Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Creative Workspaces

            I initially could not find an interesting field of study within my Google search of “Environmental Psychology.”  What would make my paper stand out?  I sat in my apartment’s living room and looked at all the boring things I see every day.  This is when I stumbled upon an article I immediately hated: ‪ Space Meets Status: Designing Workplace Performance‬ by Jacqueline Vischer.  Her papers strikes at individualism in the workspace and caters those who are “liberated enough to overcome the primitive urges of Territorial Man.”  You cannot help but picture countless sterile cubicals.
            Why Not?, a book  I have read on innovation through creative thought, makes mention of IDEO.  IDEO is global design consultancy, famous not just for their first-class product designs but also for the treatment of their employees.  IDEO prides themselves with providing their employees with personalized offices and public meeting areas that are functional and stimulating.  The Art of Innovation discusses IDEO in much greater detail.  In one of IDEO’s locations, an airplane wing, think “freedom”, is suspended from the ceiling above a central conference table.  Rather than save the best office for executives, IDEO reserves the best rooms and views for public spaces for their employees.  This wild use of space is not what Jacqueline Vischer had in mind though, because one could understand an aversion to IDEO’s somewhat ridiculous prop.  Vischer identified having family photos or art, or bringing lamps from home, as problematic to teamwork in the workplace.
            There must be some credibility to this workspace freedom; IDEO is not the only modern company to have the same idea about their employees’ workspace, another company famous for this is Google.  When pictures of Google’s work areas first hit the Internet, they were considered a hoax.  But Google’s workspace is real, and is complete with fireman’s poles, pool tables and all the food you can eat.  They have employee spaces designed for different purposes such as scenic rooms with retired gondola cars for private conversation and also comfortable workrooms with massive expanses of whiteboards for thinking aloud. 
            I feel that this effort to make stimulating workplaces is part of these companies’ continued success.  I tested this theory with some research of my own.  I wrote this article while sitting in a mock living room set placed in a plot grass between Rowan’s Mullica and Whitney buildings from 12-midnight on.  Complete with a sizeable area rug, a beanbag chair and my laptop (as well as snacks) this workspace provided me with a stimulating but not distracting environment.  Once I moved from my uniform, white living room to a more diverse environment, I felt much more at ease, more engaged in work and I had ceased looking for distraction.
            Although I am a proponent of interesting, engaging work places, I do feel that it should be monitored; however, not monitored to the controlled state that Jacqueline Vischer would like.  My outdoors office had some flaws, and this sort of thing would need to be eliminated to keep workspaces efficient.  Distraction found me, in the form of friends who came to visit me while trying to accomplish my work.  From this I can see there are flaws to having freedom over your workplace, but overall allowing employees liberties when in the workspace makes work a more comfortable and enjoyable place, while still facilitating productivity. 

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1 comment:

  1. UnknownApril 6, 2014 at 6:39 PM

    I don't think you understood Jacqueline's book. She is not striking out against people being territorial. She says that people are territorial and that it is a need that needs to be addressed when implementing change in the workplace. She writes about the extreme cases of it in her case studies to raise awareness of people's needs to establish their territory in the office. Jacqueline does not advocate a workplace devoid of individuality. Please read the book again. It is an insightful read about change in the workplace.

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