More than 40% of the respondents to a recent Berkeley survey
reported that workplace acoustics make it harder for them to do
their job, while other factors, like lighting, air quality, seating, etc.,
were rated as making it easier to work.
The biggest issue with open space sound is that it distracts
from the sense of privacy, so people are less likely to indulge in
discussions they would like to not be public – at least in part.
“
It’s one thing to say
that the company
wants to engender
chance interaction another to organize
the work place to
actually increase the
likelihood of such
interactions but another to create
a culture where
informal chatting in
the café is considered
a legitimate part of
work.
Many companies have reengineered work spaces acoustically
using so-called ‘pink-noise’ systems, where sound at the same
frequency range of human voices is played on speakers. Voices
that could be heard 60 feet away can be damped to nothing at
20 feet. So people can take off the headphones, and speak more
openly even while working in an open space with other people
nearby.
Cultural Norms: Perceptions at Play for New Workplace Design
The other barriers to gaining the benefits that these new
architecture affordances offer include the social cues at work.
It’s one thing to say that the company wants to engender chance
interaction, another to organize the work place to actually increase
the likelihood of such interactions, but another to create a culture
where informal chatting in the café is considered a legitimate part
of work.
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