Office layouts and employee participation

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to propose an applicable solution to help organizations to solve the problem of participation vs privacy in office buildings.Design/methodology/approachA theoretical model is proposed based on research claims that employees' participation motivated by three issues simultaneously is likely to shape the ideal overall participation map in office layouts. These are organizational, physical planning, and personal characteristics issues. The model was applied to a case study and results were compared with employees' reaction.FindingsOnce the model was applied, results revealed misallocation of 63 per cent of staff in their workspaces. Results support employees' reaction towards their dissatisfaction with the level of participation vs privacy they possess in their workspaces.Research limitations/implicationsEach organization could have a different participation map due to variations in organizational and personal characteristics issues. Further research is needed to understand relationships among the three incorporated issues.Originality/valueThe proposed model could be easily applied and would provide organizations with ideal office layouts that would support productivity.