According to Susan Cain, author of 'Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Thinking', introverts are known as quiet individuals who shy away from the limelight and who have difficulties working in a team. They struggle to reach their full potential in the modern workplace because they are placed in physical and cultural environments that tend to favour their counterpart - the extrovert.
Introverts radiate astonishing strengths including originality, innovation, focus and even leadership. More sensitive to external stimuli than extroverts, introverts have to face an even more exhausting active day, often seeking an hour or two away from their social colleagues to work effectively.
Open plan offices are renowned for their magical ways of breaking traditional hierarchal structures, increasing collaboration, boosting creativity and reducing overall space costs. The shift, however, has left introverts to adopt exerted behaviours in order to endure their new company cultures.
Every company has introverts. South African companies that value diverse thinking need to leverage all of their employees fully.
We have seen a new breed of open plan workspaces evolve, defined as a middle ground where both types can work and play in balance and harmony. A recent space that incorporated these principles was Grant Thornton. Here we created an environment that accommodates both the introvert and extrovert with open plan areas shared with private break-away zones, quiet rooms and clever 'phone booths' for when employees and staff need some alone time. The quiet rooms also vary in size, ranging from large to small, which can comfortably seat just two to three people.
The open plan office shift is about acknowledging the differences in people. It is about providing spaces that recognise staff and employees by their personality type, and not just their job title.
So how can companies help introverts do their best in today's typical open plan office? Here are some tips from our specialists to help create a balanced space for both worker types:
We doubt there will be a mad rush back to the corner style office, since very few of our clients are reluctant to give up their open plan office completely but in order to save space, increase employee communication and cut on costs, we need to design workplaces that provide introverts and extroverts with private and public environments. The modern workspace is about finding solutions to the paradoxes of the open plan office, for example - we all want collaboration among staff, but the open-plan layout can also inhibit personal bonding for the fear of being overheard.
South African corporates definitely favour the open plan layout. Senior management and decision makers need to remember that closed spaces are also needed to counteract the open in order to accommodate the introvert, and ultimately give half our workforce a sense of control and choice in their environment and surroundings.
