The longing for the wide open office
The Federal Council is sending us back to work from home today. Working from home? We’ve got that down pat. Nevertheless, we are happy to be back in the office after the pandemic. Because we know the value of the good old office.
At the end of 2018, Heads Corporate Branding suddenly had to leave its office premises. Due to a renovation on another floor, the asbestos levels in our rooms were suddenly far above the tolerance level. From one day to the next, we were out on the street. We rented workspace at short notice and switched to working from home as soon as possible. Without knowing it, we were already training for the pandemic at the beginning of 2019. We used the absence of the office to slightly redesign the agency: Fewer classic workstations, more space for sharing. Interior designer Robine Reolon cleverly combined the existing with the new. And with the help of our client, de Sede, we created an atmosphere that encourages relaxed, focused work and interaction.
The joy of the new exchange opportunities was short-lived; just as everything was ready in the spring of 2020, the pandemic forced us back home. At least we knew how to do it. Now, in January 2021, we are settling into home office for the third time, as prescribed by the Federal Council. “Groundhog Day…”. Although we’re used to it, we can’t sing the praises of working from home. We want to go back to the office – at least a few days a week. And not just because it’s nice here.
The important, spontaneous exchange of ideas at the coffee machine is missing. There is no “start up and shut down” on the way to work. The bonding over lunch in the agency kitchen is not possible. There’s also too little sharing of project concerns, as people are reluctant to “zoom in” on someone’s home just to share their worries. Constructive criticism is easier said in person than through the camera. And celebrating successes together is only half as fun on screen.
Bruno S. Frey, visiting professor at the University of Basel and research director of Crema (Centre for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts), sums it up in the NZZ: “Personal conversations between employees are very important. Digital communication threatens to replace direct exchange”. The broadening of horizons, which is also important for businesses, by interacting with people from different backgrounds, with different education and interests, is falling by the wayside. Gestures and facial expressions are harder to interpret. There is a risk of alienation between employees and management; the company becomes an abstract legal entity.
Frey also points to the book “Reclaiming Conversation” by Harward scholar Sherry Turkle. Based on hundreds of interviews, she found in 2015 that when meeting attendees have a laptop in front of them, 65% are engaged in other tasks during such meetings and 63 per cent are sending emails at the same time. And younger workers would check their mobile phones for messages every few minutes. This is called “multitasking”. Frey, the economist, has to disappoint: “There is no such thing as multitasking.” Divided attention means incomplete information. The ubiquity of the devices reduces the usefulness of the exchange.
So it’s good when the traditional office – alternating with working from home – becomes possible again. So that we can satisfy our longing for personal exchange. And so that a distinctive culture of dialogue and mutual inspiration can continue to develop the company.
Interior designer Robine Reolon (pictured with agency owner Ralph Hermann) didn’t have to walk far to get to Heads: Just a hundred metres from the agency, at Seefeldstrasse 81 in Zurich’s Seefeld district, she also runs “Raum Reolon”, a beautiful design store with selected designer pieces and home accessories. Raum Reolon
