Open floor plans in office -pros and cons
New SCJ Headquarters designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, 1939
The concept of the office is on the brink of a renaissance. Every detail of the office is more important than ever - location, layout, size, appeal and effectiveness. While business types differ, this complex mix of ingredients must be carefully calibrated well for a successful office.
Historically, offices were a kind of “factory” for repetitive and often administrative work. But a shift to a knowledge economy demanded different types of environments. The days of battery-hen-style cellular offices are over. While the pandemic made many firms open up to remote working, it also underlined the importance of offices as spaces critical for knowledge sharing and collaboration. Face-to-face interaction between humans builds long-term trust and rapport, which are the foundation of effective team working. But this concept is not new. American architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed the Johnson Wax headquarters in 1936, which was built to facilitate an open office layout. “The architecture of freedom and democracy needs something besides the box,” says Frank Lloyd Wright.
Over the years, the open floor plan concept has been adopted by many companies and one of the main reasons is collaboration. Samsung’s new silicon valley office is built to facilitate movement, which enables impromptu conversations between departments. This creates a sense of togetherness making management more approachable. Everyone sits on the same size desk. This levels out the playing field, making everyone feel like they're equally important.
But shared spaces also translate to a smaller footprint and, therefore, cost-effectiveness. Open offices were once a work of art but now they prioritise space efficiency over user experience. The intention has changed resulting in a pushback. Around 50% complain about lack of sound privacy, 30% about visual privacy and most importantly, the disease spreads faster during flu season. Lack of break-out spaces, phone booths and natural light are issues that outweigh the collaborative moments.
To help achieve a balance, it is important to study the past and design for today. Moving forward, agility and flexibility are key. This was the driving force for a post-war German movement called Bürolandschaft which inspired Herman Miller’s ‘active office’ concept. It broke up space but allowed for easy interaction and rearrangement. There were special task groups for each part of the office along with phone booths and meeting areas. Linkedin’s new hybrid office, for example, has 75 seating types. They cut down their workstations from 1080 to 569 and added dozens of new non-traditional setups that range from energising common spaces to quiet focus zones giving the employees freedom of choice. Any organisation's greatest asset is its people, and when offices are designed around the human experience, offices will fulfil their true potential.
*Images via pinterest