Employees Stepping Out Of Their Cubicle To Find “White Space”

Last week, the New York Times ran an interesting article exploring the growing trend of professionals stepping out of their cubicle to get work done. The idea is that nobody actually gets anything done at their desk - the constant distractions and mundane routines of sitting at one’s desk often prevent any creative or introspective actions from surfacing. This frustrating aspect of traditional office life is driving people to seek out “white space” - a term that implies a place set apart, physically and mentally where the work actually gets done.

“White Space” is subjective - it’s different for everyone. Some seek out solitude, while others flock to crowded coffee shops to hunker down and get it done. The bottom line is, people perform better when they have options.

While this may seem glaringly obvious to many, it can be a hard pill for companies to swallow. However, it seems the technology and creative industries have taken notice and are taking steps to nourish this Bedouin work style and still keep employees in the office.

According to the NYT:

Technology companies are eliminating assigned space for open floor plans. Cisco Systems, Google and Sun Microsystems have already knocked down partitions. This month, Intel began testing alternative floor plans at three locations — creating open work areas with clusters of armchairs, library-style tables with laptop plugs, electronic white boards where inspired doodles can be transferred to e-mail, and a variety of conerence rooms when privacy is needed. It is not just the high-tech firms that are becoming cozier.

The creative industries — such as advertising and design — are embracing the approach, too. At ?What If! (yes, that is really the name, punctuation and all) an “innovations company” (that seems to mean marketing) with a Manhattan outpost, employees never sit in the same place two days in a row. This is known as “hot desking,” said Nina Powell, the managing director of the United States office, and the purpose is to give workers a perspective that changes with the task.

When the work requires collaboration and interaction, she said, the communal tables are the place to be. When the work is more introspective, there are cafe-style booths providing quiet and privacy.

New York Times: You Won’t Find Me in My Office, I’m Working

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(photo courtesy of Muammer Okumuş)