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Officeland: Open Concept Offices

A new documentary called 'Officeland' examines how the open office now dominates the workplace, reducing the need for walls and possibly reducing efficiency in the process.
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The walls have been falling in the modern workplace for decades, hoping open space will encourage communication and collaboration. But the documentary,'Officeland' wonders if it hasn't just meant more noise, more distraction and less productivity. (Ian Campbell)
The Current24:00Officeland: Open Concept Offices - Jan 23, 2014

Open concept offices have been lauded in the tech industry, especially when they come with bright slides, games and stocked kitchens all in the name of collaboration and creativity. And yet studies show attention span, productivity and creativity can create an unintended slide. Curl up in your cubicle ... we're heading to Officeland.

Loud, crowded, and perhaps not very efficient: The working space of tomorrow -- today!

What exactly is action office? It's a far better environment for today's changing functions. An instant flexible office facility that can parallel the surging turbulent business life it serves. This is indeed the age of change.

In the 1960's - the revolutionary change sweeping the office workplace was the introduction of what we now call cubicles. Half-walls that separate employees and give them some slight privacy.

Today, even those walls are tumbling... many employees work in tighter quarters with no walls at all.

Today, workers had about seven square metres to call their own in a workspace. (mkrigsman/photopin)

By 2015 it's estimated that three quarters of all companies will have an open plan office design.

In 1994, workers had about eight square metres to call their own. Today, that's shrunk to less than seven.

A documentary airing tonight called Officeland on CBC Television's Doc Zone explores the changing face of offices starting with those cubicles.

  • Roger Johnson is the Senior Vice president of Enterprise Real Estate at TD Bank. They're one of the companies featured in the documentary.

  • Matthew Kobylar is the Associate Director of Interior Design and Workplace Strategy at FKA Architecture and Interiors.

You can catch Officeland at 8pm on CBC Television's Doc Zone.

We want to hear your officeland experiences. Do you work in an open concept design? How's that working for you?

We've opened up our comments on our web page, join in the conversation. Tweet us @thecurrentcbc. Follow us on Facebook. Or e-mail us through our website. And you can always call us toll-free at 1 877 287 7366.

This segment was produced by The Current's Elizabeth Hoath.

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