TRANSFORMATION OF THE WORKPLACE

Technological, social, demographic, economic, and political change at both the global and local levels has become rampant in North American enterprises. As a result, organizations are undergoing a fundamental shift in the way they view, organize and perform work in this new global economy. This paradigm shift is characterized by the transformation of organizations from large, hierarchical organizations stressing command and control, to the more fluid, smaller, team-oriented structures that have a greater level of participation from an empowered workforce (Miller, 2001). Providing the proper working environment that helps people and organizations realize their full potential requires a thorough understanding of these changes and the relationships between the external forces involved with the physical environment.

In early times, work did not exist, individuals in society took food and shelter when (and where) it was found. There was no distinction between work and leisure time. The ancient Greeks and Romans viewed work as a curse and to be performed only by lower class people. The early Christians adopted the Hebrew approach with respect to work and in addition believed that work could generate a surplus of goods and services that should be shared with those less fortunate. Christians saw work as generating the opportunity to be charitable and therefore the value of work was not the focus, i

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ith flexibility as well as mobility in mind. Office formulations taking into consideration this latter approach fall into two main categories (Hamilton, 1996). First there is ôcave and commons.ö With this approach, the intent is to balance the elements of individual work contribution with that of teamwork, privacy with that of the sense of the community of the organization. Second, is ôhoteling.ö Even though more and more companies are trading office space (and the associated reduced costs) for increased worker mobility (by means of laptops, cell phones, and other tools of technology), there is still the need for people to occasionally meet. In order to satisfy this need, companies are providing buildings where offices or meeting areas can be reserved in advanceùsimilar to a hotel. Some of these environments even include concierge services to maintain order and schedule with respect to the entire reservation process. While this all may seem somewhat unusual, a 1995 survey by the International Facility Management Association quoted that 83 percent of companies are supporting alternative office strategies which include hoteling, cave and commons, telecommuting and open-plan office scenarios. This reverses one of the rules which
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Approximate Word count = 4742
Approximate Pages = 19 (250 words per page)

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