Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
Nirit Cohen – WorkFutures
Angela Howard – Culture Expert
Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
What’s going on:
Google is aiming to maximize the efficiency of its office spaces, so they’re encouraging their employees to start desk-sharing as of next quarter.
An internal FAQ for “Google Cloud Employees” clarifies that those stationed in Kirkland, Washington; New York City; San Francisco; Seattle; and Sunnyvale, California will need to team up with a partner for their desk.
Why it matters:
Google believes the transformation will result in more proficient utilization of our resources, eventually resulting in some vacant structures; a move which could prove quite cost-effective depending on what the company decides to do with them.
Amidst decreased office return rates, in January Google resorted to reducing its staff and terminating 11,000 employees.
How it’ll impact the future:
The internal document said, “most Googlers will now share a desk with one other Googler,” and also noted that employees are expected to come in on alternate days so they’re not at the same desk on the same day.
“Through the matching process, they will agree on a basic desk setup and establish norms with their desk partner and teams to ensure a positive experience in the new shared environment.”
Google employees are allowed to come in on other days, but if they come in on an unassigned day, they will use “overflow drop-in space.”
This new push from Google might inspire other companies (who want to cut costs) to employ desk-sharing methods.
