Reference no: EM132389800

Playing musical chairs to increase collaboration

One of the latest trends in office design is to move employees into new workspaces every few months, as a way to increase communication and collaboration. The regular moves end up putting employees from different departments and work functions into contact with one another. Seating assignments may be planned based on tasks or employees' personalities, or even done randomly. The goal is the same break down functional silos and habits that limit communication across international boundaries, and put people side by side to talk, learn and be creative together.

Research indicates that workers spend roughly 40% to 60% of their interaction time every workday talking with their direct neighbors. They only have 5% to 10% chance of interacting with someone even just a few steps away.

Questions

1. Are musical chairs in the office going a step too far? Would you enjoy changing desks every month or not, and why?

2. Can this idea be used in larger organizations, or likely to be limited to smaller firms and startups employing a lot of new college graduates? 

3. Overall, is this a useful way to break down "functional silos", or is it just a passing fad that will soon lose its appeal? What do you think?