The Future of Offices

The first Monday after January 1 is traditionally a day when so many of us return to the office, chatting with colleagues about their holidays, kicking off projects for the new year, getting back in gear after our time off.

This year, of course, it’s very different. Offices are closed. Many of us will be logging on to work in the same place that we celebrated the holidays with relatives through video calls, or are making sure that our kids are set up with their schoolwork at the same table where we are later going to be attending a (remote) meeting. For some, this is a welcome respite from the constant interruptions of an open floor plan and the time suck of commuting. For others, this is a nightmare without boundaries between personal and work life, with constant interruptions from children, and no sense of when anything starts or stops.

As the vaccine starts to roll out, some companies are starting to plan for people to return to the office as before, while others are fully embracing the world of remote and distributed teams, and even more are somewhere in between.

This raises the question: Why do we need offices? What are they for?

I think some are pushing to return to the office to gain a sense of “normalcy.” Embedded in this is a limited view of the word “normal,” one predicated on what has existed during the lifetime of the current management.

Sadly, some companies are likely pushing return to the office in the interest of control. They like a workforce which can be seen and is easier to keep track of during certain hours. This is founded on a lack of trust. It also depends on a localized, non-global view of the business.

And then there are the companies which recognize that their business runs best and is dependent on in-person collaboration and serendipitous conversations (or “collisions” in the late, great Tony Hsieh’s terminology). They have suffered by having a remote workforce where contact becomes scheduled, formalized, time-limited.

I have always worked for this last type of company. The work I’ve done has been inherently collaborative. And yes, we have suffered without the more casual lightweight ongoing contact.

And that level of ongoing contact comes with its own price: constant interruptions and difficulty focusing.

How to strike the necessary balance? It’s essential to fully explore what’s under the desire to re-open offices and see what’s best for both the individuals and the company as a whole.

I personally think that if they type of work supports it, a hybrid model is the best way, where people are gathered on specific days to have large, discussion-based meetings, to eat together, to do parallel play and experimentation. And then other full days are free of meetings and are just for focused work in the location and schedule of your choosing - with encouragement to be away from the office.

I don’t see a need for open plans of desks or cubicle farms. That only supports false privacy and partial focus.

I see offices containing little more than conference rooms and hang-out spaces, spaces designed for collaboration and collision.

We have the opportunity to reshape our understanding of “normal.” Let’s not waste it.