As the way we work continues to change rapidly driven by great technological advances and increased efficiency in workflows there has been a lot of debate on what makes the ideal office layout.

Certainly your office layout is likely to be influenced by the age of the building you find yourself operating in and in some cities it might not even be possible to stray too far from the traditional compartmental spaces.

So let’s look at three common myths about office layouts to help you decide on what’s right for your business.

Open plan is best
If being shut away isolated in a room isn’t for you then you might prefer the collaborative environment of the open space office but for some people this can actually impact on productivity. Open plan offices can get noisy and it may not always be the case they are collaborative. Design can play a major role in making a space work but if owners make it up as they go along then open plan isn’t going to make any difference.

Offices with lots of compartments stifle productivity
Staff might be able to communicate more if they can see each other, but these days even if they can, emails are rapidly becoming preferable to simply walking over to someone’s desk. Often being able to work in peace and quiet can actually boost productivity and you can create collaborative spaces for when they are needed.

Open plan layouts save you money
This may be true in some cases but not always. A large open plan office may end up costing more to heat and it will be difficult to please everyone when it comes to the temperature settings. You may also end up buying more office furniture to fill the space.