{"id":22075,"date":"2016-03-21T08:57:46","date_gmt":"2016-03-21T13:57:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/crowdspring.wpengine.com\/?p=22075"},"modified":"2025-12-22T07:50:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T13:50:00","slug":"5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Strategies To Increase Productivity In Open Offices"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/basecamp-office\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-22077\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-22077\" src=\"https:\/\/images.crowdspring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/27132351\/Basecamp-Office.jpg\" alt=\"Basecamp Office\" width=\"550\" height=\"413\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n<div class='header-cta' style='display:none'>\n  <span>Will your business idea succeed?<\/span>\n  <a href='https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/evaluate-your-startup-idea-quiz\/' class='btn btn-primary' target='_blank'>Take our quiz - completely confidential and free!<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n<p>More and more companies, especially startups, are adopting open office floor plans. Today, <a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.wsj.com\/atwork\/2014\/02\/25\/study-open-offices-are-making-us-all-sick\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">nearly 70%<\/a> of all offices have open floor plans. Companies of all sizes see open offices as an opportunity to reduce real estate footprint and costs \u2013 you can put more people into an open layout. In fact, as more companies embrace <a href=\"http:\/\/www.fastcoexist.com\/1680743\/a-visual-breakdown-of-the-benefits-of-working-from-home\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">remote work<\/a>, the need for dedicated private offices diminishes. The trend has been fueled in large part by startups. Some startup teams are nimble, energetic and productive, and people assume that open offices are, at least in part, responsible for those traits.<\/p>\n<p>Despite this trend towards open offices, there\u2019s a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/online\/blogs\/currency\/2014\/01\/the-open-office-trap.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">growing body of research<\/a> casting doubt on the benefits of open offices. Researchers have found, for example, that the benefits of easy communication in an open office layout don\u2019t outweigh the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0272494413000340\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">lack of privacy<\/a>, and other <a href=\"http:\/\/www.buzzfeed.com\/awesomer\/your-open-plan-office-sucks\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">disadvantages<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The chart below, from <a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2013\/11\/research-cubicles-are-the-absolute-worst\/\">Harvard Business Review<\/a>, summarizes the biggest complaints about different types of office layouts (based on a study of more than 42,000 U.S. office workers).<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/everyonecanhear640\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-22076\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-22076\" src=\"https:\/\/images.crowdspring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/27132351\/everyonecanhear640.jpg\" alt=\"everyonecanhear640\" width=\"550\" height=\"593\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>As you can see, people complain the most about open offices and cubicles.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers, Jungsoo Kim and Richard de Dear of the University of Sydney <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0272494413000340\">wrote<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Our results categorically contradict the industry-accepted wisdom that open-plan layout enhances communication between colleagues and improves occupants\u2019 overall work environmental satisfaction.\u00a0The open-plan proponents\u2019 argument that open-plan improves morale and productivity appears to have no basis in the research literature.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Should you sound the alarm and build private offices for your teams?<\/p>\n<p>No, unless there are specific reasons that private offices are necessary.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m a big fan of open offices, but I believe it\u2019s extremely important to create an office plan that overcomes the many real challenges of open offices.<\/p>\n<p>Here are five strategies to help you get started:<\/p>\n<p><strong>1. Build a culture of quiet.<\/strong> Many companies encourage (or don\u2019t discourage) open and loud communications in an open office. This builds a dangerous culture. After all, open offices have few sound-reducing walls. A <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pubmed\/11055149\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">study<\/a> found that workers exposed to open office noise for three hours can experience an increase in adrenaline levels associated with the fight-or-flight response.<\/p>\n<p>From the start, build a culture of quiet \u2013 encourage people to talk in private rooms or common areas, and to use chat tools like <a href=\"https:\/\/slack.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Slack<\/a> or <a href=\"http:\/\/hipchat.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">HipChat<\/a>. Encourage people to use headphones &#8211; especially noise-canceling headphones. These can help cut out background noises and distractions and can also <a href=\"http:\/\/jama.jamanetwork.com\/article.aspx?articleid=379309\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">boost productivity<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><div class=' hide-for-medium hide-for-large'><div style='padding: 10px 32px;text-align: center;background-position: center;background-color: #DA6D5A;background-repeat: no-repeat;background-size: contain;'><h2 style='font-size: 35px;line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 12px;color: white;'>Free Business Startup Kit<\/h2><p style='font-size: 18px;margin: 20px 0 30px;line-height: 1.5;color: white;'>Receive six actionable guides, including a how to start a business checklist, detailed comparisons of LLCs, corporations, sole proprietorships, and partnerships to determine the best fit for your business, plus insights on crafting a compelling pitch deck to attract investors.<\/p><img style='margin-bottom: 32px;' src='https:\/\/crowdspring3-assets.s3.amazonaws.com\/marketing\/inline-business-kit.png' \/><div style='display: flex; justify-content: center;'><ul style='list-style: none;text-align: left;font-size: 15px;color: white;flex: 1;'><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> How to Start a Business Checklist<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i>Starting a Corporation Guide<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Is an LLC Right for You?<\/li><\/ul><ul style='list-style: none;text-align: left;font-size: 15px;color: white;flex: 1;'><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Starting a Sole Proprietorship<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Starting Business Partnerships<\/li><\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Creating a Powerful Pitch Deck<\/li><\/ul><\/div><div style='margin-top: 14px;margin-bottom: 24px;text-align: center;'><a href='\/business-startup-kit\/' target='_blank' style='background: #23b3f1; color: white; padding: 16px 32px; border-radius: 2px; font-weight: 700;font-size:11px;'>Get your free startup kit<i class='fa fa-angle-right' style='font-size: 20px; vertical-align: middle; background: white; border-radius: 50%; padding: 4px 12px 4px 14px; color: black; margin: 0 -18px 0 16px;'><\/i><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class='show-for-medium hide-for-large'><div style='padding: 10px 32px;text-align: center;background-position: center;background-color: #DA6D5A;background-repeat: no-repeat;background-size: contain;'><h2 style='font-size: 45px;line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 12px;color: white;'>Free Business Startup Kit<\/h2><p style='font-size: 24px;margin: 20px 0 40px;line-height: 1.5;color: white;'>Receive six actionable guides, including a how to start a business checklist, detailed comparisons of LLCs, corporations, sole proprietorships, and partnerships to determine the best fit for your business, plus insights on crafting a compelling pitch deck to attract investors.<\/p><img style='margin-bottom: 32px;' src='https:\/\/crowdspring3-assets.s3.amazonaws.com\/marketing\/inline-business-kit.png' \/><div style='display: flex; justify-content: center;'><ul style='list-style: none;text-align: left;font-size: 18px;color: white;flex: 1;'><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> How to Start a Business Checklist<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Starting a Corporation Guide<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Is an LLC Right for You?<\/li><\/ul><ul style='list-style: none;text-align: left;font-size: 18px;color: white;flex: 1;'><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Starting a Sole Proprietorship<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Starting Business Partnerships<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Creating a Powerful Pitch Deck<\/li><\/ul><\/div><div style='margin-top: 14px;margin-bottom: 24px;text-align: center;'><a href='\/business-startup-kit\/' target='_blank' style='background: #23b3f1; color: white; padding: 16px 32px; border-radius: 2px; font-weight: 700;font-size:19.2px;'>Get your free startup kit<i class='fa fa-angle-right' style='font-size: 27px; vertical-align: middle; background: white; border-radius: 50%; padding: 4px 12px 4px 14px; color: black; margin: 0 -18px 0 16px;'><\/i><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class='show-for-large'><div style='padding: 10px 32px;text-align: center;background-position: center;background-color: #DA6D5A;background-repeat: no-repeat;background-size: contain;'><h2 style='font-size: 50px;line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 12px;color: white;'>Free Business Startup Kit<\/h2><p style='font-size: 24px;margin: 20px 0 40px;line-height: 1.5;color: white;'>Receive six actionable guides, including a how to start a business checklist, detailed comparisons of LLCs, corporations, sole proprietorships, and partnerships to determine the best fit for your business, plus insights on crafting a compelling pitch deck to attract investors.<\/p><img style='margin-bottom: 32px;' src='https:\/\/crowdspring3-assets.s3.amazonaws.com\/marketing\/inline-business-kit.png' \/><div style='display: flex; justify-content: center;'><ul style='list-style: none;text-align: left;font-size: 16px;color: white;flex: 1;'><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> How to Start a Business Checklist<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Starting a Corporation Guide<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Is an LLC Right for You?<\/li><\/ul><ul style='list-style: none;text-align: left;font-size: 16px;color: white;flex: 1;'><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Starting a Sole Proprietorship<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i> Starting Business Partnerships<\/li><li style='margin-bottom: 16px;'><i class='fa fa-check-circle'><\/i>  Creating a Powerful Pitch Deck<\/li><\/ul><\/div><div style='margin-top: 14px;margin-bottom: 24px;text-align: center;'><a href='\/business-startup-kit\/' target='_blank' style='background: #23b3f1; color: white; padding: 16px 32px; border-radius: 2px; font-weight: 700;font-size:19.2px;'>Get your free startup kit<i class='fa fa-angle-right' style='font-size: 27px; vertical-align: middle; background: white; border-radius: 50%; padding: 4px 12px 4px 14px; color: black; margin: 0 -18px 0 16px;'><\/i><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/p>\n<p><strong>2. Create collaborative, diverse spaces.<\/strong> Noise, interruption, and lack of privacy are real problems in open offices.\u00a0<span style=\"box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;\">However, these problems can be overcome through\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.chicagogrid.com\/features\/curse-open-office\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">diverse areas<\/a> where people can comfortably collaborate without interrupting others.<\/span>\u00a0The best open office plans create plenty of collaborative spaces for people to meet. For example, <a href=\"http:\/\/37signals.com\/svn\/posts\/2339-the-new-office-the-idea-and-the-floor-plan\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Basecamp<\/a> created an open office with small private conference rooms, larger conference rooms, and other common spaces.<\/p>\n<p>At <a title=\"crowdsourced logo design, graphic design, industrial design and writing\" href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">crowdSPRING<\/a>, we have access to a sound-isolated conference room and another &#8220;living-room&#8221; type area isolated from the work area.<\/p>\n<p><strong>3. Create spaces that work for your team.<\/strong> Many companies mistakenly implement open office plans that mimic other companies. \u201cWe want to be more like Google or Facebook\u201d is great \u2013 but your team might work differently and require a different office plan. Think about your goals and how an optimized office layout for productivity in an open office would help you achieve those goals. Consider certain functions on your team (sales, customer service, etc.) that need to be on the phone throughout the day and find ways to minimize distractions to and by those groups. Often, groups that need to regularly use the phone are best isolated to a specific office area (in some cases, a private area). Strategic <a href=\"https:\/\/matterport.com\/blog\/office-space-planning\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">office space planning<\/a> can ensure that different functions, such as sales or customer service, are positioned to minimize distractions while facilitating collaboration. Consider isolating groups that regularly use phones or require quiet zones so that everyone can work effectively without interruptions.<\/p>\n<p><strong>4. Don\u2019t silo people in open offices.<\/strong> Many companies \u2013 especially larger companies \u2013 silo people by building tall partitions between desks. This gives people a false sense of acoustic privacy and ultimately increases the overall noise of the entire office. If you need some physical partitions, make them short enough to allow people to see each other \u2013 and consider acoustically treated partitions to help with noise. After all, a sense of privacy can help <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/255498?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">increase productivity<\/a>. Additionally, ensure that these partitions do not compromise <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pelco.com\/blog\/physical-security-guide\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">physical security<\/a> measures within the workspace.<\/p>\n<p><strong>5. Build a top-down, bottom-up open office culture.<\/strong> For open offices to succeed, managers should work in the open office, not in private ones. This would help managers learn more about their own companies and send a clear signal to the entire team about the company\u2019s commitment to an open office plan.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/how-it-works\/?utm_source=csblog&utm_medium=entrepreneurship&utm_campaign=cta\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-35262\" src=\"https:\/\/images.crowdspring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/06164948\/startup-blog-master-cta.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"466\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Will your business idea succeed? Take our quiz &#8211; completely confidential and free! More and more companies, especially startups, are adopting open office floor plans. Today, nearly 70% of all offices have open floor plans. Companies of all sizes see open offices as an opportunity to reduce real estate footprint and costs \u2013 you can put more people into an open layout. In fact, as more companies embrace remote work, the need for dedicated private offices diminishes. The trend has been fueled in large part by startups. Some startup teams are nimble, energetic and productive, and people assume that open offices are, at least in part, responsible for those traits. Despite this trend towards open offices, there\u2019s a growing body of research casting doubt on the benefits of open offices. Researchers have found, for example, that the benefits of easy communication in an open office layout don\u2019t outweigh the lack of privacy, and other disadvantages. The chart below, from Harvard Business Review, summarizes the biggest complaints about different types of office layouts (based on a study of more than 42,000 U.S. office workers). As you can see, people complain the most about open offices and cubicles. The researchers, Jungsoo Kim and Richard de Dear of the University of Sydney wrote: Our results categorically contradict the industry-accepted wisdom that open-plan layout enhances communication between colleagues and improves occupants\u2019 overall work environmental satisfaction.\u00a0The open-plan proponents\u2019 argument that open-plan improves morale and productivity appears to have no basis in the research literature. Should you sound the alarm and build private offices for your teams? No, unless there are specific reasons that private offices are necessary. I\u2019m a big fan of open offices, but I believe it\u2019s extremely important to create an office plan that overcomes the many real challenges of open offices. Here are five strategies to help you get started: 1. Build a culture of quiet. Many companies encourage (or don\u2019t discourage) open and loud communications in an open office. This builds a dangerous culture. After all, open offices have few sound-reducing walls. A study found that workers exposed to open office noise for three hours can experience an increase in adrenaline levels associated with the fight-or-flight response. From the start, build a culture of quiet \u2013 encourage people to talk in private rooms or common areas, and to use chat tools like Slack or HipChat. Encourage people to use headphones &#8211; especially noise-canceling headphones. These can help cut out background noises and distractions and can also boost productivity. Free Business Startup KitReceive six actionable guides, including a how to start a business checklist, detailed comparisons of LLCs, corporations, sole proprietorships, and partnerships to determine the best fit for your business, plus insights on crafting a compelling pitch deck to attract investors. How to Start a Business ChecklistStarting a Corporation Guide Is an LLC Right for You? Starting a Sole Proprietorship Starting Business Partnerships Creating a Powerful Pitch DeckGet your free startup kitFree Business Startup KitReceive six actionable guides, including a how..<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":22734,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3156],"tags":[3173,429,460,1361,678],"class_list":["post-22075","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entrepreneurship","tag-company-culture","tag-leadership","tag-management","tag-productivity","tag-startups"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>5 Strategies To Increase Productivity In Open Offices - crowdspring Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"5 Strategies To Increase Productivity In Open Offices - crowdspring Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Will your business idea succeed? Take our quiz - completely confidential and free! More and more companies, especially startups, are adopting open office floor plans. Today, nearly 70% of all offices have open floor plans. Companies of all sizes see open offices as an opportunity to reduce real estate footprint and costs \u2013 you can put more people into an open layout. In fact, as more companies embrace remote work, the need for dedicated private offices diminishes. The trend has been fueled in large part by startups. Some startup teams are nimble, energetic and productive, and people assume that open offices are, at least in part, responsible for those traits. Despite this trend towards open offices, there\u2019s a growing body of research casting doubt on the benefits of open offices. Researchers have found, for example, that the benefits of easy communication in an open office layout don\u2019t outweigh the lack of privacy, and other disadvantages. The chart below, from Harvard Business Review, summarizes the biggest complaints about different types of office layouts (based on a study of more than 42,000 U.S. office workers). As you can see, people complain the most about open offices and cubicles. The researchers, Jungsoo Kim and Richard de Dear of the University of Sydney wrote: Our results categorically contradict the industry-accepted wisdom that open-plan layout enhances communication between colleagues and improves occupants\u2019 overall work environmental satisfaction.\u00a0The open-plan proponents\u2019 argument that open-plan improves morale and productivity appears to have no basis in the research literature. Should you sound the alarm and build private offices for your teams? No, unless there are specific reasons that private offices are necessary. I\u2019m a big fan of open offices, but I believe it\u2019s extremely important to create an office plan that overcomes the many real challenges of open offices. Here are five strategies to help you get started: 1. Build a culture of quiet. Many companies encourage (or don\u2019t discourage) open and loud communications in an open office. This builds a dangerous culture. After all, open offices have few sound-reducing walls. A study found that workers exposed to open office noise for three hours can experience an increase in adrenaline levels associated with the fight-or-flight response. From the start, build a culture of quiet \u2013 encourage people to talk in private rooms or common areas, and to use chat tools like Slack or HipChat. Encourage people to use headphones &#8211; especially noise-canceling headphones. These can help cut out background noises and distractions and can also boost productivity. Free Business Startup KitReceive six actionable guides, including a how to start a business checklist, detailed comparisons of LLCs, corporations, sole proprietorships, and partnerships to determine the best fit for your business, plus insights on crafting a compelling pitch deck to attract investors. How to Start a Business ChecklistStarting a Corporation Guide Is an LLC Right for You? Starting a Sole Proprietorship Starting Business Partnerships Creating a Powerful Pitch DeckGet your free startup kitFree Business Startup KitReceive six actionable guides, including a how..\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"crowdspring Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-03-21T13:57:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-22T13:50:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/images.crowdspring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/10110420\/535254_10150672709298795_1440768301_n.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ross Kimbarovsky\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ross Kimbarovsky\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ross Kimbarovsky\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/45a66ce5a05496798744cf14367aa575\"},\"headline\":\"5 Strategies To Increase Productivity In Open Offices\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-03-21T13:57:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-22T13:50:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/\"},\"wordCount\":802,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/images.crowdspring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/10110420\/535254_10150672709298795_1440768301_n.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Company Culture\",\"Leadership\",\"Management\",\"Productivity\",\"Startups\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Entrepreneurship\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.crowdspring.com\/blog\/5-strategies-to-increase-productivity-in-open-offices\/\",\"name\":\"5 Strategies To Increase Productivity In Open Offices - 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He is the CEO and Founder of crowdspring, a leading platform for custom design and creative services. He's mentored 2,000+ entrepreneurs and business owners, has raised or helped raise $10+ million in funding, and founded a startup studio where he developed, incubated, and launched innovative new businesses. Ross is passionate about helping entrepreneurs and small business owners thrive. He's the author of Stand Out, a guide for anyone looking to start and grow a successful business. He is a regular speaker at events and a contributor to Forbes, Entrepreneur, and Inc. Magazine. His achievements in technology, business, and law have earned him a spot on Techweek100\u2032s list of top leaders and other awards. 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In fact, as more companies embrace remote work, the need for dedicated private offices diminishes. The trend has been fueled in large part by startups. Some startup teams are nimble, energetic and productive, and people assume that open offices are, at least in part, responsible for those traits. Despite this trend towards open offices, there\u2019s a growing body of research casting doubt on the benefits of open offices. Researchers have found, for example, that the benefits of easy communication in an open office layout don\u2019t outweigh the lack of privacy, and other disadvantages. The chart below, from Harvard Business Review, summarizes the biggest complaints about different types of office layouts (based on a study of more than 42,000 U.S. office workers). As you can see, people complain the most about open offices and cubicles. The researchers, Jungsoo Kim and Richard de Dear of the University of Sydney wrote: Our results categorically contradict the industry-accepted wisdom that open-plan layout enhances communication between colleagues and improves occupants\u2019 overall work environmental satisfaction.\u00a0The open-plan proponents\u2019 argument that open-plan improves morale and productivity appears to have no basis in the research literature. Should you sound the alarm and build private offices for your teams? No, unless there are specific reasons that private offices are necessary. I\u2019m a big fan of open offices, but I believe it\u2019s extremely important to create an office plan that overcomes the many real challenges of open offices. Here are five strategies to help you get started: 1. Build a culture of quiet. Many companies encourage (or don\u2019t discourage) open and loud communications in an open office. This builds a dangerous culture. After all, open offices have few sound-reducing walls. A study found that workers exposed to open office noise for three hours can experience an increase in adrenaline levels associated with the fight-or-flight response. From the start, build a culture of quiet \u2013 encourage people to talk in private rooms or common areas, and to use chat tools like Slack or HipChat. Encourage people to use headphones &#8211; especially noise-canceling headphones. These can help cut out background noises and distractions and can also boost productivity. Free Business Startup KitReceive six actionable guides, including a how to start a business checklist, detailed comparisons of LLCs, corporations, sole proprietorships, and partnerships to determine the best fit for your business, plus insights on crafting a compelling pitch deck to attract investors. How to Start a Business ChecklistStarting a Corporation Guide Is an LLC Right for You? 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