David Hanak Yesterday afternoon, a traditional monthly report of how the work on Apple's new headquarters, called Apple Park, has progressed over the past 30 days appeared on YouTube. You can watch the video below, there is no point in discussing its content too much here, as everyone can watch it for themselves. At the moment, the entire complex is nearing completion and is basically being finished as part of the construction and ground works. Small groups of employees have already started the move and the rest should move before the end of the year. After that it should finally be done. However, is this megalomaniac project a success, or is it only the fulfillment of visions that are far from being shared by all involved?
The end of construction work and the subsequent relocation of personnel and material should mark the successful completion of the entire project, the life of which began six long years ago. However, it is very possible that such a happy ending will not happen again. The euphoria of completing one of the most modern and progressive buildings in history could fade very quickly. As it has become clear in recent weeks, not everyone shares the general enthusiasm for their new (working) homeland.
The comfort of the employees was obviously thought of during the planning. How else to explain the entire galaxy of accompanying buildings, from a fitness center, swimming pool, relaxation areas, restaurants to a park for walking and meditation. However, what was not well thought out was the design of the office spaces themselves. Several Apple employees have let it be known that they simply do not want to go to the so-called open space areas and there is nothing to be surprised about.
The idea sounds promising on paper. Open offices will encourage communication, sharing of ideas and will better build team spirit. In practice, however, this is often not the case, and open space is rather a source of negative reactions that ultimately lead to a decline in the atmosphere at the workplace. Some people like this type of arrangement, others don't. The problem is that the vast majority of employees should work in these spaces. Separate offices will be available only to senior management and management, who will be far from open space offices.
Therefore, a rather curious situation has arisen, when some teams from the newly built headquarters have separated and either remain and will continue to remain in the building of the existing headquarters, or they have claimed for themselves their own small complex, in which they will work as a team without being disturbed by other employees . This approach is said to have been chosen, for example, by the team in charge of the Ax mobile processor architecture.
In the coming months, it will be very interesting to see what responses to Apple Park come to light. It is already clear that not everyone is excited about the new building, despite the campus. What is your relationship to open space offices? Can you function in this environment, or do you need your own privacy and peace of mind to work? Share with us in the comments.
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And what exactly don't you like? All information in the article is supported by sources, so it is not a fabrication. The rest is the opinion of the author :)
When I started reading the article, I wondered if it was about finding fault with anything, but when I found out that it was about some people's resistance to so-called open space offices, I have to agree. I've never worked in an open space office, thankfully – it's always been offices with a few people I get along with – but I've never felt comfortable visiting such an office. In addition, the phenomenon of reduced performance in an open space is very sensibly discussed and explained in the excellent book Deep work (I recommend it to anyone who likes to do valuable work and wants to maintain health and well-being). For how I see Apple as an innovative company, this may be "making a nest".
If the OS is sensibly designed, this is not a problem. I work in one and can't keep track. No more noise, no one disturbs you in your work, on the contrary. Everyone you need to work with is within reach and you can communicate with them more comfortably than if you had to go around individual offices. It is important that the OS is well designed from the point of view of acoustics and the layout of places. Also important are "phone booths", where people can make phone calls without disturbing their colleagues. We have several such small rooms, acoustically insulated, where people can make phone calls or hold micro-meetings with colleagues.
So I was initially afraid of the OS, but today I wouldn't change it. But a lot depends on its quality.
OS is great for me, because with the right arrangement you can sit anywhere and I don't have to be disturbed by the fact that my colleague likes to ventilate all the time and I'm just freezing and similar jokes.