Avoid falling into the workplace design trend trap: Why open plan offices and hot desking are not always the answer

A growing number of individuals within the workforce are beginning to oppose these trends for various reasons, such as interruption of focused work or a lack of concern for physical and mental disabilities. This poses the question that every organisation should ask before succumbing to current workspace design trends, “Is this right for my organisation and our people?”

While open plan offices and hot desking may work wonders for one organisation or workplace, they may significantly hinder the success of another. That is why it is essential to consider what is right for each company and office individually, which can be accomplished by conducting a thorough Workplace Strategy before moving into, or re-designing, a new office space.

Prior to adopting hot desking and open plan workspaces solely because they’re the currently “common practice”, it’s crucial to weigh up the main advantages and disadvantages of each approach.

Advantages:

• Reduces organisational expenses by fitting more workspaces into fewer square meters.
• Encourages cross-collaboration within and amongst various teams.
• Fosters socialisation (something Gen Z values highly in the workplace).
• Aesthetically, open spaces are more pleasing to the eye and often allow more natural light to roam throughout a space (a key element for improving employee wellness).
• Can improve incidental learning, a boost in creativity and inspiration and an increased pace of task completion and decision-making due to the proximity of employees in various professional levels and teams.

Disadvantages:

• May encourage ineffective and unproductive collaboration between teams or individuals that brings no benefit to the business nor the individuals (i.e. can create negative relationships and increase time wastage).
• Interruption of individual focused work, which can increase stress, frustration, and add more time pressure. Research shows it takes ~23 minutes and 15 seconds to refocus after you get distracted – Source.
• Lack of privacy and the ability to work on confidential tasks.

Advantages:

• Cuts organisational costs further with employees sharing workspaces and technological devices, especially as flexible and hybrid work models rise in popularity. Extra space saved can be used to create more shared spaces that further support agile working.
• Encourages cross-collaboration within and amongst various teams (i.e., by sitting next to someone new every day).
• Employees can choose the best location within the office to complete their work, which can increase employee satisfaction and productivity.
• Facilitates flexibility for employees in organisations with multiple offices across different locations to work from various office sites.
• Like open plan workspaces, hot desking can boost incidental learning, creativity, inspiration, and increase the pace of task completion and decision-making because of the proximity to employees in various professional levels and teams.

Disadvantages:

• A lack of “place identity” or control over one’s environment. Research has shown that the more an employee’s ‘place identity’ increases, the more they become attached to the company – Source.
• Nuisance neighbours. One cannot control who sits beside them (some people can break the concentration of others and impede on individual focused work).
• Without adequate technology and software to monitor how employee’s use a workspace, such as desk booking systems, and/or ineffective enforcement in the usage of these systems, employees may be stressed to find a place to work.
• Those with disabilities (mental or physical) may be at a disadvantage without stable ergonomics or pivotal accommodations that cater to their specific needs. Discover more about the importance of designing workspaces with diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) in mind.
• Building meaningful, quality relationships with the right colleagues can be difficult if one doesn’t sit next to those colleagues regularly. A primary motivation for going to the office is to engage in collaborative work with direct team members. When direct team members are unable to work within proximity to each other, employees may question the necessity of going to the workplace altogether.
• A lack of incidental learning if one is not seated near the relevant people consistently.
• Can increase germ spreading by sharing desks, chairs and other tools. Some people are not as tidy as others, which can decrease employee morale especially if a clean desk policy is not strictly enforced by the organisation and/or adequate cleaning staff is not arranged.
• Again, there can be a lack of privacy and the ability to work on confidential tasks.

• Workplace design trends will continue to evolve over time and maintaining awareness of these trends is key to avoid falling prey to the latest fad. There is no universal solution for workplace design, rather each workplace deserves its own unique consideration to ensure that the design fosters optimal performance.
• Ensure your workplace partners conduct a thorough Workplace Strategy prior to determining the office design. This is an integrated approach that links organisations’ work patterns (how work is done) with the work environment (where work is done) to enable peak performance. For example, it might reveal that rather than simply “optimising cross-collaboration” via hot desking or open plan spaces, a company should be encouraging more productive interactions, which may not involve hot desking or open plans at all.
• Understand generational differences in the workforce. While Gen Z may be known for craving more social interaction in the workplace, other generations my prioritise individual focused work.
• To get the most out of your people, always design with DE&I and workplace wellness in mind.
• Ensure the appropriate technology and software is available to facilitate the design and that their use is strictly enforced.