
While a brief methodology section was offered, it is unclear how long the workers have been in their spaces. Perhaps open offices are similar to eating a big bag of fast food: great at first, but as it sets in, you start to see the gaps in the mortar and the gristle between the buns.
Open offices aren’t the worst thing to happen to the workplace. They have a lot of potential, but need some refinement. The big question is: if employers are pushing open office layouts for the cost benefits, how long until we really double down on working from home?