Nothing characterises the everyday work of the modern knowledge worker as much as communication and collaboration with others. This is confirmed by studies conducted by the IBA. However, focused individual work still plays an important role.
An Average Working Day
Focused individual work takes up a large share of the typical working day in the office. If there are no workplaces for undisturbed work, this comes at the expense of personal well-being and productivity. Even if employees prefer to use their home office for focus work, companies still need to provide workplaces for individual tasks. Studies from the USA show that companies which neglect workplaces for focused work are less productive.
Networking does not only happen at special events; it often takes place informally within the company. This is important for fostering a sense of community and reinforcing it on an ongoing basis. At the same time, communication outside of specific work tasks is also a source of new ideas and valuable inspiration.
Team and project work often take place within departments or fixed project groups. Increasingly, however, they also extend across departmental and organisational boundaries. The high complexity of tasks, significant investment costs for new technologies, and a shortage of skilled workers will continue to drive this trend.
Coordination is an important part of office work. It takes place within project work but also builds bridges between different activities. In many cases, various forms of coordination take up significantly more time than the average 5%. Interactive communication tools can help to make these different forms of coordination more efficient.
The figures given for the breakdown of office work are average values from sample surveys. They provide an initial guide when it comes to space and furnishing requirements. However, they are not suitable for the development of space and furnishing concepts. These require a more detailed assessment that takes into account company‑, department- and activity-specific characteristics.
