Tuesday, April 27

Back at Arcada in the pouring rain, I prowl around the deserted room. Everything will disappear from here in the next six weeks or so as Arcada gears up to become a hub of activity based learning.

From next August nobody will have a space of their own: neither desk nor cupboard.

Wikipedia tells me that

Activity-based working (ABW) recognises that people perform different activities in their day-to-day work, and therefore need a variety of work settings supported by the right technology and culture to carry out these activities effectively. Activity Based Working’s heavy emphasis on the creation of a culture of connection, inspiration, accountability and trust empowers individuals, teams and the organisation to perform to their potential. On a personal level Activity Based Working also enables each person to organise their work activities in a productive and enjoyable way that best suits what they need to do, and who they need to do it with. Although not normally driven by cost-saving as the business strategy, it can produce efficiencies and cost savings through the nature of collaboration and team work helping to work more effectively. Inspiring spaces that evolve from an activity-based approach are designed to create opportunities for a variety of workplace activities, from intense and focused work to collaborative settings, areas for impromptu meetings or more formal meetings.

Studies suggest that ABW (counter-intuitively) reduces face-to-face interactions, and increases email traffic significantly. Yet when we drill down further into these articles we discover that these misunderstandings come from mistaking Activity Based Working for simply a choice of one office layout over the other. Activity Based Working, rather, is a way of working that encourages teams to connect, individuals to flourish and organisations to thrive.

As I wander I come across a coat-rack with a variety of masks and other items. I wonder if that will still have a place in the new order.