Open plan style offices are both loved and hated by many businesses all over the world. Some businesses swear by the open plan, claiming that any other form of office design does not achieve the maximum potential from the workforce. Whilst others believe the complete polar opposite.
If you are considering a new office refurb and you're unsure if an open plan working environment is right for you, below are the pros and cons of open plan offices to guide you in making the right chice to suit your business needs.
In an open plan office environment, asking fellow employees advice or an outside opinion will become second nature, due to the fact there are no barriers preventing interaction. This in turn will create a more solid foundation within the various aspects of your business, camaraderie within the teams, continual learning and knowledge sharing to name a few.
Whilst there are certainly positives to being able to easily communicate with your colleagues, the disadvantage is the noise level. It can be very easy to become absorbed in another employees conversation for instance, or losing the ability to concentrate on your own call if the noise level is too high. Which can have a negative effect on productivity levels.
Open plan office spaces can be less costly to build, as less time and fewer materials are needed. Due to the open plan office being far better in terms of air flow, money will be saved on heating and air conditioning. Another huge money saver is the fact that bulky items such as printers, scanners, along with normal day to day stationary, can all be shared.
An aspect of office design which is often over looked, is some employees need for privacy. Being able to customise the working space to each employee's individual needs, can again increase productivity and efficiency at work. A cubicle can give the illusion of being shut away, as when needing to hit deadlines, this can be very useful.
Hot desking is the practice within an office to have multiple employees being allocated the same desk on a rota basis. This is a big trend in office design at the moment, nationwide feedback has shown how this is vastly becoming the preferred option. Therefore, this is far more viable with the open plan design.
However, like with most things, for every positive there is a negative. In this instance Hot desking can give rise to an office cold epidemic, with no barriers protecting the other employees. The simple sneeze on a keyboard can spread germs incredibly quickly, as there maybe a multitude of people using that same keyboard on any given day.
When deciding the layout of your new office, it is important to consider both the pros and the cons of the open plan office, before deciding on a design that suits your business.
A prime example is; if the majority of your workers are on flexi-time, then an open plan office solution with hot desking may be more beneficial, as this negates the appearance of many empty desks. However, if the specific business requires considerable low noise and high levels of concentration i.e graphic designers, architects etc,, cubicles or individual offices maybe the best route forward.
There is no one size fits all design for offices these days, each business will more than likely require a complete bespoke design specific to their business requirements. Oaktree Interiors have a fully managed office design service, from initial consultation to the build, fit out and even furniture.
Our experience in creating the perfect office design has been learnt over the 25 years we have been in business, so our knowledge and implementation are second to one.
Our skilled team can provide a wide range of office interior solutions for businesses in London, some of which are:
If you are interested in our services and would like to request a quote, please do not hesitate to contact us. Our friendly and dedicated team will be able to assist you with your enquiry, answering any questions you might have regarding our office fit out service or any of our services for office interiors in London.
You can contact our team in a variety of different ways:
