The Dark Ages v's The Tech Ages - Are we missing something?

Imagine starting your career before The Internet. Before iPhones. Before email. Before computers.

The world has changed. The work has changed. The workplace has changed. The tools have changed.

The introduction of the computer and the subsequent IT transformation brought about previously unimaginable change to the Workplace, working methods and the cultural behaviour within it.

Without the rose tinted glasses of nostalgia is it possible to consider if ‘we’ve missed something?’ and will we find workplace design similar to fashion design in that there is a cyclical element?

The majority of our Workplace Design projects have been focused on encouraging as much physical interaction, collaboration and connectivity as possible. With spaces designed to offer freedom and choice in how to work, in order to improve productivity, knowledge sharing and team work.

This appears to realign ourselves with elements of working culture that came more naturally before the computer. Physical contact was the predominant method of communication in the past, other than the telephone which was very often a shared facility amongst groups of staff.  Something impossible to imagine now!

Communication and collaboration in the past operated differently and without deliberation.  A person who passes by the office workers desk or a designer’s bench would stop and discuss work in an ad hoc fashion face to face. The absence of emailing encouraged physical contact and communication, with regular interaction and movement through office floorplates.

The introduction of the personal computer changed everything.  Reacting to the tools rather than the work, the workplace suddenly became a very static environment, with little conversation or background noise.  The resulting standardisation of workspace aesthetics and cultural change influenced practically every business stream on the planet. It became difficult to notice the difference between an engineering practice from a police headquarters or financial institution.

For many businesses their workplace is a huge beast that cannot be changed overnight.  Some workplaces haven’t moved much in 30 years.  We could all benefit from taking a more experimental view of workplace, trying new things at a small scale without big expenditure.

Copying what worked for someone else will not necessarily work for you.

Perhaps this is why spaces such as Whitbread Digital work so well. They were designed implicitly to encourage communication, interaction and ultimately productivity.  The project delivery method was fast, low cost and investigational. Producing conceptual models which were quickly turned into prototype spaces, with each new space learning from the previous and evolving accordingly.

This new world is fast paced and dynamic, the workplace, whatever it is, should be too.

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