What’s your opinion of the open floor plan office spaces?

Not enough privacy for sexual activities.

Too loud for offices that have anyone who needs to talk on the phone with clients or customers. Otherwise, they're cool.

Simple and well organized

It sucks. There are no benefits to having no quieter spaces and too few rooms to have focused work.

I do not like the idea. They are loud and you don’t feel very at home if there’s open seating. Sometimes you need some privacy to work on an issue.

I absolutely HATE it. As an introvert with social anxiety I definitely prefer to have my own space closed off from others so I can concentrate on my work. If someone comes to me it's because they need something. I don't want to be bothered with non work related stuff while on the job.

Great for meetings and collaboration times and coordination times but I prefer some privacy for working on my own.

Like 90 % of the time ... but still need a place to go to for a private meeting or phone call once in a while

I would much prefer my own personal space (office or at least a cube), though I do think open floor plans do have the advantage of facilitating collaboration and communication

I’m not crazy about it but it probably works best for certain situations.

fine, so long as theres rooms for people to go when they need quiet

It can get out at times...especially if you sit near the kitchen. I still like the open concept. It's easier to get to other people and get things done.

Depending on the company their usually fine. However, for call centers they need better 'sound barriers' as many companies you can hear the employees around the employee your speaking too. That is unprofessional and distracting.

Hate them. It's impossible to concentrate.

I don't like them. There isn't any privacy when one is working with a client (either in person or on the phone).

Too loud and there is no privacy.

I dislike it - especially when you have a role that requires you to be on the phone, but your colleagues are not required to be on the phone. It builds resentment among team members.

I HATE THEM. Hate them. I am in one now and everyone wears headphones all day (Bose has made a fortune from this team) in order to allow for quiet concentration. Confidential conversations are hard to manage and it doesn't foster a team environment because everyone as everyone is trying to find some headspace by blocking out others via headphones.

I really like them. They allow for greater collaboration.

Approve. Feels like I’m part of a larger community. Less claustrophobic.

Works for some teams, but not for all. Certain roles need confidentiality and sound-proofing more than others.

looks nice but doesn't allow deep & focused work to be done

I think it is the worst idea anyone could have come up with. Depending on the type of job you have, an open floor plan is not always the best way to be productive. Being in an open space just promotes more chit chat and not always about work. I am an analyst and often times have to do involved analysis and calculations and when there is a lot of outside activity around me, it makes it difficult to concentrate. Even something as simple as a conference call from your desk becomes an exercise in futility, particularly when people decide that it is necessary to put their caller on speaker. Makes me appreciate even more the ability to telecommute as I actually get more done. On the days where I have to go into the office, I try to save the more mundane tasks such as data entry type work to the office days.

Easily get too loud, and movement is distracting for many workers like me with sensory processing disorder. While it does foster casual conversation, its a harder place to get work done.

I work in one now and miss my cubicle. There are too many distractions all around and it's too enticing to just interrupt someone instead of send them a message, messing them up as well. I don't like the idea of everyone having their own office, though.

Depends on the industry

Efficient use of space and helps with team collaboration.

Disturbing and makes it very hard to concentrate. It makes people feel like they are always being watched over in a bad way.

It’s not super conducive to getting individual work done, but it can foster good team communication so it’s a mixed bag. I think it’s best if there’s some private work spaces available for people who work better that way when necessary on independent work

Odious, they serve no one but facilities' people and others trying to save money at the expense of everyone else

Hate it. Awful. Completely nonconducive to getting real work done. Nightmare for introverts or those who need quieter environment.

Horrible. Studies agree with my opinion.

An employee (at any level) working at a desk needs some measure of privacy, even if it’s just a panel. People have to sneeze, blow noses, scratch and so forth from time to time. You can’t just jump up and run out of the room every time you need to do these things. I wouldn’t want to be seen, nor do I want to observe my co-workers doing these things. Also, some people’s phone voices are loud and/or distracting. Some sort of shield or barrier can cut down on a large percentage of sound carry.

It's fine when you're young in your career, but as I've gotten older, I've found it to become more of a nuisance because I am trying to get work done. However, my opinion is really about offices in general. I prefer working from home a lot more.

Well interesting in concept, it does not allow an individual to think or have any privacy. You resort to using noise canceling headsets to get your work completed.

They are way too open. I’m distracted by other teams having irrelevant conversations. And there are few walls, so very few whiteboards.