0010
June 15, 2006_____________________________________________
The Ever Evolving Work Place
For the past 100 hundred years, “office work” has been performed
either in an individual closed room or a large, single open area. The
Boss or upper level management sat in the closed room, the office,
usually with the door shut. Everyone sat elsewhere.
For the first 50 or so of these years, everyone else, the others, were
in open bull pens. There is a wonderful picture on the National
Building Museum’ s web site that illustrates this perfectly. The Sears
Roebuck Chicago Headquarters photo, circa 1913, shows one large
room with rows upon rows of typists. All are seated behind the same
kind of desk, with the same type writer, facing the same direction,
performing the same job. Not a modern office work as we think of it
today, rather the factory-like production of piece work created on a
typewriter. This “office” is structured for single-tasking, in one
location, with one environment and one set of support equipment in a
vertically hierarchical organization.
Since the 1970’s, this other work is done in open office systems, now
infamously dubbed Dilbertville - rows upon rows of same size
cubicles. Originally designed as an improvement over the open pit,
the rampant proliferation of the cube has nothing to do with altruism.
Now considered a workplace evolution of the open bull pen, the
change that took place was not so much in the office structure, but in
the work performed within the panel walls. Leaving repetitive, single-
tasking behind, work has become multi-tasked, varied and different,
changing on a daily, even hourly basis.
As we begin the next century, the work and the workplace are
changing again. Enabled by technology, the transition out of the
Industrial Age to the Space/Knowledge/information/internet Age (the
era to be named by future generations) is complete. No longer
constrained by the four walls of an office, cubicle or office building,
work occurs wherever and whenever, across the boundaries of space
and time.
Thus has emerged a new worker - one who can work anywhere, plug
in anytime. This person revels in infinite variety, is motivated by the
change of scenery and is more productive surrounded by an ever-
shifting sea of activity. Who are these workers? They can be seen
sitting in your local coffee house, the town square or an airport
lounge with cell phone to ear and PDA in hand.
Unfortunately, these workers can not be found in today’s office
building. Maybe companies can be forgiven for not providing a
workplace for this worker, having only recently been discovered
sitting in coffee shops with a laptop and a latte. Like a newly found
species of bird, corporate anthropologists are mystified by what exists
in these environments that draws such workers there in droves.
Equally unfortunate is the phenomena of lack of perception on the
part of the worker. In other words, most have no idea what species of
worker bird they are, blindly migrating from one company to another
or from cube to cube. Haphazardly assigned work space based on job
title rather than personal productivity, they have been forced to adapt
and accept their environment, never given the opportunity to discover
their personal work mode or know in which office conditions they best
thrive.
Do you want to know which type of worker you truly are? Or
whether you became that by way of purposeful intent or unlucky
happenstance? I have a process for discovery.
Think you know your species. Please fill in the survey above.
I am tracking migratory patterns.
The Ever Evolving Work Place
For the past 100 hundred years, “office work” has been performed
either in an individual closed room or a large, single open area. The
Boss or upper level management sat in the closed room, the office,
usually with the door shut. Everyone sat elsewhere.
For the first 50 or so of these years, everyone else, the others, were
in open bull pens. There is a wonderful picture on the National
Building Museum’ s web site that illustrates this perfectly. The Sears
Roebuck Chicago Headquarters photo, circa 1913, shows one large
room with rows upon rows of typists. All are seated behind the same
kind of desk, with the same type writer, facing the same direction,
performing the same job. Not a modern office work as we think of it
today, rather the factory-like production of piece work created on a
typewriter. This “office” is structured for single-tasking, in one
location, with one environment and one set of support equipment in a
vertically hierarchical organization.
Since the 1970’s, this other work is done in open office systems, now
infamously dubbed Dilbertville - rows upon rows of same size
cubicles. Originally designed as an improvement over the open pit,
the rampant proliferation of the cube has nothing to do with altruism.
Now considered a workplace evolution of the open bull pen, the
change that took place was not so much in the office structure, but in
the work performed within the panel walls. Leaving repetitive, single-
tasking behind, work has become multi-tasked, varied and different,
changing on a daily, even hourly basis.
As we begin the next century, the work and the workplace are
changing again. Enabled by technology, the transition out of the
Industrial Age to the Space/Knowledge/information/internet Age (the
era to be named by future generations) is complete. No longer
constrained by the four walls of an office, cubicle or office building,
work occurs wherever and whenever, across the boundaries of space
and time.
Thus has emerged a new worker - one who can work anywhere, plug
in anytime. This person revels in infinite variety, is motivated by the
change of scenery and is more productive surrounded by an ever-
shifting sea of activity. Who are these workers? They can be seen
sitting in your local coffee house, the town square or an airport
lounge with cell phone to ear and PDA in hand.
Unfortunately, these workers can not be found in today’s office
building. Maybe companies can be forgiven for not providing a
workplace for this worker, having only recently been discovered
sitting in coffee shops with a laptop and a latte. Like a newly found
species of bird, corporate anthropologists are mystified by what exists
in these environments that draws such workers there in droves.
Equally unfortunate is the phenomena of lack of perception on the
part of the worker. In other words, most have no idea what species of
worker bird they are, blindly migrating from one company to another
or from cube to cube. Haphazardly assigned work space based on job
title rather than personal productivity, they have been forced to adapt
and accept their environment, never given the opportunity to discover
their personal work mode or know in which office conditions they best
thrive.
Do you want to know which type of worker you truly are? Or
whether you became that by way of purposeful intent or unlucky
happenstance? I have a process for discovery.
Think you know your species. Please fill in the survey above.
I am tracking migratory patterns.
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
June 15, 2006_____________________________________________
The Ever Evolving Work Place
For the past 100 hundred years, “office work” has been performed
either in an individual closed room or a large, single open area. The
Boss or upper level management sat in the closed room, the office,
usually with the door shut. Everyone sat elsewhere.
For the first 50 or so of these years, everyone else, the others, were
in open bull pens. There is a wonderful picture on the National
Building Museum’ s web site that illustrates this perfectly. The Sears
Roebuck Chicago Headquarters photo, circa 1913, shows one large
room with rows upon rows of typists. All are seated behind the same
kind of desk, with the same type writer, facing the same direction,
performing the same job. Not a modern office work as we think of it
today, rather the factory-like production of piece work created on a
typewriter. This “office” is structured for single-tasking, in one
location, with one environment and one set of support equipment in a
vertically hierarchical organization.
Since the 1970’s, this other work is done in open office systems, now
infamously dubbed Dilbertville - rows upon rows of same size
cubicles. Originally designed as an improvement over the open pit,
the rampant proliferation of the cube has nothing to do with altruism.
Now considered a workplace evolution of the open bull pen, the
change that took place was not so much in the office structure, but in
the work performed within the panel walls. Leaving repetitive, single-
tasking behind, work has become multi-tasked, varied and different,
changing on a daily, even hourly basis.
As we begin the next century, the work and the workplace are
changing again. Enabled by technology, the transition out of the
Industrial Age to the Space/Knowledge/information/internet Age (the
era to be named by future generations) is complete. No longer
constrained by the four walls of an office, cubicle or office building,
work occurs wherever and whenever, across the boundaries of space
and time.
Thus has emerged a new worker - one who can work anywhere, plug
in anytime. This person revels in infinite variety, is motivated by the
change of scenery and is more productive surrounded by an ever-
shifting sea of activity. Who are these workers? They can be seen
sitting in your local coffee house, the town square or an airport
lounge with cell phone to ear and PDA in hand.
Unfortunately, these workers can not be found in today’s office
building. Maybe companies can be forgiven for not providing a
workplace for this worker, having only recently been discovered
sitting in coffee shops with a laptop and a latte. Like a newly found
species of bird, corporate anthropologists are mystified by what exists
in these environments that draws such workers there in droves.
Equally unfortunate is the phenomena of lack of perception on the
part of the worker. In other words, most have no idea what species of
worker bird they are, blindly migrating from one company to another
or from cube to cube. Haphazardly assigned work space based on job
title rather than personal productivity, they have been forced to adapt
and accept their environment, never given the opportunity to discover
their personal work mode or know in which office conditions they best
thrive.
Do you want to know which type of worker you truly are? Or
whether you became that by way of purposeful intent or unlucky
happenstance? I have a process for discovery.
Think you know your species. Please fill in the survey above.
I am tracking migratory patterns.
Comments
The Ever Evolving Work Place
For the past 100 hundred years, “office work” has been performed
either in an individual closed room or a large, single open area. The
Boss or upper level management sat in the closed room, the office,
usually with the door shut. Everyone sat elsewhere.
For the first 50 or so of these years, everyone else, the others, were
in open bull pens. There is a wonderful picture on the National
Building Museum’ s web site that illustrates this perfectly. The Sears
Roebuck Chicago Headquarters photo, circa 1913, shows one large
room with rows upon rows of typists. All are seated behind the same
kind of desk, with the same type writer, facing the same direction,
performing the same job. Not a modern office work as we think of it
today, rather the factory-like production of piece work created on a
typewriter. This “office” is structured for single-tasking, in one
location, with one environment and one set of support equipment in a
vertically hierarchical organization.
Since the 1970’s, this other work is done in open office systems, now
infamously dubbed Dilbertville - rows upon rows of same size
cubicles. Originally designed as an improvement over the open pit,
the rampant proliferation of the cube has nothing to do with altruism.
Now considered a workplace evolution of the open bull pen, the
change that took place was not so much in the office structure, but in
the work performed within the panel walls. Leaving repetitive, single-
tasking behind, work has become multi-tasked, varied and different,
changing on a daily, even hourly basis.
As we begin the next century, the work and the workplace are
changing again. Enabled by technology, the transition out of the
Industrial Age to the Space/Knowledge/information/internet Age (the
era to be named by future generations) is complete. No longer
constrained by the four walls of an office, cubicle or office building,
work occurs wherever and whenever, across the boundaries of space
and time.
Thus has emerged a new worker - one who can work anywhere, plug
in anytime. This person revels in infinite variety, is motivated by the
change of scenery and is more productive surrounded by an ever-
shifting sea of activity. Who are these workers? They can be seen
sitting in your local coffee house, the town square or an airport
lounge with cell phone to ear and PDA in hand.
Unfortunately, these workers can not be found in today’s office
building. Maybe companies can be forgiven for not providing a
workplace for this worker, having only recently been discovered
sitting in coffee shops with a laptop and a latte. Like a newly found
species of bird, corporate anthropologists are mystified by what exists
in these environments that draws such workers there in droves.
Equally unfortunate is the phenomena of lack of perception on the
part of the worker. In other words, most have no idea what species of
worker bird they are, blindly migrating from one company to another
or from cube to cube. Haphazardly assigned work space based on job
title rather than personal productivity, they have been forced to adapt
and accept their environment, never given the opportunity to discover
their personal work mode or know in which office conditions they best
thrive.
Do you want to know which type of worker you truly are? Or
whether you became that by way of purposeful intent or unlucky
happenstance? I have a process for discovery.
Think you know your species. Please fill in the survey above.
I am tracking migratory patterns.
Comments
0010
WorkBlog Archive
Short Takes on New WorkPlaces and the New W.O.W.
Short Takes on New WorkPlaces and the New W.O.W.
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Blog Archive
Electrical Reliance
the Human Side of Disasters - Part 1
Flex WorkPlaces
Wireless Silicon Valley
A Room with a View
The Ever Evolving Work Place
Whole House Recycling
What is a Workplace?
Happy New Year!
The Importance of Being Earnest in Actions
Leadership & Innovation Conference
Managing Adults 101?
Are You Prepared?
Telecommuting Tax Fairness Act
Telecommuting: Is The 'Need' There?
Electrical Reliance
the Human Side of Disasters - Part 1
Flex WorkPlaces
Wireless Silicon Valley
A Room with a View
The Ever Evolving Work Place
Whole House Recycling
What is a Workplace?
Happy New Year!
The Importance of Being Earnest in Actions
Leadership & Innovation Conference
Managing Adults 101?
Are You Prepared?
Telecommuting Tax Fairness Act
Telecommuting: Is The 'Need' There?