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TRENDS
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The High-Performance
Workplace
By Laurie Burstein
Above:
Moveable floor-to-ceiling walls have all of the advantages of “cubes”
yet none of the disadvantages.
Welcome to Dilbertville. Rows of cubicles line the halls with workers
crammed on top of each other. Cubemates hear every word uttered
from all sides. Phones ring and computers whir, while foot traffic
and group conversations add to the commotion. Noise is at a premium
and privacy at a minimum.
Does this kind of open office environment really foster productivity
and teamwork? A resounding no says a new study called “Disproving
Widespread Myths about Workplace Design,” by Michael Brill and the
Bosti Associates, a Buffalo, NY company with a 30-year history of
workplace research, planning and design.
Among the findings about workspace design in the study: The open
office design intended to promote communication and enhance teamwork
doesn’t work. In fact, research and survey responses from 13,000
white-collar workers revealed that the cubicle environment actually
hampers communication and collaboration.
Elizabeth Strobel, responsible for the safety of employees at a
chemical production site for Sigma-Aldrich, has officed in both
a cube and a traditional office in the last two years and can relate
to the distractions of working in an open environment. She is glad
to be in her current office with four walls and a door, but she
admits that sometimes it was convenient to talk over her cube walls
to her neighbor. But overall Strobel says the lack of privacy and
noise got in the way of doing her job.
“After working in a cube, I asked to be moved back into an office.
The noise level in a cube was distracting. There were times I had
to ask my co-workers to be quiet. Plus, in my field of employee
safety, workers feel more comfortable sharing information with me
knowing there is privacy. Being in an office helps me perform my
job better,” Strobel says.
Ellen Keable, a vice president with Bosti Associates, said many
companies today are re-thinking their office environments. She points
out that while employers might feel they are saving money in the
short term with a completely open cubicle-type environment, there
is a new way to look at these costs.
“People costs are actually the highest cost of operating a business
comprising 82 percent of expenditures. Facility costs are just 5
percent, technology costs are 10 percent, and operations costs are
3 percent. The dollar value of the benefits of appropriately designed
offices is substantial, as are the costs of poorly designed ones.”
In the Bosti study, the workplace qualities with the strongest effects
on job performance and satisfaction are those supporting both distraction-free
work and interaction with co-workers. The Bosti study suggests that
the right workplace design affects the performance and retention
of employees, the largest cost factor for a company.
Keable says that good acoustics and privacy actually promote teamwork
while open environments can hamper this process. “Overhearing other
conversations in an open office does not promote learning. Often
there is much mis-information that gets passed around.”
Workplace Solutions
Steve Hargis, a vice president with HOK Consulting on the West Coast,
says designing an office space for a client is often like city planning.
“Depending on the client’s needs, we include a town center for large
meetings as well as private enclaves with phones for individual
privacy. We can also design designated areas for project teams so
they know it is their own ‘cul-de-sac.’ The design and planning
must take into consideration space and of course, cost, while giving
the staff functionality, “ he says.
Fortunately there are more choices today for creating an office
environment that fosters teamwork while giving individuals the privacy
they need to be productive. Marcy Handlan of St. Louis-based Working
Spaces, an office design and furniture dealer, says there are many
cost-effective ways to provide a great work environment. “Offices
with glass fronts provide visual access and are a good option for
some. Workers can still close their doors, but the offices are visually
open. In addition to this kind of semi-open office, the overall
environment should have team meeting areas and outside open offices
for impromptu small group gatherings.”
The lunchroom has always been a popular gathering spot and often
is a place where business gets done at many companies. Handlan says
that in her company’s offices, the lunchroom is purposely designed
as an area not only to share a meal, but also to share information.
“Instead of a dark lunchroom tucked away in a corner, we designed
ours out in the open as a public area. It has upgraded finishes
and a coffee bar, with a very inviting atmosphere. People often
have informal meetings here and can even plug in a laptop computer,”
Handlan says.
Above:
HOK Consulting is helping A.G. Edwards assess and optimize its use
of office space in the firm’s IT organization. Pictured are newly
designed offices at one of A.G. Edwards’ Information Technology
and Training Facilities, located at 1915 Olive.
Greater Flexibility, Less Noise
There are some excellent options for employers looking for more
flexibility in office design today says Handlan, who worked with
Commerce Bank on its recently completed Call Center in Creve Coeur.
Commerce’s Senior Construction Manager Ron Johnson says one of the
innovations used were movable floor-to-ceiling walls.
“These new walls give us the versatility to move people around.
We can build offices or take them down overnight. As we grow, we
can accommodate more people.” Johnson adds that the initial investment
was a bit more than traditional dry wall offices, but in the long
run the movable walls will save them money as they can easily be
reconfigured and grow with the company.
In addition to flexibility, Johnson says floor-to-ceiling walls
help with the noise factor, which is at a premium in a call center
with 350 workers on the phone all day. To help keep the noise level
down, a sound-masking system was also installed. These units emit
white noise and are placed in the ceiling. Extra absorbent ceiling
panels are also used.
The Commerce Call Center is employee-friendly and comes complete
with a fitness center, a multi-purpose room, and an outdoor patio.
Bright colors and good lighting are integrated into the overall
scheme.
The Changing Workplace
John Francis, a vice president with HOK Consulting, says he also
worked on a project where movable walls were installed. The project
involved the design of a flexible area for the technology department
of a large St. Louis financial services company who frequently had
teams of workers moving in and out for special projects. Francis
sees providing clients with increased flexibility as another trend
as companies downsize, teams shift, and workers take on more responsibility.
Laurie Burstein is a St. Louis-based free-lance writer
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