Reference no: EM133202928

Case - OPEN OFFICE, HIDDEN CONFLICT*

The social distancing requirements of the COVID-19 pandemic may have halted, at least temporarily, the decade-long movement of employees from cubicles and private offices into open-plan and nonterritorial workspaces. These communal arrangements are now considered high-risk environments for spreading disease. But even before COVID-19, concern was growing that open-plan offices were fuelling workplace conflict, most of which occurs as subtle irritation and resentment among co-workers.

Shared workspace arrangements create higher interdependence among employees regarding the noise, visual movement, territorial privacy, and information privacy of that space. Numerous studies have found that these disturbances and intrusions reduce work concentration and performance, which increases employee stress and conflict with those perceived to be causing the distractions.

"Our open office has absolutely crippled my productivity," concludes a marketing professional in the United States after three years in an open-office arrangement. "I can't hear myself think, I'm starting to feel bitter toward my co-workers, and my anxiety has shot through the roof." One office worker in Toronto observes that the company's move to an open office "led to a very false sense of family and community. We worked together in an open environment, but we were not a team."

In a recent survey of 60,000 Canadian federal government scientists and associated professionals, 79 percent said they had difficulty focusing and concentrating on their work and 62 percent believed their productivity and efficiency got worse after moving to open offices. Only 6 percent said the new open office arrangements improved their productivity.

Conflict may be even more intense in nonterritorial offices because they create ongoing competition over prized locations, such as desks in quieter areas, close to windows, and near strong Wi-Fi. "Each morning in my office is like a grown-up game of musical chairs, with six or so people competing for the last remaining hot desk," complains a British accountant. "Lost productivity spent hunting for somewhere to sit is the least of our concerns. Barely concealed resentment comes to the fore on regular occasions."

To minimize open-office conflict among its 85 employees, a Toronto architectural firm formed an etiquette committee that produced guidelines for appropriate behaviour in communal settings. A Canadian government department produced a similar document for its open-office workers. For example, the booklet warns: "Nail clipping in the open-concept office is not tolerated. Please use the washroom."

Canadian Organizational Behaviour (11th Canadian Edition) [Texidium version]. (2020).

Question: What aspects of power, conflict, and leadership can you identify? If you cannot identify any leadership, explain.