Does an open plan office increase productivity or not?

Yes it can, according to research conducted at the University of Michigan (reported in Psychology Today, May/June, 2001), although it may be that “open plan” is best for important projects with a deadline rather than as a permanent feature. The researchers reported that the “war room” setting, devoid of walls and equipped with central workstations, appeared to encourage collaboration and cooperation. Researchers compared the productivity of software development teams in traditional and in war room settings and found that those working in open offices were twice as productive as the others.

One of the researchers remarked: “Although the war room team-mates were not looking forward to working at close quarters, over time they realised the benefits of having people at hand for co-ordination, problem-solving and learning”. A cynical view could be that it is harder to goof off when your every move is being watched by the entire office.

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