CREJ - Office Properties Quarterly - April 2015
It’s time to debunk the myths about current workstations and address the workplace realities. First, let’s reflect on the current state of office workstation furniture. Through the combination of a few large projects, we have directed two very different clients through the process of procuring more than $10 million worth of office furnishings. That volume exposes one to everything the office furniture industry has to offer. Our two clients came from different orientations – one wants to be leading edge and push the envelope in terms of creating the ultimate open, collaborative, energetic workplace. The other, unfortunately, believed it was an innovator in its marketplace, but was rooted in old-school values and myths when it came to the workplace environment. Juggling two perspectives and providing both with the best consulting was a challenge. Part of our responsibility is to educate our clients about what is out there that may be outside their wheelhouse. The resistance for some to accept where the evolution has taken us is embedded in some myths about workstations. Those myths, realities (at least my take on them) and some solutions follow: • Myth No. 1: Employees need privacy that the workstation doesn’t provide. Reality: On average, employees may need privacy for a small part of their workday while the rest of the time could be spent collaborating and interacting with colleagues. Solution: The evolved workplace provides huddle rooms for those private times. • Myth No. 2: Higher panels create the impression of visual and acoustic privacy. Reality: Yes, but they also restrict collaboration and management oversight. Solution: Moderate panel height with glass panels above can achieve both. • Myth No. 3: Higher panels absorb noise, so the workplace is quieter. Reality: Not really, because the noise bounces to the ceiling and back down. Solution: Sound masking and cultural adaptation do a better job quieting an area. • Myth No. 4: Lower panels create a noisier workplace. Reality: Just the opposite – research shows an incredible natural adaptation of workers to lower their sound volume when in a more open environment. Solution: A modern sound-masking system and cultural adaption create a workplace that is quieter with low panels than without. • Myth No. 5: Size is everything – more gross size equals more productivity. Reality: Those passé 8-foot-by-8-foot stations are huge, cost serious real estate dollars and are wasteful, especially in light on old monitors taking up 9 square feet in the corner. Solution: Try a 6-foot-by-7-foot option with narrower surfaces that offers as much room as the old 8-foot-by-8-foot station with deep surfaces and corners. • Myth No. 6: Managers can’t work in workstations; they must have offices. Reality: The modern workstation can provide everything a manager needs to do his job most of the time. Solution: Create an adequate number of huddle rooms, as well as collaborative and quiet areas. • Myth No. 7: Managers can dictate workstation configuration even though they don’t ever work in them. Reality: Mangers tell us what their workers want, but it might be better to let the workers tell us themselves. Solution: Educate management and let the younger generation occupying those workstations have a voice in their development. • Myth No. 8: Workstations are impersonal and create an Orwellian group of workstation gnomes. Reality: Workstations can be 100 percent adaptable and often are personalized with individual choices of layout, work tools and accessories. Solution: Drop preconceptions and look at what is offered today. It is not just about the workstation. Most clients are now warming to the notion that the most functional, flexible and economic workplace is created when the same components are used in both the workstations and the private office. Minimizing the “kit of parts” while maximizing the available configuration options is a win across the board .