Creative offices in the open space format. What is an open space office and what are its features

Anastasia Makarenko and Irina Bykova, specialists from the EcoStandard group environmental certification department, talk about the mistakes companies make in office organization, how to create a comfortable environment for everyone working space and why the United States, the main ideologist of the concept of open space, is gradually abandoning it.

In the modern metropolis there are many formats labor activity- production, field and distant work, service sector. Each of them assumes different kinds organization of workspaces. The office has been the most common over the past 50 years.

An office worker spends on average about nine hours a day at work (although sometimes much more). 170 hours a month, 2040 hours a year, which add up to 71,400 hours over a lifetime with an experience of 35 years. That's eight years! Just imagine, for eight years of your life you have been in the workplace, and not just being there, but working more or less hard.

With such figures, it is obvious that the high-quality organization of office space is very important for the health and success of employees, and hence the prosperity of the company. A modern office should be safe for employees, contribute to productive and comfortable (including psychological) work, minimize negative environmental impact, and be aesthetically attractive.

Advantages and disadvantages of open space

For Russia, for a long time, the traditional office format was the cabinet-corridor type, but over time, more and more companies began to switch to open space.

For the employees of any firm, a sense of community is important, allowing them to feel part of something larger than day-to-day duties and tasks. It is difficult to promote the concept of teamwork when your employees spend all day in separate rooms, often without being able to openly communicate with each other. The sense of camaraderie in open offices is more developed, which in turn helps boost company morale and gives employees an extra boost to achieve success and have a positive attitude towards their goals and projects.

In the United States, where the market economy and competition thrive, open space has been the most popular office format for many years. However, today it is increasingly possible to hear that this concept is becoming obsolete in its pure form. It is unlikely that it will completely disappear in the near future, but many companies, especially in the West, are returning to office solutions, where each employee has his own, albeit small, personal space.

Basically, this approach is chosen by companies operating in the field of technology, finance and pharmaceuticals. For example, at the headquarters of Bayer U.S. in the city of Wippany, New Jersey, each group of 12 people is provided with its own separate space. At Facebook's New York office, employees can work privately in a quiet "library" that's been set up for individual work.

What is it connected with? One of the reasons why most employees enjoy working in a typical small office with four walls and doors is the ability to focus on the task at hand. The constant distractions that are inevitable in open space cause us to lose focus many times a day, which takes up to 20 minutes to recover.

In addition, work in open space offices negatively affects our memory, the ability to remember and retain information. This is especially evident in the so-called hot-desking offices, where people can freely move around the office with a laptop, choosing any convenient place to work. Of course, this organization of the office has its advantages: employees get the opportunity to interact more with each other, and at the same time they can move from the zone of active teamwork to a more secluded and calm place at any time.

However, we are able to remember more information when we are in one place. It's not so obvious in Everyday life, but we "upload" memories by associating them with our environment. These may be small but important details. For example, an idea might come to you from a cursory glance at some item on your desktop.

The most destructive effect of open space for many office workers is noise. University of Sydney professors have found that about 50% of employees in fully open-plan offices and about 60% of employees in low-walled offices are dissatisfied with their "audio privacy". At the same time, among employees of traditional, individual offices, only 16% of respondents expressed such dissatisfaction. Respondents were also asked to rate their level of satisfaction with 14 different indoor climate factors in offices, such as temperature, air quality, noise levels, etc. The level of satisfaction of employees of private offices was significantly higher than that of open space employees.

Interestingly, the most socially active millennial generation seems oblivious to the noise in open-plan workspaces. Polls office workers in Finland, members of the generation born in the 1980s and 1990s see the same disadvantages of open-plan offices - noise, distractions, lack of privacy - as older generations. But they strongly believe that the opportunities for networking, teamwork, or getting help and sharing experiences with colleagues outweigh the negatives.

One of the main arguments in favor of an open office, in addition to the lower cost of organizing such a space, is the assertion that such offices increase the level of cooperation between team members. In fact, we rarely generate good ideas by talking about trifles, as is usually the case in open space.

People really communicate with each other more in an open office, but, unfortunately, this is an informal communication, mostly unrelated to working moments. We still book meeting rooms to discuss important business issues and brainstorm, despite the claimed effectiveness of open space as a means of increasing the level of communication between employees. We work most efficiently, no matter what, when we have the opportunity to fully concentrate on business. We can work in noisy spaces, but the quality of the work, the final product will be much lower than if we worked alone.

Now in many companies, in order not to completely abandon the concept of open space, they are experimenting with the so-called quiet rooms - small rooms in which you can work on an important project in seclusion for several hours. Some companies prefer to create small offices for departments and teams of a few (3-16) people.

A good solution is to create two types of workspaces: open "rooms" where you can freely interact with colleagues, and secluded small spaces for focused work or a phone call. Such rooms should be small, for one person or a small group. They can have a desk and a chair.

Some furniture manufacturers - such as Steelcase - even offer special series of furniture for "introverts", which in companies average from a third to a half of the team. Some companies even arrange special rooms for relaxation, light exercise or meditation.

Steelcase solution for "introverts". Photo: Steelcase

Technology also comes to the rescue - in some offices, sensors are installed that monitor noise levels, air temperature and the level of workload of a particular space. In turn, employees through a special application can find the quietest and most comfortable place in the office for productive work.

So let's recap. The concept of open space has its advantages:

ease of organization of work, fast communication and information exchange.

optimization of expenses for rent and repair of premises.

reducing the cost of equipment and equipping workplaces.

development of team spirit and team building.

the ability to track the progress of employees in work - they are always in sight.

• a sense of shared responsibility between employees and a reduction in psychological pressure on them, which contributes to creativity and productivity.

employees have a higher willingness to cooperate compared to individual offices.

the ability to quickly discuss work issues without wasting time on correspondence / calls.

However, the open office has enough disadvantages:

difficulties in providing comfortable conditions for all employees.

increased noise level.

concentration difficulty.

lack of privacy and confidentiality.

lack of view from the window of some employees.

visible homogeneous environment - an uncomfortable visual environment, which is characterized by the absence of visual compositional structures that attract attention.

open offices can be a breeding ground for germs and infections, which increases the risk of infection during seasonal colds.

Common mistakes in organizing an open space office

Can open space be called the optimal type of office arrangement? Provided that healthy and comfortable conditions are provided and there are areas for informal communication and individual work, perhaps yes. If the room is too noisy, stuffy, fussy and uncomfortable, and employees can only go out for a smoke to relax, such an office will obviously not meet the principles of modern and optimal.

For your open space to be a safe, healthy and comfortable work environment, you need to avoid the most common mistakes companies make:

the inability of employees to control the parameters of the environment (heating, ventilation and air conditioning).

presence of noisy equipment.

lack of measures to reduce noise.

thoughtless lighting.

irrational site planning.

ill-conceived visual design.

irrational combination of departments (for example, a noisy sales department and concentrated accounting).

excessive space saving, creating a feeling of clutter.

lack of other areas for work and communication.

How to organize open space?

To minimize all the risks listed above, the following measures are recommended to create a comfortable space in an open office.

First, provide employees with the ability to control the indicators of the internal environment - temperature, humidity, air conditioning. For this you will need:

thermostats on radiators, convectors.

air conditioner controls.

individual diffusers in the workplace.

fans and openable windows.

Second, install a quality supply ventilation and provide air conditioning. This will provide benefits such as:

the supply of fresh air to the premises in the required quantity.

minimization of pollution sources (cigarette smoke, CO2, particulate matter).

control of the level of CO2 in the air of premises with a large number of workplaces.

It also makes sense to mount an air flow control device in the supply systems and install devices for disinfecting the room from microbes and viruses - for example, bactericidal irradiators-recirculators of the DEZAR series.

Thirdly, keep an eye on the level of illumination and the view from the window. In open space should be implemented:

zone or sequential switching on/off of light.

the presence of individual light sources in the workplace.

providing daylight and views from the windows.

separate control/lighting for window/atrium workstations.

control of glare and direct sunlight from the window (installation of blackout curtains).

Fourth, minimize noise - this will increase the psychological comfort of employees. For this you need:

provide remoteness of office equipment from workplaces.

consider installing mobile or fixed partitions.

implement “silence rooms” and meeting rooms using soundproof materials.

creation of informal communication zones to build trust and create an atmosphere of psychological comfort for workers - in such places people should be able to be alone with themselves or work in a small group.

those who want to give the opportunity to work remotely in order to reduce the number of people in open space; this will help many employees focus on a complex project.

allow employees to take a day off for health reasons for 1-2 days without sick leave to avoid the spread of the virus among colleagues.

Finally, fifthly, take care of a pleasant and comfortable interior. Has the meaning:

rationally and conveniently organize the storage of documents, folders and archives, while taking into account appearance storage.

to provide for the comfort and aesthetics of the visual design of the office, to create a diverse and eye-pleasing environment.

Good example

An example of a well-planned open space is the Mars office in Moscow. In 2016, he received the LEED Gold certification, with the EcoStandard group acting as a consultant during the certification process.

Mars office - sample successful combination common workspaces and other types of areas intended for recreation or individual work. It also provides a special room for cats and created conditions for employees' dogs. Mars is one of the largest pet food manufacturers in the world. The pet friendly office is an important aspect of the company's corporate culture. Employees can come with their dogs on any day of the week, having previously obtained a special pet pass.

What else can be done?

In addition to the organization of open space, it is important not to forget about the correctness and comfort of organizing each individual workplace: about the ergonomics of the table, armchair, monitor and computer, about the level of lighting and optimal microclimate parameters. These factors must be taken into account in any type of office.

To analyze the current situation, the development of the company and monitor the mood in the team, it is advisable to conduct periodic anonymous surveys of employees about their satisfaction with working conditions.

The labor activity of a person can be organized in different ways, depending on the field of activity of the company where he works. The most common form of organization of the work process today is the office. In a developed society, most people work here. There are various configurations of offices, one of them is the Open space type.

Definition of Open Space

Open space is a type of office space layout in which workplaces are located in one big room and separated from each other by thin partitions. This type has become popular in America. It became widespread in the middle of the 20th century. Today, more than 90% of US office workers work in such premises. Gradually, offices of this type "capture" Russian organizations.

Advantages and disadvantages

The systematic increase in the number of such offices is primarily associated with a large number of advantages.

Among the main advantages are:

1. Savings on rent. Most organizations rent premises for their activities. Open Space helps to place employees much more compactly than is obtained with a cabinet-corridor type. Accordingly, a smaller area means lower costs.
2. Convenient interaction between employees. The close location of employees to each other helps to quickly solve the problems that have arisen. There is no need to run around different offices spending a lot of time on it.
3. Improved control. Open space does not allow the employee to engage in extraneous matters, since at any moment the boss can catch him doing this.
4. Team spirit. Open space makes employees feel equal. Office open type significantly reduces the possibility of the formation of small closed groups.
5. Unity. Open space helps to feel the team members as a whole. The overall focus on achieving the set goals is increasing. Employees have a sense of shared responsibility.
6. Improved adaptability for beginners. An integral part of the workflow is the emergence of new links in it. Employees who have just begun their duties can easily turn to any experienced person for help. A beginner also gets to know the whole team in a short time.
7. Reduced paperwork time. All papers are in one place, so they do not need to be collected from offices.
8. Reduce equipment costs. The compact arrangement of workplaces allows you to save at least on connecting wires. Savings are also obtained on office equipment.
9. Increasing customer confidence. According to research, on a subconscious level, customers trust companies with open space office layouts more.

Like any phenomenon, open space offices have their drawbacks:

1. Noisy environment. In any place where a lot of people gather, with the possible exception of the library, a noisy environment is created, which does not have the best effect on the performance of employees, especially noise affects people with low stress resistance.
2. stress. Constant noise and lack of personal space for the nervous systems of some employees become a real test. In most cases, this negatively affects the performance of the team, while the emotional background as a whole may worsen.
3. Theft. In this case, this does not mean the theft of personal belongings, but the disappearance of work items - pens, paper, a stapler, etc.
4. Increasing conflict. Each person has his individual characteristics. It is very difficult to find a compromise on any issue with a large number of interested people. Trite, but very difficult to decide whether to open the window on a not quite hot day or not.
5. The spread of diseases. In places where it accumulates a large number of people, airborne diseases spread much faster. The design of an open office directly contributes to the spread of diseases in the team at an accelerated pace.

Employee reviews

In the United States of America, many researchers have studied the comfort of working in Open Space offices. According to research, the majority of employees say that they do not have enough personal space.

Many also complain about climatic conditions indoors. Most employees complain about the noisy environment in this type of office. Noise prevents them from concentrating.

How to increase the productivity of employees in the Open Space zone?

If productivity in this type of office leaves much to be desired, there are a number of measures to help increase it:

1. Smart room layout. First thing to do internal layout office. It is better to abandon the standardization of the workplace in favor of diversity. It is necessary to provide employees with a choice of a place where it is more convenient for them to work. In the office space, it is necessary to install a large table for general meetings, as well as equip a recreation area near the workplace. It is also worth filling the entire office space with plants, but so that they do not interfere with the workflow.
2. Ability to adjust the internal environment. All employees should be able to regulate the temperature and humidity of the air, as well as its air conditioning. This will create acceptable working conditions for each person.
3. Refusal of high partitions. High partitions contribute to an increase in the noise level throughout the office, while the effect of increasing personal space is almost impossible to achieve.
   Setting rules. In any large team, one cannot do without a set of rules that will regulate the attitude of colleagues towards each other. For example, it is worth recommending the introduction of special signs, prohibiting listening to music without headphones, talking loudly, etc.
4. Leadership should be closer to the "people". Usually, managers allocate a separate office for themselves, while employees work in a common space. If the boss arranges workplace not far from his employees and refuses a personal account, he can improve the microclimate in the team, thereby significantly increasing productivity.
5. "Breath of fresh air. Fresh air increases brain activity and also reduces irritability nervous system. It also helps fight various diseases. Therefore, it is worth installing forced ventilation in the office, which provides a regular supply of oxygen.

• What are the features of an open space office.
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of such an organization of space.
• How to properly plan open space to be effective.
• What rules of conduct should be observed when working in open space.

Office design in the open space format has become fashionable due to Western influence. This organization system is convenient in terms of management access to subordinates, and also saves usable building space.

Open space office: advantages and disadvantages

Open space offices have become widespread due to the benefits.

1. Useful space is saved. Even in small room it is possible to equip workplaces for a large staff of employees. Benefit in financial terms unambiguous.
2. It is easier for employees to interact with each other, which contributes to the rapid resolution of issues. If the work requires efficiency, the open space office will provide it.
3. The activity of the staff is easy to control. People working in separate offices are often distracted by extraneous matters, and it is impossible to track this. Open space office - open, so this problem does not arise.
4. The principle of democracy is respected. All employees feel equal. Closed groups within the team are formed much less often or not formed at all.
5. The corporate spirit is preserved. People working in a single space feel like part of a whole, which has a positive effect on motivation.
6. In an open space office, new employees quickly join the team, as a person gets to know colleagues on the first day. A novice who is having difficulty does not need to wander around the office looking for advice from more experienced employees.
7. Easier work with documents, as all necessary papers can be found in the same room.

The organization of an office according to the open space system is primarily beneficial for the owner of the company. No need to puzzle over how to find a separate workplace for each team member. You can simply rent one large room and install a certain number of partitions in it, especially since such re-equipment is not expensive.

However, open space offices also have disadvantages.

1. The noise level in them is higher than in traditional offices. When several dozen people work in the same room, it is impossible to adequately solve this problem. Constant conversations, phone calls, the sound of operating equipment do not allow employees to concentrate properly.
2. People experience constant stress and become irritable. Even if we forget about the surrounding noise, then the constraint and lack of personal space do not add Have a good mood. This state of affairs cannot but affect productivity in the most negative way.
3. There is a risk of theft in an open space office. Personal belongings of employees are constantly in sight, so many may worry about the safety of property.
4. Possible different kind conflicts - even over small things. Someone is stuffy, and he opens the window. Another is afraid of catching a cold. All this does not contribute to a favorable atmosphere.
5. Infectious diseases are spreading with great speed. It is worth one employee to get sick (for example, with the flu), and the next day several people feel unwell. Special studies have confirmed that people in an open space office are more prone to illness.

Summarizing the above, we can conclude that such a system of organizing jobs allows you to save on rent, but it can have a bad effect on staff productivity.

How to increase productivity in open space

The editors of the magazine " CEO” gave recommendations that will help to properly organize open space, so that employees quickly resolve current issues, but at the same time feel comfortable and maintain high performance.

What should be the layout of an open space office

When designing an open space office and selecting furniture for it, you should pay attention to the following:

• how the company positions itself in the market and what status it has;
• features of its activities (here the specifics of work, relations between employees and clients, superiors and subordinates are considered);
• the route along which visitors will move;
• working hours of open space office employees;
• the possibility of rational use of the premises;
• its color scheme;
• Ease of employee access to common areas.

When arranging an office in an open space format, it is best to adhere to the modular principle. This will allow you to arrange jobs very compactly and save the available space.

The working space for employees is made out with the help of add-ons and pedestals. Often several workplaces are combined in order to obtain an area for team activities. in open space office such zones are usually designed for three or four people. Also, such offices are necessarily equipped with rooms for negotiations and presentations. When purchasing furniture for arranging workplaces and individual premises, it is best to cooperate with a company that can not only select or produce the necessary goods, but also carry out the design itself.

All work on the design of an open space office is divided into several stages.

Design. If it is planned to make an open space office compact, for up to 10 employees, then the ring method of placing jobs is best suited here. Tables are placed around the perimeter, forming a ring. Rectangular rooms come across much more often than square ones, so with such a system of arrangement in the center of the room there is enough space for the comfortable movement of employees.

When you need an average open space office (up to 30 people), there are more layout options. If there is a lot of space, and the specifics of the work involve a lot of noise, then the so-called island placement of workers is recommended. The density of people with such a layout is reduced. In situations where the cooperation of employees is required, and there is little noise in the room, a linear distribution of jobs is well suited. Tables in this case line up in rows.

If the open space office is large, the system of modules is most often used. And this is where it's best to ask for help. professional designer. Each module is a department. Between themselves, they are separated by partitions, racks or seating areas.

Furniture for such offices is usually made in high-tech style. It has a lot of different kinds of cabinets and partitions. In this case, the cabinets themselves often act as the latter. An open space office must not only look modern, but also be ergonomic. Most tables have streamlined cutouts for comfortable hand placement, as well as a special polyurethane edge, which ensures comfort and safety of use. There are often central locks on the pedestals.

Workplace equipment. The classic set of furniture for an employee is a table, office chair and nightstand. As an addition, a rack or cabinet acts.

Furniture must initially be provided with holes for wires, sections for laying cables, vertical or horizontal cable ducts.

As for cabinets for an open space office, it should be possible to assemble them in such a way that they perform specific tasks (for example, storing documents) and at the same time fit harmoniously into the interior. Cabinets made from various materials dimensions may also vary. But the back cover of such furniture should be aesthetically attractive: matching in color, covered with fabric, laminated chipboard, etc. Often, offices are equipped with double-sided cabinets with a common back wall - this saves both money and space.

Glass partitions and separate cabinets. Even an open space office cannot do without equipment for meeting rooms and separate offices for top managers. Often the walls of such rooms are made of glass, and their only advantage is soundproofing. Similar design solution can be called quite controversial, since people are forced to constantly be in sight. Some are simply not able to work normally in such conditions, so it is better to use glass partitions only when organizing negotiation rooms, intended for the most part for discussions and teamwork.

Meeting rooms are often equipped with special chairs or armchairs that can be quickly folded or moved to free up space. But at the same time, one should not forget about the reliability and convenience of this type of furniture: each person has his own build and manner of sitting, and negotiations sometimes drag on for several hours. Based on this, chairs and armchairs must be chosen very carefully: to test them, as they say, personally, to evaluate all possible characteristics.

The manager's office in an open space office should look comfortable, create a sense of stability for visitors. Appropriate furniture will help with this, with massive countertops and supports, made of expensive materials and equipped with suitable fittings. In addition to desktops, offices should be equipped with high or low shelving (cabinets), conference tables for meetings and business meetings, briefing consoles, freegobars and coffee tables. With the help of all these elements, not only a working space and a place for negotiations, but also a recreation area are equipped in the office.

Kitchen and seating area. On the territory of large business centers there is always a cafe where office staff can have lunch. But in any case, the format of an open space office implies the organization of a special place where you can drink tea or coffee, as well as relax and spend a few minutes in silence. Such recreation areas are usually equipped with comfortable armchairs and sofas. If the office is small or medium, then the recreation area is often combined with the kitchen or not at all. Then in the room you need to put at least a small dining table or a bar with several chairs.

The main thing is that a separate room with a door should be allocated for the kitchen. In such a room, people can freely communicate without interfering with the work of other employees.

Tip 1. Make multiple jobs. If a person knows how to adapt, then a huge room with identical tables is quite suitable for him to work. But not everyone has such a gift, and therefore such conditions will adversely affect labor productivity. Most people have their own preferences. Someone is only able to work in silence, and for such a person a semi-isolated space is more suitable. Someone, on the contrary, needs active communication with colleagues, and large partitions in this case will only interfere.

Of course, the format of an open space office does not imply providing for the individual needs of each employee. Moreover, this is unlikely to be done even if desired. But it is quite possible to provide a choice of at least several options. Many companies create a library-like space in addition to the main office space. In this place it is forbidden to talk on the phone, turn on music and conduct loud conversations. An employee who needs silence and needs the opportunity to concentrate can work in such a room on his laptop.

It also makes sense to allocate a separate space and equip it with a large open table, at which it will be convenient for team members to discuss issues regarding a joint project without disturbing their colleagues.

Tip 2.Plan the correct location of individual areas of the office. Keep in mind: open space office employees should not always be in the same room. In addition to the working space, you need to equip a rest room and a meeting room, as well as a place for eating. Some companies also put up a special phone booth where people can make calls without disturbing their colleagues.

All these premises must be located in such a way that employees can quickly and easily reach them. If a person who needs to talk on the phone is forced to go to a specially designated place across the hall, then he simply will not do this and will start calling from his workplace. The same can be said about the dining area. If you do not want employees to drink coffee right at their desks, you need to place the dining room as conveniently as possible.

It is quite difficult to choose the optimal option for the location of zones, and therefore it is better to entrust this matter to a professional designer. After analyzing the size, purpose and number of rooms, he will be able to offer the best way their placement. In addition, before starting work on the arrangement, it is worth consulting with the staff. After all, these people will work in an open space office, and therefore they can suggest the most convenient location for themselves.

Tip 3.Do not give preference to high partitions. Partitions are usually put up to create at least some semblance of privacy for people. But if the walls are too high, then this will be one of the reasons for the increase in the noise level in the office. The fact is that people who do not see the faces of their neighbors tend to believe that these partitions also do a good job of isolating sound, and therefore you can talk quite loudly on the phone. In fact, this is far from the case. Low partitions or their absence make employees behave more restrained - after all, a person can be heard and seen by everyone around.

Tip 4.Set rules of conduct. Each zone in the office is designed for a specific purpose. And in each room you need to behave accordingly. For example, the main workspace is not intended for loud conversations - on the phone or during a collective discussion of any issues. Laptops are not allowed in the dining area. The meeting room is not a place to drink tea or listen to music.

If employees need to communicate in the main open space office, then an internal chat can be used for this. On the one hand, it is convenient for the staff: there is no need to go to the other end of the hall to solve some issue. On the other hand, managers can always expose people who are engaged in idle chatter instead of work.

It would be nice to introduce a conditional signal that any employee can give if he is busy with an important matter and cannot be distracted. Such a sign, for example, can be headphones worn on the head or special usb indicators on laptops. The red indicator in this case means busy, green - readiness for communication.

Tip 5Decorate the room with vegetation. It has long been proven that living plants that are close to people in the most positive sense affect labor productivity. And open space office employees are no exception. The presence of such “green support” makes decision making easier, response to complex tasks faster, and the number of errors made is less. Many advanced companies do not just decorate their offices with vegetation, but set up entire parks and gardens indoors, often allocating a separate floor or roof of the building for this. A person who has the opportunity to visit such a garden at any time and spend some time there works better and more productively after that.

Of course, not every company can afford such expenses. But decorating each room of an open space office with living plants is not so expensive. Tall pots of herbs are easy to place on windowsills and even just on the floor. At the same time, it will not be difficult to choose plants that do not need special care. Wipe the leaves from time to time and water the soil can be charged to the cleaning lady. Such green spaces will not only give strength to the employees of the open space office, but also ennoble the room, make it more lively and bright.

Tip 6Do not forget about jobs for superiors. Often, while people are working in the common room, company executives are sitting in separate offices. But in order to merge with the team and control the work process, the authorities also sometimes need to be present in the open space. This does not mean that there is no need for a personal account - just a few hours a day you need to be among subordinates. Or you can set aside a full day for this a couple of times a week.

Such a mode of work will allow the leader to be closer to the team, to better understand the activities of the team. Knowing the strengths and weak sides workflow, it is easier to find ways to optimize it.

Tip 7.Don't be afraid to experiment. It is almost impossible to find the ideal open space format for employees working for the company on the first try. Each team has its own characteristics, people have their own needs and preferences. A manager who truly cares about the staff will not once and for all approve the working conditions. After certain intervals, they should be changed - and see how this affects the mood and performance of subordinates.

There are many options for organizing an open space office. Workplaces can be arranged both facing each other, and in the form of a "locomotive". Tables can be arranged in clear rows, in the form of a labyrinth, or even randomly. The number of people sitting at one table can also vary. Only by working in different formats, people will be able to understand which one suits them best.

5 rules of conduct in an open space office

Daria Solovieva, Director of Human Resources, KPMG in Russia and the CIS, Moscow

People working in open spaces are required to follow certain rules of conduct. If this is not done, then there can be no talk of comfortable cooperation and productive work.

1. Each employee must have enough space - both for work and for storing documents and personal belongings. Otherwise, the tables will be a mess. It has long been known that the feeling of chaos reduces performance.
2. A person should always feel comfortable - including at the workplace. Partitions in an open space office will protect employees from excessive noise and walking behind them. Not bad if the windows of the room offer a beautiful view. We have windows like this around the perimeter of the hall.
3. In an open space office, there should be not one meeting room, but several. This allows you to convene meetings without disturbing the rest of the company. Also not without separate kitchen and recreation areas. People should be able to sit in comfortable chairs, relax and talk with each other on abstract topics.
4. Office equipment in the common room should be located as compactly as possible and as far as possible from workplaces. It is even better to separate it with a partition so that the noise of printers and faxes does not interfere with the activities of employees.
5. Sound mobile phones workers should keep it to a minimum or turn it off altogether. A loud call melody (especially long if the owner is not in place) greatly interferes with the work of others.

The “Open Space” format office is subject to the principle of common space, literally “open space”. In such an office space there are no individual working rooms in the usual sense. A department of a large company or all employees of a smaller company work in one huge room with individual workplaces in the form of a chair, a table and a computer installed on it, and sometimes without it (the workplace is universal and common).

Many who have worked in such an office or received news of such a vacancy are interested in the source of such “chaos”. The answer is obvious - this is the Western way of working for ordinary employees and even middle managers.

What for?

Historically, such a workspace organization system appeared with the aim of:

• better control over the team and each employee in particular.
• the greatest economic benefit.

But an office employee of the old school will naturally have a question - what about personal space? The answer is immediate - there is none, and for many such an answer can cause a decrease in efficiency, and indeed such a free office has a lot of minuses ... At first glance!

To partially solve psychological discomfort, many company owners, for example, resort to fencing the workspace with small partitions that create the appearance of personal space, and this is the right move to optimize the workflow and the psychological state of employees.

Time makes its own adjustments

In general, modern office workers should forget the times personal accounts, because each employee in the company is an analogue of a machine designed to perform specific functions. Yes, each employee is important, but the overall success of the business is much more important than personal inconveniences, ambitions, character traits and other whims. Do not forget that some work cannot be done in the closed space of personal cabinets at all. After all, the principle “one head is good, but two is better” is the experience of generations, which is difficult to compete with. The clearest example of the success of a “non-standard” office in all respects is Google, or rather the success of its activities.

Cons of the "Open Space" office

The process of working in a place resembling a public institution with a large number of people and a characteristic noise from them does not require long explanations.

In addition to the noise in the "open space", there are other unpleasant features:

• Inability to focus on work; Colleagues and superiors scurrying about in all directions make you rather pay attention to your behavior, correct posture, clothing, etc.
• The constant "suspicious" movement behind your back causes a mania of persecution, surveillance and, in general, excessive concern for your person, and this is already a direct road to a psychologist for a long and unpleasant procedure of self-digging and self-knowledge.
• Temperature inconvenience. Some of the colleagues are cold, some are hot, somewhere there is a source of an unpleasant smell, etc.
• Problems with lighting - similar to the previous paragraph: some are too light, others prefer twilight and the like.

The result and apogee of all this is not the triumph of team spirit, but constant conflicts, disruptions of plans and projects.

But, we dare to assure you that such inconveniences can be solved and, in addition, there are a lot of good points in a similar organization of the working space and the labor process.

Or maybe for the better?

At the end of the article, the sad colors of doubt, discontent and complete collapse should be diluted. office system open type. After a detailed acquaintance with the statistics and features of domestic offices large companies a completely different perception of the offices of "Open Space" opens up:

All this is guaranteed under ideal conditions, but we are all people, individuals and individuals, and therefore the manifestation conflict situations no one can eradicate. However, there are a few secrets that will allow you to level and smooth out the lion's share of the negative.

Let's work, comrades! Instead of a conclusion

rules

Collective rules adopted jointly develop norms of communication and regulate all controversial and negative aspects of coexistence.

Separation of the premises by functional zones

The kitchen will help you to have a convenient meal without annoying the employees with smells. The entertainment and relaxation room will help to distract during the lunch break, and with the help of sports (air hockey, ping-pong) you can quickly and peacefully resolve controversial issues.

Minimum individualization of the workplace

Already mentioned, as well as a few nice photos, a souvenir will help make the workspace more comfortable and welcoming. You can even ask to paint the workplace panels in your favorite color (if possible).

Organize phone calls

Limit or refuse to make personal calls during business hours. Turn off the sound of the mobile phone, and turn down the volume of the signal on the worker.

Soundproofing

Using headphones will relieve emotional stress, eliminate noise and allow you to focus on work.

Smells

For lunch, a kitchen or dining room is organized, the rejection of strong perfumes and personal hygiene is easily solved and such important point.

Open space offices have been known since the time of the engineers of Henry Ford and still remain one of the most popular types of planning. Numerous studies prove 9 Reasons That Open-Space Offices Are Insanely Stupid. that this format has become obsolete: work efficiency is lower than in office-type offices, and employees get tired faster and have less time.

The main problems that arise in open space:

1. Noise generated by people and equipment.
2. The risk of spreading the infection if one of the "responsible" colleagues comes to the office sick.
3. Inability to work due to frequent interruptions and meetings.

If you work best in the morning or evening, when most of your colleagues are not at work, and in two hours you manage to do what you didn’t do in the other six, take a closer look at our recommendations.

Leaving the office

Flexible working hours

If the format of your work allows, use a flexible schedule. For some, it is better and more convenient to work in the morning, when most of the colleagues are not yet at the workplace, while others wake up in the late afternoon.

Follow your biorhythms.

Negotiating such a schedule with your superiors can be difficult, but it's worth at least trying. If the task is completed, then what difference does it make, in what particular period of time?

The practice of the publishing house where I worked showed the effectiveness of this approach. Only employees involved in customer service and salespeople had a clear start and end time for the working day. The editorial, promotion, and other departments formally started at 10:00, but even within the same department, there were distinctions between owls and larks.

Transition to partial remote

For some people, wearing active noise canceling headphones may cause dizziness or headache. And the point here is not the quality of the performance of the headphones themselves, but the anatomical features of a particular person and his vestibular apparatus.

In order not to waste money, ask friends who have such headphones to borrow them for a couple of days, or before buying, ask the store about the features of the return if suddenly the headphones do not suit you.

According to the Consumer Rights Protection Law Law of the Russian Federation of 07.02.1992 No. 2300-1 "On Protection of Consumer Rights". and article 502 of the Civil Code, you can return the goods good quality to the store within 14 days of purchase. But the store may insist that these headphones are technically sophisticated products. Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of 19.01.1998 No. 55. which cannot be returned or exchanged.

We are engaged in redevelopment

Look critically at the layout of the place where you work. Do you have a dedicated space for the kitchen and what is it like: separate room, a fence or a table in the middle of the room with a tea and coffee maker?

The coffee maker and other noisy household appliances should be isolated from the main room as much as possible. If there is a separate fence, then try to negotiate to bring it up to the ceiling and separate the kitchen from the common area with a door.

Printers and coolers should be located as far as possible from workplaces.

The office should be divided into noisy and quiet areas. Putting marketers and programmers together is a bad idea for both departments.

Organize your workplace so that you enjoy being there, because we spend most of the day at work. A comfortable workplace is a balance between openness and personal space. You can isolate yourself from colleagues with flowers, a partition or a locker without leaving the common space.

Save time

The danger of open space is that every employee is almost at arm's length. So the advantage of this layout turns into a curse, because you are constantly distracted. At the same time, what may be an urgent and important task for your colleague turns around for you.

When scheduling meetings, follow the rule to allocate mandatory and optional participants, at the end of the planning meeting, send everyone a protocol with final decisions and deadlines for completing tasks.

Allocate time that will be only yours to complete your tasks, when none of your colleagues will distract you with their questions. Notify co-workers in advance that you are preparing for an important deadline for the entire team, so ask them not to disturb you on a certain day or hour.

Working in open space is a series of compromises. Start the changes with yourself and your immediate environment, then gradually the rest of your colleagues will catch up to the new standards. Even if you are not a leader, but an ordinary employee, you can change the life of your office for the better. It is enough to take an active position and promote your ideas.

Tell us how you solve the problems of working in open space?