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Space is defined by workstyle, not status

Once a symbol of achievement and rank, the private office is no longer an important goal for younger workers. In fact, being alone behind a closed door may be experienced not as a perk, but as punishment. The iPod generation was schooled in “packs,” and a walk through any high school or college reveals that the days of study carrels are over. Students gather around a big table. The atmosphere is collaborative as students tap each other for information, popping on headphones when they need to focus on an individual task.

Younger workers — who are used to multiple stimuli — don’t need a clearly defined space in order to do their work. They typically feel that formal meeting places are less important and are less distracted by noise and activity. They enjoy having quick and easy access to colleagues, and can work in a café or lounge as well as a conference room.

In addition to the different attitudes and expectations of younger workers, new management styles have set the stage for planning that does not privilege the private office. Executives today seek to be more accessible, encouraging open exchange with employees. The enclosed private office is more likely to be dedicated to those who need acoustical privacy due to the nature of their job — human resources professionals, financial planners and others engaged in confidential work.

In a conversation, designer Carl Gustav Magnusson noted that “In the 1960s, IBM copy machine and typewriter service men had to wear suits to elevate the value perception of service. But in the ’90s? Dress-down Friday has made the enclosed office paneled in mahogany look silly.” Formal (and constrictive) dress and a formal executive office are simply not as relevant in the modern workplace.

This trend away from the private office as a signal of the organizational hierarchy and individual status presents a challenge in that it reflects a systemic change in attitudes and behaviors mirrored in process and structure. Again, balance and choice — appropriate variability — are desirable features of a workplace where sharing, connecting and building on ideas are more characteristic than top-down directives.