Workers are coming back to their offices—maybe not on a daily basis, but many companies are mandating a once or twice a week appearance in the workplace. However, making it difficult to re-engage with the workplace is the open office concept. Why?
At one point, the open office plan was considered progressive. Construction cost savings ranked high among the reasons to do away with a more traditional structure. In addition, designers anticipated increased collaboration and interactions plus greater creativity once the walls came down.
According to an article in the Harvard Business Review:
During much of the 1990s, organizations hired employees faster than they expanded their offices. With layoffs in the early 2000s recession, and again in 2008, surviving workers regained some space, largely because companies held long-term Rent (up to 90 days)s and were loath to invest in office reconfigurations. But as hiring rebounded, Rent (up to 90 days)s came due, and redesign budgets recovered, organizations again began fitting their people into smaller and smaller spaces.
The same article cites evidence that “face-to-face interactions dropped by roughly 70% after the firms transitioned to open offices, while electronic interactions increased to compensate.” Noise and distractions characterize the open-plan atmosphere. There is little to no privacy, leading to anxiety and stress among workers. If anything, the open-plan office discourages interaction.
The Returning Workforce Has a Problem
Office workers returning from the pandemic quarantine have become accustomed to privacy, a controlled environment, and increased productivity—something that also suffers in the open-plan office. Or, to be completely honest, as Katharine Schwab is in Fast Company: Employees hate it! She goes even further, citing the desire of many companies to look cool or, specifically, to look like Google.
Companies are now faced with redesigning offices to meet the new expectations of returning workers who probably didn’t like the open-plan office to begin with and now find it close to intolerable.
YOURspace Has a Solution!
YOURspace offers modular pods and meeting rooms that can meet the new criteria for productivity without major structural and architectural redesign. In addition, YOURspace office pods provide privacy and quiet while allowing enclosed space for collaboration.
YOURspace pods are completely modular, and their footprint can be adjusted to create a productive office culture. They can be designed to specifications and moved from one part of the office to another. In addition, multiple pods create the perfect environment for employees to implement ideas, something that the hoped for idea generation of the open-plan office did not allow.
YOURspace pods are set up easily. They come with a noise-dampening ceiling, dimmable lights, and a SMART wall frame for connectivity. With an eye for both practicality and ADA compliance, the pods are floorless, so they reduce concerns about the condition of the office floor. Other features that provide additional customization include whiteboards, desks, and other options to meet employees’ needs and expectations as they return to the office. A key advantage to YOURspace pods is that they are 100% made in the USA, in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. As a result, YOURspace pods are not subject to supply chain disruption, which means minimal time between placing your order and delivering your pods.
Don’t lose the intellectual capital of your best employees. Give them the optimal working environment with YOURspace. Visit https://yourspaceinc.com/ or contact us at (260) 702-9595 , info@yourspaceinc.com
