Open workspaces are far from civilized
Open workspaces are a reality these days. While many a boss may tout, “Oh, this is so great. It increases productivity and openness.” Lies.
When faced with the reality of open workspaces, some workers find themselves longing for a comfort and semi-privacy that came from a cubicle. And an office with a door? Dream on. That is less and less common, especially with mid-level and lower employees.
What is happening more and more is flexible work environments where people either set their own hours or often or always having the option of working from home, but not all businesses are there yet.
Some people love working in coffee shops or community office spaces. They may thrive on having lots of people around at all times or may find a busy place more peaceful than being at home.
For some, the steady stimulation of the ambiance inspires creativity and can improve productivity. The ambient din of strangers doesn’t seem to bother them at all. You see in movies and television most junior stockbrokers are in a huge open space with noise rivaling a metal concert, and that’s what they signed up for, so good for them.
Surveys have been done that report that productivity levels are about the same with both, however, employee satisfaction is much lower with open workspaces.
When a workplace imposes this system on its staff, problems may be created because not everyone chose to partake in this open environment. Not every professional field is an open workspace appropriate situation and it can lead to problems with the workplace culture that the business may have wanted to avoid.