More companies are remodeling offices to incorporate open-plan layouts in an effort to save money and encourage collaboration, though many employees complain that the setup eliminates privacy and makes it hard to concentrate. Here are the pros and cons of open-plan offices:
PROS
Replaces unsightly cubicles with resplendent rows of particle-board desks
Increases employee innovation in finding ways to drown out coworkers
Cheaper overhead than office that people would enjoy working in
Removes barriers separating employees from their boss except for financial, social, and generational ones
Can cram couple more people in between Megan and Steve
Comfort in knowing your cold germs will spare no one
Other companies doing it
CONS
Have to hang your coat in communal closet like a savage
Glaring diversity problem right out in the open
Reserving conference room necessary to punch hole through wall
Having dozens of separate conversations occurring around you simultaneously may be somewhat distracting
Nowhere to hang inverted cross
Look on parents’ faces when you show them your desk
Makes it easier to get to know your coworkers
