Why Do Offices Use Cubicles?
Offices use cubicles to fulfill a variety of purposes. Cubicles are made of different materials and typically do not completely close off portions of rooms, with walls between four to six feet in height. They are made of a variety of materials, with most allowing the user occupying its space to hang schedules, papers and pictures, further utilizing the space.
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Privacy
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Cubicles offer semi-privacy in the workplace to help protect sensitive data. In environments where papers are processed or where computer terminals occupy every cubicle, privacy is increased when employees are viewing and or manipulating customer information. Passerby employees or visitors will not be able to view any sensitive data without making overt efforts to spy.
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Noise
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When many employees are helping customers, either in person or over the phone, such as a state assistance office or a call center environment, it would be very difficult to concentrate on a task while having to listen to an entire roomful of conversations at once. Cubicles offer noise barriers to help reduce distractions.
Compartmentalizing Functions
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Offices use cubicles to divide and maximize office space. It's more economical to fit as many employees as possible into a work area whenever possible because the company doesn't have to lease as much floor space. Furthermore, cubicles are used to mark off certain teams or sections of workers who perform different functions.
Storage
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Sometimes offices just use the cubicles to block off certain areas to hide coffee pots or other break room features. Cubicles can be used to store printers, copy machines, extra printer paper and other supplies.
Considerations
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Cubicles offer many benefits, including the flexibility of moving and rearranging when necessary. While cubicles can offer an employee a feeling of ownership over their own assigned workspace and mostly provide a comfortable area for the employee to work, some employees feel that it doesn't promote interaction between employees. In environments in which a business benefits from having employees collaborate and generate spontaneous creativity, use of cubicles or the improper layout of them could hinder this. In addition, because of enormous amounts of duties placed on employees, interpersonal communication can be discouraged if employees need to be at their desks to complete their duties. Employees may resort to using emails or instant messaging more throughout the day. Businesses should decide on the purpose of cubicles before installing them, then install them to protect their data while keeping a feeling of community between employees.
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- Photo Credit "My cube" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: Plutor (Logan Ingalls) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
