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14thh EuroFM Research Symposium
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How to cope with dilemmas in activity based work environments:
results from user-centred research
Iris de Been
Researcher, Center for People and Buildings
I.deBeen@tudelft.nl
+31 (0)152781271
Marion Beijer
Researcher, Center for People and Buildings
M.Beijer@tudelft.nl
Dorieke den Hollander
Researcher, Center for People and Buildings
D.denHollander@tudelft.nl
ABSTRACT
Purpose: The aim of this research is to identify factors that can further explain the benefits and
draw backs of activity based office concepts, resulting in practical recommendations for
addressing and preventing issues. Theory: Nowadays a lot of organisations shift to working in a
more flexible and activity based manner. When it comes to the experience of employees, the
activity based office concept often gives rise to long-standing issues such as lack of privacy,
concentration problems and insufficient supporting facilities. Method: In 20 case studies both a
questionnaire and group interviews were conducted, resulting in 2733 survey respondents and 57
group interviews with 271 participants. Findings: Results show that respondents appreciate the
light and colourful environment and that the openness of the work environment can lead to more
communication in general and between different colleagues and departments. However, this
openness is also mentioned as a downside, since people feel like there is not enough privacy for
personal conversations and communication with direct colleagues seem to decrease. While
people value the different types of workspaces provided, they are not always available in
practice. Explanations for problems with concentration and privacy are mainly related to the
openness and transparency of the work environment. Among others, behaviour of both
employees and managers seems to be important in addressing the issues. Value: The results are
based on a large number of cases in which both quantitative and qualitative data was collected,
leading to extensive and solid explanations regarding main experienced positives and negatives.
Keywords
New Ways of Working, work environment, facility management, office, activity based working
1 INTRODUCTION
Over the last decades several studies about the implementation, development and influence of the
office environment have been performed (Voordt, 2004; Veitch et al., 2007). This has shown
various implications and obvious benefits and drawbacks of several types of office designs and
concepts. The development of new office environments is often based on the expectation that the
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effectiveness of the work environment will increase and productivity will grow. For example, it
can provide benefits like saving office space, a reduction of general and technical service costs
and an increase in the flexibility of office use (Meulen, 2014; De Croon et al., 2005). Another
reason which is mentioned often by Dutch employers, is the aim to be an attractive employer to
future employees. Some organisations are afraid that when they do not have a popular and
competitive work environment, they might lose the ‘war on talent’ in the future (Rieck & Kelter,
2005). Research has shown that the office has an influence on job satisfaction and productivity
(Carlopio, 1996; Veitch et al., 2003). This stresses the importance of studies in which attention
has been paid to the influence of the office environment on end-user experience (De Croon et al.,
2005; Bodin-Danielsson & Bodin, 2008).
Nowadays, due to rapid developments in the field of information technology, people are much
more flexible when it comes to the time and place of working. These developments also allow
employees to have communication and access to information and knowledge at any time on
every desired place (Lee and Brand, 2005). Many European organisations have already made a
shift towards a much more flexible and dynamic office concept. In the Netherlands, this resulted
mainly in so called activity based office concepts, also referred to as a flexible office or combi
office concept. One of the main principles of the activity based office is that people can choose
the type of workplace that best fits their activities. This usually results in a great variety of open,
half open and enclosed workplace types. Besides, many possibilities are provided for informal
and formal meetings in order to stimulate communication and knowledge sharing. The activity
based office has similarities with the open plan office due to a large amount of openness and
transparency. Nevertheless, in contrast to the open plan office, the activity based office offers
open and enclosed workspaces and does not have assigned desks, which means that all
employees are sharing the available places. Therefore, flexibility (working at anytime, anywhere)
is one of the key ingredients of the concept. Often a clean desk policy has been implemented to
ensure that a sufficient number of workplaces are available at all times: employees are expected
to clear their desk when they plan to leave it for more than two or three hours.
Since the development of the activity based office environment, several positive and negative
points came forward. Some of these issues can be directly related to the physical work
environment (e.g. openness) and the behaviour of the end-users of the building, such as a lack of
privacy and concentration problems (De Been and Beijer, 2014; De Croon et al., 2005; Banbury
and Berry, 2005; Haynes, 2008; Ferguson and Weisman, 1986). Others key issues are mainly
linked to supporting facilities, like IT facilities, which are not always fully suitable (yet) for
sharing workplaces (Sellen and Harper, 2005; De Been and Beijer, 2014). Research on open
offices often show positive results regarding communication and social interaction (Banbury and
Berry, 2005; Wineman, 1986). However, a recent study did not find this positive effect when
comparing satisfaction with communication in activity based offices versus traditional cellular
offices (De Been and Beijer, 2014).
The goal of this research is to identify the factors that can further explain the positives and
negatives of the activity based office concept, based on lessons learned from existing practices.
This should lead to practical tips and interventions for managers with which common problems
can be addressed or even prevented in existing and future activity based office environments.
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2 METHOD
In this research, the results of twenty post occupancy evaluations were analysed. The case studies
consisted of an online post occupancy evaluation complemented with one or several group
interviews. Post occupancy evaluations were executed with the Work Environment Diagnosis
Instrument (WODI questionnaire; Maarleveld et al., 2009), developed by the Center for People
and Buildings in order to gain insight into the perceived positive and negative aspects of the
work environment. The evaluations took place in 20 different activity based work environments
from 4 (semi-)public organisations in the Netherlands. The measurements were conducted to
collect generic data about the experience of the office environment as well as to provide the
organisations with possible points of departure for optimisation of their office concept. Some
cases were meant as a pilot environment for a relatively small group of people whereas other
cases involved complete office buildings. The population in these cases varied from 31 to 806
employees with an average of 256. The job descriptions of the employees include manager,
administrative worker and knowledge worker.
2.1 Outcomes WODI quick scan
All building users (5128) were invited via e-mail to participate in the WODI questionnaire. From
the 5128 building users in the 20 different cases who were invited to participate in the research,
2377 respondents filled out the questionnaire (46% response rate). 18 items were used to analyse
the satisfaction with several aspects of the work environment, varying from technical aspects like
indoor climate, acoustics and IT to psychological aspects such as concentration possibilities and
privacy. The items were scored on a 5 point Likert scale, ranging from very dissatisfied (1) to
very satisfied (5). The average percentage of (very) satisfied, neutral and (very) dissatisfied
respondents were calculated in order to gain insight into the main perceived benefits and
disadvantages of the work environment.
2.2 Group interviews
To get in-depth insight into the positive aspects and negative aspects of results from the WODI
questionnaire, qualitative data was gathered by conducting semi-structured group interviews. In
all, 57 different group interviews were conducted with 271 employees in total. The semi-
structured interviews were conducted in order to explain the results of the corresponding post
occupancy evaluation with the WODI questionnaire. People were asked to further explain the
positives and negatives of the work environment and to elaborate on how problems could be
solved. The participants could also comment on other issues regarding the work environment.
During the interviews, two researchers were present. While one of the researchers led the semi-
structured interview, the other researcher drew up the interview report on a laptop. The interview
reports were analysed one by one. The key outcomes of each interview were classified by
subject, followed by the actual positive or negative remarks or explanations. The outcomes of all
interviews were added up and totalized, resulting in an overview with explanations for the key
positive and negative aspects of the work environment.
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3 RESULTS
3.1 Satisfaction scores
Figure 1 shows that many respondents are satisfied with the architecture of the building,
communication possibilities, lighting, possibilities for remote working and IT facilities. The most
salient negative aspects seem to be the indoor climate, privacy, concentration possibilities and
archive and storage facilities (figure 1).
Figure 1. The average percentage of (dis)satisfied respondents per WODI item, scored on a 5-
point Likert scale.
3.2 Positive aspects
When analysing the interviews, several aspects came to the fore as frequently mentioned
positives in an activity based work environment (see appendix 1). In accordance with the WODI
results, one of the most frequently mentioned positive aspects is the architecture and interior
design of the office (referred to in 39 out of 57 interviews). Most people say that the colour
scheme is pleasant and that the design of the interior contributes to a warm and pleasant
atmosphere. The work environment is perceived as cleaner and tidier, especially compared to
more traditional work environments. People also appreciate the large amount of light, due to the
use of transparent materials and the generally open layout of the building.
The possibility for knowledge sharing is the second aspect which is mentioned frequently as a
positive. Knowledge sharing has been mentioned in 16 cases (34 interviews). People experience
more communication and knowledge exchange in general. They also seem to come across more
different colleagues because of the openness of the work environment. Moreover, more
interaction is experienced between different departments. This could explain the high percentage
of satisfied respondents on communication possibilities, as found in the WODI results.
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While the WODI satisfaction scores regarding the number and diversity of places is not
outstanding, people do appreciate the diversity of workspaces which is provided in the activity
based environment (named in 15 cases, 29 interviews). Employees mentioned the informal
pantry area as very pleasant and useful. As for the mix of workspaces, having the possibility to
work in a concentration space was explicitly mentioned as a positive.
Subsequently, the openness of the work environment has specifically been mentioned as one of
the positive aspects (mentioned in 10 cases). People find it more easy to see each other and to
meet (new) employees. This also leads to a more dynamic vibe, according to some employees.
The furniture is one of the others factors which was also regularly described as an advantage
(mentioned in 6 cases, 7 interviews). The furniture, which is often renewed, can be adjusted
according to the needs of the individual employee. In some cases, the design of the furniture is
particularly valued as well. Besides, employees appreciate acoustic materials being applied in the
work environment in order to keep the noise levels down.
Whereas over 50% of the WODI respondents is satisfied with the IT facilities, this aspect was
not often mentioned as one of the main positives during the interviews. The same applies to the
possibilities for remote working, which is mentioned in some interviews as a positive aspect, but
not as often as one might expect when looking at the WODI results.
3.3 Negative aspects
Several key negative issues came forward in the group interviews with employees (see appendix
2). The most important downsides of the activity based office environment are being described.
Consistent with the WODI data, one of the major perceived weaknesses of the concept is the lack
of possibilities to concentrate. This issue has been mentioned in 16 out of the 20 research cases
(46 interviews). The explanation that was brought up most often, is the disturbance by other
people because of the open character of the work environment. In particular, making telephone
calls in open space seem to cause a considerable amount of disturbance. In some cases,
respondents specifically complained about the acoustics. Some people feel like the more open
work areas are uncomfortably crowded. Others explanations for the dissatisfaction regard
distraction by the noise as well as by movement of others, which is perceived as rather stressful.
One of the other negatively perceived aspects is the lack of privacy (referred to in 16 cases, 43
interviews) which is in accordance with the negative WODI results on this aspect. Many
participants explained feeling uncomfortable having a confidential conversation or a telephone
call in the open space, not only because of their own privacy but also because they fear bothering
others. The lack of visual privacy due to the openness and transparency, is also an issue to some
of the employees. This applies especially to the smaller meeting spaces in which confidential
conversations should take place.
In line with the negative WODI results, the indoor climate came up in 17 of 20 research cases as
one of the main shortcomings (44 interviews). People mostly complain about the temperature (in
12 of the 20 cases) or an uncomfortable air flow. In 5 of the cases a poor indoor climate in the
enclosed spaces, such as the cockpits, came forward. Another area of concern is the lack of
personal control over the indoor climate due to sharing spaces.
The provided mix of workspaces was brought up as a positive aspect but even more frequently as
a negative one (in 16 cases, 45 interviews). This could explain the mediocre WODI results. One
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of the main reasons for the great number of complaints, is that some of the workplace types are
more popular than others and as a consequence, not always available if needed. Some
respondents stated that people who arrive at the office late in the morning often do not get the
opportunity to select the workspace which is most suitable for their activities. In a situation in
which the less popular spaces are barely used, people feel like this is a waste of valuable and
sometimes scarce office space.
In more than half of the research cases, the supporting facilities came forward as a drawback (15
cases, 32 interviews). Complicated and inflexible IT systems seem to reduce the flexibility of the
employees. Alike, having to move personal belongings and files from one place to another is
often perceived as a time consuming hassle. Both issues can be a hindrance for switching
workplaces. Some people addressed the fact that it takes quite some time to get started and wrap
up for the day.
Consistent with the previous issue, it was mentioned that not everyone switches workplaces
during the day or even during the week (11 cases, 27 interviews), regardless of the ‘flexible’
intentions of the activity based concept. This is also reflected in the remarks about undesirable
claiming behaviour, under which by managers, which was mentioned in 5 cases (18 interviews).
Addressing disturbing or annoying behaviour among co-workers is perceived as a difficult aspect
of the concept (10 cases, 19 interviews). People also complained about having to actively search
for a workplace and mentioned that it is just not practical for some functions to work flexibly.
In contrast to the quite positive WODI scores, in more than half of the cases the lack of social
interaction with co-workers has been mentioned as a major concern (11 cases, 20 interviews).
Some people feel like they cannot have a personal conversation with colleagues because of the
openness. People also mentioned less knowledge sharing and less social bonding with
colleagues.
Furthermore the storage and archiving facilities came forward as a drawback (10 cases, 20
interviews). The main reason for addressing this aspect is that the shift to a digital archive was
not always without problems and in some organisations the difficulties continued to exist after
moving into the activity based office, with problems related to being flexible as a consequence.
3.4 Other issues and comments
Some other issues turned out to be important when it comes to the experience of the office
concept. For example, the reference framework related to the former housing situation can have a
positive or negative influence on the experience of the current situation (9 cases, 11 interviews).
Moreover, there seems to be an in general positive effect of habituation after some time working
in an activity based office concept (7 cases, 10 interviews). Some personal characteristics were
mentioned in relation to being able to work in a flexible, activity based office environment,
primarily the extent of extraversion and age.
4 CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSION
One of the most positively experienced aspects is the architecture and interior design. This can
be explained by the generally fresh, light and colourful environment. The possibilities for
communication are also evaluated rather positively in the WODI questionnaire, which is
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explained by an increase in knowledge sharing and social interaction in general. This is in
accordance with literature in this field (Banbury and Berry, 2005; Wineman, 1986). In contrast to
this result, interview results also show substantial negative remarks about this aspect. People
experience a decrease in communication with their direct colleagues as well as difficulties with
discussing private issues in open space. The social bond with colleagues also seems to suffer. An
explanation for this could be that the openness of the work environment makes it more difficult
to share thoughts, feelings and values (Oldham and Brass, 1979). Mutual agreements on
availability and findability in the office and actively organising team building activities could
prevent these problems with communication and social bonding. While the survey resulted in
relatively high satisfaction scores on the IT facilities, these facilities were not brought up that
often as a positive aspect during the interviews. They sometimes seem to hinder working flexibly
because logging in and out can take a considerable amount of time. To stimulate flexible
working, it seems to be important to pay extra attention to the implementation of flexible IT
systems and the digitalization of files.
As expected, the possibilities to do concentrated work and privacy received low satisfaction
scores (De Been and Beijer, 2014; De Croon et al., 2005; Banbury and Berry, 2005; Haynes,
2008) and are frequently mentioned as negative aspects in the interviews. Problems arise because
of rumour and distractions, mostly due to telephone calls and conversations in the open spaces. It
is recommended to facilitate dedicated enclosed spaces for telephone calls to prevent this
common problem. The same accounts for ad hoc conversations and meetings, which should be
held in dedicated meeting areas or enclosed rooms, situated close to the open workspaces.
Confidential meetings can be supported by providing small meeting rooms and enclosed rooms
with acoustic and visual privacy. The behaviour of people also plays an important role in this
respect. After providing appropriate spaces the employees have to use the available spaces the
right way (e.g. no telephone calls in open spaces).
While people appreciate the different types of workplaces provided, it seems that these spaces
are not always available to everyone in practice, due to the fact that some workplaces are more
popular than others, workspaces are claimed regularly or because people do not clean up their
desks. Apart from taking the use and behaviour into account, careful consideration of suitable
workplace types and the variety of workplaces according to the work processes of the employees
is important.
Obviously both the benefits and drawbacks being mentioned have been influenced by the
behaviour of the building users. When people use the activity based work environment correctly
they can benefit from different elements that the environment has to offer, like a great diversity
of workplaces. The example set by managers plays a key role in this. Some clear rules regarding
the use of the work environment can help people with bringing up behavioural issues among
colleagues. It is important to keep in mind that in quite some cases people referred to the fact that
their current experience has been influenced by their reference framework, sometimes literally
stating that they are more (or less) positive in comparison with their former work environment.
Also, habituation to the new way of working seems to take place after some time. When an
organisation wants to implement an activity based office concept, the arising issues and their
causes should be carefully discussed with the design team and the management.
Thanks to the large number of research cases in which both a survey and interview(s) were
conducted, the research results are extensive and solid. While the WODI results mainly
confirmed existing knowledge, the interview results took us a step further in explaining the
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positive and negative matters occurring in activity based office concepts. However, since the
results are mainly derived from Dutch research cases in (semi) public organisations,
(organisational) culture could have had an influence on the results.
REFERENCES
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causes of disruption and potential improvements. Ergonomics, 48(1), 25-37.
Bodin - Danielsson, C. B., & Bodin, L. (2008). Office type in relation to health, well-being, and
job satisfaction among employees. Environment and Behavior, 40, 636- 668.
Carlopio, J. R. (1996). Construct Validity of a Physical Work Environment Satisfaction
Questionnaire. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 27, 177–189.
De Been, I, & Beijer, M. (2014). The influence of office type on satisfaction and perceived
productivity support. Journal of Facilities Management, 12(2), 142 – 157.
De Croon, E., Sluiter, J., Kuijer, P. P., & Frings-Dresen, M. (2005). The effect of office concepts
on worker health and performance: A systematic review of the literature. Ergonomics, 48, 119-
134.
Ferguson, G.S. & Weisman, G.D. (1986). Alternative Approaches to the Assessment of
Employee Satisfaction with the Office Environment. In Wineman, J.D. (Ed.). Behavioral issues
in office design (pp-85-105). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
Haynes, B. P. (2008). Impact of workplace connectivity on office productivity. Journal of
Corporate Real Estate, 10(4), 286 – 302.
Lee, Y., & Brand, J. (2005). Effects of control over office workspace on perceptions of the work
environment and work outcomes. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 25, 323-333.
Maarleveld, M., Volker, L. & Van der Voordt, D.J.M. (2009). Measuring employee satisfaction
in new offices - The WODI toolkit. Journal of Facilities Management, 7(3), 181-197.
Meulen, N. van der. (2014). “De staat van Het Nieuwe Werken: resultaten van de Nationale
HNW Barometer 2013”. Available online.
Oldham, G.R. and Brass, D.J. (1979). “Employee reactions to an open-plan office: a naturally
occurring quasi-experiment”, Administratieve Science Quarterly, 24, 267-284
Rieck, A., & Kelter, J. (2005). “The empirical OFFICE 21® study "Soft Success Factors"”.
Paper presented at the HCI International.
Sellen, A.J. & Harper, R.H.R. (2002). The Myth of the Paperless Office. The MIT Press.
Cambridge, MA.
Veitch, J. A., Charles, K. E. Newsham, G. R., Marquardt, C. J. G & Geerts, J. (2003).
“Environmental satisfaction in open-plan environments: 5. Workstation and physical condition
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Veitch, J.A., Charles, K.E. Farley, K.M.J. & Newshan, G.R.(2007). A model of satisfaction with
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Voordt, D.J.M. van der (2004). Productivity and employee satisfaction in flexible workplaces.
Journal of Corporate Real Estate, 6(2), 133-148.
Wineman, J.D. (1986). Behavioral issues in office design. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York,
NY.
APPENDIX 1. Overview of the top 5 mentioned reasons for the existing positive aspects of
the activity based office concept.
1 2 3 4 5
Interior design 16(39)
Cosy, nice colors, looks
good, pleasant atmosphere
(15/33)
Cleaned up, soothing
environment (clean desk)
(6/8)
Light building (4/7) Inspiring (2/2)
Inviting/hospitable because
of openness (2/2)
Knowledge sharing 16(34)
More interaction in general
(9/19)
More interaction with
different colleagues and
people (5/6)
More interaction between
different departments (4/6)
You can hear everything
your colleagues are doing in
open space (4/5)
Concept is positive for
collaboration; no barriers to
approach others (2/2)
Mix of workplaces 15(29)
Greater diversity of places
available which is
appreciated (8/12)
Pleasant to have informal
meeting places/pantry (5/9)
Possibility to work in
cockpits (5/8)
Nice multifunctional cantine
(3/7)
Some places do fit the
activities well (3/3)
Openness 10(12)
Meeting each other, being
able to see each other (7/9)
Everyone is visible, you can
see a lot of colleagues (6/9)
Dynamic because of
openness (2/2)
Furniture 6 (7)
Being able to adjust chairs
and tables (3/4)
Nice furniture (2/2)
Acoustic materials on
cabinets seem to work well
(1/1)
Reaction to problems 5 (5)
Quick response to
problems (5/5)
Additional facilities 4 (6)
Nice to have a 'living room'
(1/2)
Good facilities in meeting
spaces (1/2)
A lot of great facilities (1/1)
Remote working 4 (6)
The ability to work from
home (4/6)
Archive 3 (4)
Good to clean up the
cabinets, lot of paper
seemed not necessary
anyway (2/3)
Enough space (1/1)
Implementation
process
3(3)
Having a look at other
activity based work
environments from other
organisations (3/3)
Active working group that
could actively give input
(1/1)
Creating a 'visual' image
helps a lot in understanding
how the new environment
will look like (1/1)
IT facilities 2 (3)
Spaces with large screens
are pleasant/everything
wireless (1/1)
Having mobile phones
makes us flexible (1/1)
Pleasant to have your own
telephone (1/1)
Switching places 2 (2)
Seeing each other more
often (1/1)
Nice to be able to alternate
places (1/1)
Indoor climate 2 (2)
Being able to have control
over indoor climate (2/2)
Use of work
environment
2 (2)
People are clustering
according to activities in
open space, which works
very well (1/1)
No hindrance to change
places (1/1)
Cleaning 2 (2) Cleaning is sufficient (1/1)
Better cleaning because of
clean desk policy (1/1)
Addressing each
others behavior
1 (3)
No problem to speak about
behavior and rules (1/3)
Acoustics 1 (2)
Use of acoustic materials in
flooring, walls etc (1/2)
Autonomy 1 (1)
Daylight 1(1)
Being able to spot the
students easily
1 (1)
Proud 1 (1)
Main reasons
Posi tive aspects
Aspects
# cases (#
interviews
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APPENDIX 2. Overview of the top 5 mentioned reasons for the existing negative aspects of
the activity based office concept.
1 2 3 4 5
Indoor climate 17(44) Temperature (12/26) Draft (7/16)
Poor climate in enclosed
rooms (too ho) (5/7)
No personal control (4/7)
Bad air
circulation/ventilation (4/6)
Lack of concentration
possibilities
16(46)
Disturbed by others due to
openness (16/26)
Bad acoustics; noise;
crowded; disturbance due
to telephone calls (8/17)
Open space is noisy, lots of
movements and restless
(7/16)
Visual distraction, too much
transparency (6/6)
Acoustics not as good as
expected (5/5)
Mix of workplaces in not
right
16(45)
Some places more popular
(e.g. enclosed) and often
occupied, while others are
not (8/14)
Not enough enclosed
spaces (for concentrated /
privacy work) (7/17)
Some places are always
occupied (6/14)
Some places are never
used, like library places,
luxury seats or lounge
places (6/8)
Not enough meeting places
for ad hoc
meetings/problems with
reservation system (3/7)
Privacy 16(43)
Not being able to have
confidential conversations /
telephone calls (11/31)
Visual privacy is a problem
in open space as well as in
small meeting spaces (7/20)
Having a phone call in open
space bothers other people
(6/13)
Others can hear their
conversations (6/11)
Meeting rooms are not
properly sound proof (4/5)
Loggin into IT system and
moving belongings and
files
15(32)
Packing stuff and logging in
and out hinders switching
workplaces (11/21)
Takes a lot of time to pack
and move stuff and log in
and out (6/12)
Switching places 11(27)
Most people just work at
the same spot everyday
(9/21)
No switching during the day
(4/6)
For some functions,
changing places is not
practical (3/6)
Searching for a place,
packing all stuff takes a lot
of time. (2/3)
Adjusting furniture when
switching places takes lot of
time (2/2)
Social interaction/bonding 11(20)
Not being able to chat
personally with colleagues
because of openness (6/8)
Less interaction /
communication within teams
(direct colleagues) (5/7)
Less knowledge sharing
(3/3)
Less social bonding with
colleagues/no 'team' feeling
(2/3)
Too much 'socializing' (e.g.
in coffeecorners/open
space) (2/2)
Storage / filing 10(20)
Switch to digital filing was
not perfect; still difficulties
(6/10)
Not enough space for filing
(3/4)
Not enough place to store
personal books, etc. (2/2)
Digital archive is not always
trusted (1/4)
Storage too far away;
hassle to drag files with you
all day (1/2)
Use of workplaces 10(19)
Difficult to approach
colleagues about behavior
(5/14)
Places are not used as
intended (4/6)
Management does not stick
to the rules / no example for
the employees (4/5)
Seems like people don't
know how to use the
different places (2/3)
People are not thinking
about (not bothering) each
other (2/3)
Claiming of own places 8(18)
Parts of office are claimed
because of intensive
collaboration (5/10)
Management claims places
(4/5)
Enclosed places are
claimed regularly (3/4)
Everyone claimes their own
place (2/2)
People find it difficult to use
a place which is claimed by
a colleague (2/2)
Furniture 7(12)
Some places are not
suitable for working all day
(e.g. benches) (6/9)
Having to adjust chair over
and over again; hassle
(4/6)
Cleaning 7(11)
Unhygienic, insufficient
cleaning (6/7)
Stains on carpet and floor
covering (2/4)
Sterile and too clinical
atmosphere (1/1)
Interior design 6(15)
Cool atmosphere, no
personalisation, no plants
(5/9)
Not enough colour (1/6)
Findability of colleagues 6(13)
Quite difficult to find
colleagues (7/13)
Findability problematic for
binding new employees
(1/1)
You don't know where
people are and if they are
present at all (1/1)
Implementation process 5(9)
No ability to give input or it
was not used (3/7)
Top down organisation,
gives a lot of friction (1/1)
Not enough information
supply (1/1)
Not enough involvement in
process (1/1)
Not informed about the
goals (1/1)
Lighting 5(5)
Lighting sensors (no
personal control/sensitivity)
(3/3)
Not possible to control the
lighting personally (2/2)
Reflection on screen (1/1)
Communication from
organisation about
environment
4(7)
Not enough feedback on
complaints (2/5)
Unclear how to deal with
opening doors/windows
(1/1)
Very important that
problems are heard and
addressed (1/1)
Telephone facilities 3(5)
Still fixed telephone lines /
no flexibility (2/2)
System not practical / have
to log in and out (2/2)
Accessibility of the provider
is of poor quality (1/1)
Aftercare 3(4)
No adequate reaction to
problems, mainly related to
IT / indoor climate (2/3)
Almost no aftercare (1/1)
IT problems 3(3)
Problems are not being
solved quickly (1/1)
Problems with IT directly
after moving (1/1)
Defective IT facilities (1/1)
Safety 1(1)
Should be careful with
personal belongings (1/1)
House-rules 1(1)
Want to be able to meet
students wherever I want
(1/1)
Too quiet, would like to
listen to some music (1/1)
Clean-desk policy is
difficult to manage (1/1)
Binding with company 1(1)
Binding organisation must
be actively organised (1/1)
Main reasons
# cases (#
interviews)
Negative aspects
Issue
