Need 4 ppt slides on below question

Research-Technology Management • January—February 2012 | 51

The physical design of high-tech workplaces is a key chal- lenge facing senior management today. In a world in which collaboration is increasingly seen as the engine of innova- tion, the physical layout of high-tech workplaces must

facilitate the face-to-face (F2F) communication among R&D team members that breeds productive collaboration. Al- though the physical design of the workplace is but one vari- able in a complex constellation of factors that affect team F2F communication, it is an important one for, as Elsbach and Pratt (2008) recently noted, “everything from the effi cient manufacture of computer chips to the research and develop- ment of new fl avors of potato chips is affected by the design and arrangement of machinery, work spaces, environmental controls, and equipment” (182). Further, despite the increas- ing use of distributed teams connected through electronically mediated communication such as email, texting, instant messaging, videoconferencing, phone, and fax, recent studies have underlined the importance of F2F communication for successfully accomplishing complex team tasks ( Elsbach and Pratt 2008 ; Allen and Henn 2007 ).

F2F communication is important to all team tasks, but es- pecially to the high-tech work of R&D teams. R&D projects involve non-routine tasks with a high degree of uncertainty; past studies have shown that F2F communication is more effective than other types of communication media for trans- ferring the complex, context-specifi c information required to accomplish tasks related to advancing knowledge and de- veloping new technologies ( Tushman 1979 ; Santoro and Saparito 2003 ).

James Stryker earned his PhD in management from Rutgers University and is an assistant professor of management in the department of business at Holy Names University, Oakland, California. He is also a licensed architect and holds a Master of Architecture degree from Yale University. Professor Stryker’s princi- pal research interests are in the areas of team communication and the design of the physical workplace, organizational leadership, team decision making, and group dynamics. In addition to his academic career, he has over 20 years experience in the programming, design, and construction of high-tech R&D facilities. His work experience includes serving as director of facilities for a Fortune 100 pharmaceutical company and senior project manager for two nationally ranked architectural and engineering design fi rms. [email protected]

Michael Santoro earned his PhD in management from Rutgers University and is an associate professor of management in the College of Business and Economics at Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Professor Santo- ro’s principal research interests are in the areas of strategic alliances and the external sourcing of knowledge and technological innovation. He has nearly 30 publications in edited volumes and leading peer-reviewed journals and serves on the editorial review board of IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management. He is a recipient of the prestigious Carl R. and Ingeborg Beidleman Research Award, the Class of 1961 Professorship, and the James T. Kane Faculty Fellowship. Prior to his academic career, he spent 21 years with Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP), holding a number of middle and senior management positions. [email protected]

DOI: 10.5437/08956308X5501013

FEATURE ARTICLE

Facilitating Face-to-Face Communication in High-Tech Teams Face-to-face communication is a necessary component of team collaboration; the physical design of the space, including the visibility of workstations and the availability of community spaces, can affect the level of face-to-face communication.

James B. Stryker and Michael D. Santoro

OVERVIEW: Despite the increasing use of electronically mediated methods for team communications, research continues to underline the importance of face-to-face (F2F) communication for the successful accomplishment of complex, high-tech team tasks. Although a crucial aspect of F2F communication is the physical proximity of team members, studies that have explored the relationship between the design of the physical workplace and F2F communication have produced confl icting fi ndings. This paper reports the results of a fi eld study conducted at two R&D sites of a large U.S. high technology and life sciences company; the results suggest that the typical space planning solution of simply moving people from closed offi ces to open cubicles does not in and of itself increase F2F communication. Rather, the level of F2F communication depends on the location of team members’ workstations within the overall confi guration of the space and the amount of space provided to support collaboration opportunities, including both formal and informal spaces. Based on the results of the study, we offer suggestions for the layout and design of R&D workstations to foster productive F2F encounters.

KEYWORDS: R&D teams , Collaboration , Workplace design , Face-to-face communication

52 | Research-Technology Management Facilitating Face-to-Face Communication

However, unlike electronic mediums of communication, F2F communication requires an actual physical place for peo- ple to meet to exchange information. In this context, it is clear that careful consideration must be given to the physical design of R&D facilities in order to facilitate productive F2F interac- tions and to ensure that capital investments in new and up- graded facilities deliver their full value. This is a signifi cant consideration for senior management. On average, the value of facilities and real estate accounts for 25 percent of all Fortune 500 company assets, and organizational occupancy costs rank second in fi rm costs, behind only worker compensation and benefi ts ( Berry 1996 ). A facility designed to encourage interac- tions among colleagues can help deliver on that investment.

With that in mind, we set out to study how the layout and design of physical workspaces, including such factors as worker proximity (usually referred to as “headcount den- sity” in the literature), workstation openness and visibility, and proximity to shared spaces (referred to in the literature as “collaboration opportunity”) may shape patterns of F2F communication.

Background: Physical Structure Research Early physical structure research focused on two issues: the proximity of organizational members and the dynamics and consequences of relocating organizational members from the traditional closed offi ce to open workstations. Concerning proximity of communication partners, the fi ndings have been clear: the probability of F2F communication between two people is inversely related to the distance separating them. Specifi cally, Allen (1977) has shown that the probabil- ity of F2F communication between two people is greatest when they are located within 10 meters of each other and declines to an asymptotic level after about 25 meters of sepa- ration. However, although the probability of F2F communi- cation declines with distance from communication partner, proximity does not guarantee that F2F communication will actually take place. Moenaert and Caeldries (1996) found no reported increase in the quantity of F2F communication with colleagues after a relocation and consolidation of R&D per- sonnel, while Hatch (1985) found a negative correlation be- tween the proximity of organizational members and the quantity of time spent in F2F work activities.

Concerning open versus closed offi ces and workstations, architects and interior designers predicted that more open workstation designs would promote communication ( Davis 1984 ), but actual fi eld studies provided confl icting fi nd- ings. Allen (1977) found that “among the members of the

The probability of F2F communication

between two people is inversely related

to the distance separating them.

experimental department [for engineers who spoke with one another at a frequency of once a week or more] communica- tion increased signifi cantly both in terms of the number of communications per person and in number of individuals with whom the average engineer communicated” when an open workstation format was implemented (279). However, Sundstrom, Burt, and Kamp (1980) found that after a move from closed offi ce to open workstations “practically no rela- tionship was found at all between architectural accessibility and social interaction among co-workers” (113).

More recent studies have looked at the overall layout and design of the workplace. For example, studies by Spiliopoulou and Penn (1999) and Boutellier et. al. (2008) found that people occupying workstations adjacent to highly traveled corridors or public spaces reported signifi cantly more F2F communication compared to workers occupying worksta- tions more distant from main routes of circulation.

Key Variables in Workplace Design To address the mixed results and confl icting fi ndings of previ- ous research, this study addresses the research question of how physical workplace design can facilitate F2F communi- cation, focusing on the two variables that are most often considered when designing the workplace to facilitate com- munication—open versus closed workstations and head- count density, where headcount density refers to the number of organizational members within a given proximity to each other.

To examine the impact of physical design, usually concep- tualized as an opposition between closed offi ces and open workspaces, we adopted a slightly different perspective, dis- tinguishing between high-visibility and low-visibility work- stations. This variable was introduced to allow exploration of the notion that visibility within the overall layout of the workspace drives team F2F communication, rather than the physical characteristics of closed offi ces versus open, low- walled workstations. Further, when considering the impor- tance of headcount density to foster F2F communication, it was not clear that previous research always distinguished be- tween team and non-team communication. We therefore examined the relationship between the numbers of workers located in close proximity to one another while carefully controlling for team membership.

Finally, this study introduces and explores a new variable not previously considered within the context of physical structure research: the effect of collaboration opportunity on F2F communication, where collaboration opportunity is de- fi ned as the number of formal and informal meeting places for F2F communication available within the workplace ( Stryker 2004 ).

Headcount Density. Headcount density, or the number of organizational members located within close proximity to one another, is among the most studied variables in work- place design. Based on Allen’s (1977) research, close proxim- ity is defi ned as members located within 10 meters. Similar to research fi ndings with regard to workstation barriers and en- closures, the fi ndings concerning the relationship between

Facilitating Face-to-Face Communication January—February 2012 | 53

headcount density and F2F communication have been con- tradictory ( Hatch 1985 ; Moenaert and Caeldries 1996 ).

In reviewing the research literature on headcount density, we noted that previous studies did not always distinguish be- tween team and non-team F2F communication. Previous re- search (e.g., Tushman 1979 ) has shown that R&D team members have a high need to communicate F2F due to the complexity and non-routine nature of their research tasks. Therefore, in this study, we specifi cally focused on the rela- tionship between team membership and headcount density to further tease out this issue and ascertain its possible effect on F2F communication.

Workstation Visibility. Elsbach and Pratt’s recent re- view (2008) of the literature on workplace design notes that the relationship between barriers and enclosures and F2F communication is one of the most studied workplace design features. The traditional argument has been that the in- creased visibility afforded workers by open workstation de- sign promotes serendipitous meetings and therefore encourages F2F communication. However, as noted above, research examining these variables has produced confl icting fi ndings.

This inconsistency may stem from a key variable in the physical design of the workspace that has been overlooked: the visibility of the offi ce or workstation within the overall layout of the facility’s design. In preparing for this study, we visited two research sites to observe the interactions of R&D team members. Over time, it became evident that the type of workstation—open cubicle workstation versus closed of- fi ce—was only one factor affecting F2F communication. An- other key element was the location of the workstation and its position in relation to main routes of circulation. For exam- ple, at one of the research sites, some closed offi ces with glass walls were located directly along the main building corridor, providing high visibility to their occupants and to those pass- ing by, thereby facilitating F2F communication. Other offi ces were located away from this main corridor, behind the indi- vidual research laboratory; these locations provided their oc- cupants a relatively low level of visibility and therefore less opportunity to interact. Similarly, at the other research site, some workstations were clearly visible from the main corri- dor and the open public atrium, while others were across a hallway and much less visible from public spaces, providing less opportunity for F2F interaction and communication.

From these preliminary fi eld observations we surmised that it was not just the openness of the workstation that may affect team member visibility and provide more opportunity for F2F communication, but rather the combination of work- station openness and the overall layout of the building that creates opportunities for F2F communication. This combina- tion of openness and location, therefore, became a key focus of this study.

Collaboration Opportunity. Finally, in this study we explore a new physical design variable, collaboration oppor- tunity ( Stryker 2004 ). In a classic study of residents of an apartment complex, Festinger, Schacter, and Back (1950) found that the design of an apartment complex promoted

We surmised that it was not just the

openness of the workstation that may

provide more opportunity for F2F

communication but the combination of

workstation openness and the overall

layout of the building.

social interaction through the placement of common use fa- cilities such as stairways, elevators, and laundry rooms along corridors and public paths of circulation. These common use facilities acted as “centers of gravity” ( Allen and Henn 2007 ), attracting people and thereby increasing the opportunity for and likelihood of interaction.

Applying this concept to the R&D work environment, we explored the idea that the design of the workplace could fa- cilitate communication by providing specifi c shared space destinations that act as centers of gravity, drawing organiza- tional team members and thus increasing the likelihood of F2F interaction and communication and thereby presenting increased opportunities for collaboration. Collaboration op- portunity is defi ned as specifi c places within the physical lay- out that encourage people to gather and includes formal spaces such as conference rooms and meeting rooms as well as informal meeting places such as coffee areas, copy rooms, stairways, elevator lobbies, and bathrooms.

Research Setting and Study Participants To explore our research question, “How can the physical workplace be designed to facilitate F2F communication?”, this study considered the design and layout of R&D laborato- ries at two different sites of a major life sciences company. The research director at Site 1 had recently been the lead scientist in the design of a new R&D laboratory at that site, and he was interested in fi nding out if the design of the facil- ity actually promoted team communication. He recom- mended that the research director at Site 2 and his team join the study in order to add participants, since the two locations have substantially similar populations. Statistical analyses found no signifi cant differences in demographic data be- tween sites 1 and 2 with respect to participant age, tenure with the fi rm, level of education, gender, sociability index, or managerial level.

Moreover, although both sites are new-product R&D sites that engage in similar types of activities, the physical layout of the facilities at these two campuses are very different and offer strongly contrasting physical designs. Site 1 is a recently completed R&D laboratory at the company’s corporate head- quarters; it is a three-story facility housing state-of-the-art laboratories, offi ces, and open workstations oriented around an open, sky-lit atrium. Open workstations and four

54 | Research-Technology Management Facilitating Face-to-Face Communication

glass-walled offi ces surround the atrium on each fl oor. Other features of the design include a coffee bar, three glass-walled meeting rooms, and an informal break area located at the end of the atrium.

The research laboratories at Site 2 are housed on the sec- ond fl oor of a combined offi ce, laboratory, and warehouse facility constructed in the 1920s. The laboratory fl oor has a series of labs and offi ces in the center of the fl oor surrounded by a loop corridor. The offi ces are separated from the labs by a glass wall. On the other side of the main loop corridor are another series of laboratories with the lab offi ces located along the exterior wall of the building. The break area for lab employees is located on the third fl oor, as are the toilets; a large cafeteria and common meeting rooms are located on the eighth fl oor of the building.

In summary, the two research sites were selected because, although they are both R&D sites within the same company and the researchers employed at these sites have similar backgrounds, experiences, and tasks to accomplish, the two sites provide contrasting physical workspace designs and very different headcount density and collaboration opportu- nity factors.

Data Collection Observational data was gathered during numerous trips to both sites, during which the researchers walked the facilities, observed researcher interactions at various times of the day, and in general became familiar with the facility operations.

To gather data regarding F2F interactions, volunteers from among the staff at each site were asked to complete a 43-item questionnaire that asked for information about both demo- graphic and social structure control variables. Items on the questionnaire were designed to assess such factors as leader- ship styles, individual sociability, and team rewards, as well as to gather data regarding position (managerial vs. non- managerial) and such demographic factors as age, education, and tenure with the fi rm.

Participants also identifi ed the location of their worksta- tions on an architectural fl oor plan of the site; this allowed the research team to gather additional information about headcount density, workstation visibility, and collaboration opportunity. • Headcount Density. For the purposes of this study,

headcount density was defi ned as the number of persons who occupy a workstation within a 10-meter radius of the target individual’s primary workstation. A 10-meter radius was selected since prior research ( Allen 1977 ) has shown that the highest probability for F2F communica- tion occurs within 10 meters of a person’s workstation.

• Workstation Visibility . At Site 1, open workstations and closed offi ces located adjacent to the atrium are highly visible to all occupants of all three laboratory fl oors, whether from the open stair in the center of the atrium, the atrium corridor, or the break areas at the end of the atrium. These were therefore identifi ed as high- visibility workstations. Workstations located across the

inner corridor, adjacent to the laboratories, are less visi- ble, especially from the break areas and the bridges cross- ing the atrium; these were therefore identifi ed as low-visibility workstations.

At Site 2, offi ces located in the center of the fl oor directly along the main circulation corridor were identifi ed as high-visibility workstations. Other offi ces located along the exterior walls of the building and separated from the main corridor by the laboratory were identifi ed as low- visibility workstations.

• Collaboration Opportunity. Collaboration opportu- nity was defi ned as the number of formal or informal contact places located within a 25-meter radius of the target individual’s workstation. That radius was chosen because, as noted above, Allen (1977) has shown that the probability of F2F communication diminishes to an asymptotic level after approximately 25 meters. Contact places counted included formally designated meeting spaces such as conference rooms and meeting rooms as well as informal gathering places such as coffee bars, re- strooms, copy rooms, mailboxes, supply closets, vending machines, elevators, and stairways.

After completing the initial questionnaire, participants

were sent a web-based questionnaire 2–3 times each week on randomly selected days for 8 weeks. The web-based ques- tionnaire asked participants to a) identify whom they had met in F2F communication that day, b) indicate whether that person was a team member or non-team member, and c) identify where that communication took place (their work- station, the other person’s workstation, formal conference room or meeting room, informal meeting room or break area, passing in the corridor, or other).

Although the quality of F2F communication is at least as important as its quantity, we counted all F2F communica- tions in this study. This decision was motivated by two key considerations. First, early research in this area ( Zajonc 1968 ) has shown that all types of workplace F2F communication promote personal attraction and team cohesion by encourag- ing feelings of familiarity, similarity, and shared affect, and recent research on R&D teams ( Beal et al. 2003 ) has demon- strated that cohesive teams performed team tasks more effi ciently—especially the team tasks that require close coor- dination and communication, like R&D tasks. Second, senior R&D managers at the research sites were interested in deter- mining the extent to which the physical design of the labo- ratory work place facilitated all types of F2F communication.

Results Results revealed signifi cant differences in levels of F2F com- munications based on location and headcount density; whether employees worked in open workstations versus closed offi ces seemed to have less effect ( Table 1 ). Occupants of high-visibility workstations and occupants in high headcount-density layouts reported signifi cantly more team F2F communication than low-visibility, low headcount- density workstation layouts. Further, occupants with high

Facilitating Face-to-Face Communication January—February 2012 | 55

collaboration opportunity reported signifi cantly more team F2F communication than those in low collaboration-oppor- tunity workstations. We found no signifi cant difference in the level of F2F communication between high-visibility open workstations and high-visibility closed offi ces, suggesting that visibility was the overriding factor that infl uenced team communication, rather than the type of workstation. How- ever, for low-visibility workstations, we found signifi cantly more team F2F communication in open workstations com- pared to closed offi ces.

Specifi cally, respondents occupying high-visibility work- stations reported 59 percent more F2F team communication than those in low-visibility workstations (Table 1). In high- visibility work locations, there was no signifi cant difference in F2F communication between open, low-walled workstations and closed offi ces. In low-visibility situations, respondents in open, low-walled workstations reported 51 percent more team F2F communication than occupants of closed offi ces.

Respondents in high headcount-density workstation lay- outs (average 16 persons within a 10-meter radius) reported 84 percent more F2F team communication than workers in low headcount-density layouts (average 4 persons within 10 meters).

Respondents occupying workstations with high collabora- tion opportunity (average 22 formal or informal meeting places within 25 meters) reported 102 percent more F2F team communication than those located in workstations with low collaboration opportunity (average 4 formal or in- formal meeting places).

Discussion Many studies (e.g., Tushman 1979 ; Santoro and Saparito 2003 ) have shown that facilitating team F2F communica- tions, particularly among knowledge workers such as high- tech R&D staff, plays a critical role in accomplishing complex team tasks such as advancing knowledge and new technolo- gies. The results of this study highlight some key factors that bring much-needed clarity to the question of just how to ac- complish that goal.

Previous studies did not consider workstation location and visibility in the overall context of the layout of the facility. This study found that workstation visibility—not whether a person was in a closed offi ce or an open cubicle—was a key factor in facilitating F2F communication; in high-visibility locations, there was no signifi cant difference in F2F

communication for open versus closed workspaces. In lower- visibility work locations, however, the question of open ver- sus closed workspaces becomes more signifi cant; R&D workers in low-visibility locations reported signifi cantly more team F2F communication when they worked in open, low walled workstations compared with closed offi ces.

This study also found that team F2F communication was signifi cantly greater when team members were located in high-density work areas (average 16 persons within 10 me- ters) with a large number of informal meeting places located nearby (average 22 formal and informal meeting places within 25 meters). These fi ndings suggest that common-use features in the workplace may have a similar “center of grav- ity” effect as was observed in common-use facilities in a resi- dential apartment complex ( Festinger, Schacter, and Back 1950 ). Just as common-use areas in residential apartment complexes draw residents together, common-use areas in the workplace appear to attract and encourage team F2F interaction.

What these fi ndings suggest is that to facilitate team F2F communication, workstations should be designed to be as highly visible as possible, placed adjacent to main routes of circulation, open atria, or other similar centers of gravity. Clearly, not all workstations can be located along main cor- ridors or in other high-visibility locations. Our data suggest that open workstations with low partitions and no doors can help offset the disadvantages of lower-visibility areas, since they help facilitate increased team F2F communication in these areas. This fi nding may be of particular interest to R&D managers located in older facilities in need of renovation. In considering facility renovations, converting some of the tra- ditional, closed offi ces to open, low-walled workstations and providing increased informal meeting places offer one way to increase team F2F communication and collaboration.

TABLE 1 . F2F Team Communication Results

Differences in F2F Communication N=2095 F2F communication events over eight-week test period

1 High-visibility workstations compared to low-visibility workstations a +59% a

2 Open workstations compared to closed offi ces in high-visibility locations No signifi cant difference

3 Open workstations compared to closed offi ces in low-visibility locations +51% a

4 High headcount density compared to low headcount density(16 persons within 10 meters versus 4 persons) +84% a

5 High collaboration opportunity compared to low collaboration opportunity(22 places for formal or informal meetings within 25 meters versus 4)

+102% a

Results signifi cant @ p< 0.05 a To test for a potential self-selection bias for workstation visibility, we looked at age, level of education, gender, level of managerial responsibility, level of sociability, and tenure with the company and found no signifi cant differences between occupants of high-visibility workstations compared with low-visibility workstations.

In high-visibility locations, there

was no signifi cant difference in F2F

communication for open versus closed

workspaces.

56 | Research-Technology Management Facilitating Face-to-Face Communication

We acknowledge that the generalizability of these results may be somewhat limited by the small scope of the study. These fi ndings may nevertheless have important implica- tions for R&D organizations in a variety of industries, since studies have shown that the need for high-tech workers to discuss complex issues via F2F communication spans both industry ( Santoro and Saparito 2003 ) and national borders ( Bertodo 1990 ).

Conclusion This fi eld study addresses a key workplace challenge: How do you design the physical workplace to promote team F2F communication? Companies spend signifi cant amounts of capital designing and building new facilities and renovating older facilities, but previous research has offered confl icting fi ndings and little guidance for designing these spaces. The results of this study offer some insight, including the impor- tance of visibility, the possibility of using open workstations where increased visibility is not an option, and the impor- tance of headcount density for promoting team F2F commu- nication. Further, our study suggests that providing spaces for informal and formal collaboration opportunity also has the potential to facilitate increased F2F communication.

As Elsbach and Pratt (2008) note, “As organizations con- tinue to extend the boundaries of physical environments (e.g., virtual organizations, hoteling, and teleworking), the importance of understanding the role that the physical envi- ronment plays on how we think, feel, and work is only be- coming more critical” (217). Our study attempts to provide senior managers with some clarity to this issue as we high- light areas that have practical applicability in the critical, yet understudied role of the physical workspace in the competi- tive high-tech work environment.

The authors gratefully acknowledge the feedback and in- sights provided by the managing editor and eight anonymous reviewers.

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Providing spaces for informal and formal

collaboration opportunity also has the

potential to facilitate increased F2F

communication.

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