| By :
Dirik Hameed
The classic corporate structure has its rules, men wear suits, and employees attend a weekly meeting with the boss. In order for that to happen, all the employees need to be close enough to get to that meeting, and for that matter be available just in case the chief has an important question. In the business world today, though, is employee colo still so important? Theories abound among the pundits who routinely expound on the nature of group dynamics. The common concept of forming, norming, storming and performing applies well to groups intentionally brought together for a specific task. When it comes to day to day, year after year business operation, there is a different dynamic at work. The issue is the logical connection between people being together and their ability and likelihood to talk with one another. The experts would have us believe that if we are not within the proverbial earshot of another worker we will not talk to them. They also believe we make our own miniature staff meetings throughout the day. Studies of the movement of workers within a build have shown that without any impetus or interference from management, a pattern of interaction develops in most companies. People tend to get eat lunch at similar times. This natural congregation within the building may harbor unscheduled brainstorming sessions. Business is always looking to the sciences or other countries to grab onto a new fad or favorite expression to breathe new fire into the work force. In the decade of 1960 to 1970 scientists were using the newer and more powerful computers to try and perfect weather prediction. What they concluded was that it could not be done, only an approximation could be developed, but in the process they found that very complicated process can evolve in drastically different ways with infinitesimally different starting points. Business speakers were quick to grab the idea and interpolate it into the interactions of people I a business process. They concluded that the random comings and goings of individuals within the employee mass would, over time settle into a predictable pathway. Since people seem to meet one another outside of t he office or cubicle through the day, there could be important interpersonal communication that leads to inspiration. The problems with moving everyone into a single area when they originate in different areas are multiple. There is the cost, which is not insignificant, but there is also the disruption of work. More than simply the time needed to pack, move and unpack there is a disruption that affects processes for a lingering time as workers readjust. Today the world is driven by technology, and of all the fields it impacts, communication is one of the first and most deeply affected. The boss may have always related to people in person, his younger employees do not. With social media driving their interaction away from work, they have trouble believing collocation is the only way to meet at the office, and they may have a very good point.
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