Tips for a small, two-person office

March 13, 2018 8:36 PM

I'm about to move into a new 10ft x 10ft office with a roomie (I'm his manager.) We share a slightly larger office now. I get to buy some new furniture and set it up. I'm always on the phone, my roomie is sometimes. I'm thinking of Jarvis sit/stand desks, a couple decent Ikea office chairs, and perhaps a room divider thingy, and putting our desks so we'd be facing each other (that way we each get some window to our left-hand-side). And maybe a white noise maker? Any tips or tricks or recommendations for making a small office work for two people? Thanks!
posted by jlittlew to Work & Money (13 answers total)

a white noise machines isn't going to do that much in a small office to cover your phones- it'll more likely make you turn up your phone volume and inadvertently speak louder.

i'd suggest wearing headphones if at all feasible. i picked up a very nice set of wireless over the ear (closed-back) headphones that are comfortable to wear all day long. i have a plugin for our phone system that pops a notification on my computer when my office phone rings. if either of you is wearing headphones i'd use your preferred IM client to communicate with one another so as not to surprise.
posted by noloveforned at 8:48 PM on March 13, 2018 [3 favorites]

You should ask your roommate/employee what they think. Even if you can't end up doing it because of size or cost, it would be nice of you to ask. And maybe they'll have a fantastic idea.

And get some method of dealing with coats. A coat rack/hooks over the door/whatever. If it's small, remove potential clutter from the jump.
posted by clone boulevard at 9:49 PM on March 13, 2018 [6 favorites]

Best answer: There are pluses and minuses to facing vs. not facing each other. Personally, I'm an introvert, and I'd choose not facing, so I'm not continually distracted by someone else in my field of vision, especially because if you're on the phone a lot, you'd also basically be speaking right in my direction all the time. I would probably prefer it if we each had our own corner of the room, rather than flatly facing a wall on each end. The last time I shared an office long-term with one person, that was our setup, with 2 corner desks, one of which faced more away from the window, the other of which faced the window, and that worked quite well, because it gave us a little more space diagonally across the room than 2 wall-facing desks would've, and we could interact when we wanted to, but stay absorbed in our work otherwise and not inadvertently be staring at each other all the time. We also each had wall space for anything we wanted to put up. I would feel very scrutinized if my manager sat right across from me looking in my direction all day, even if that's not your intent. I work from home now, and one of the best things about that is that there's no one physically looking at me all day long, walking behind me or next to me while I'm working, etc. I stay on-task better when I'm less worried about my appearance or judgment for what might be on my screen, perhaps paradoxically, because it lowers my mental overhead.

Also, re: the window, as long as you're both getting enough light, I wouldn't worry about your each necessarily having a portion of it, unless they care about that. As the one who was facing the window in that former setup, I'll say that also has pluses and minuses—it's colder and hotter by the window, glare or silhouetting from the sun can at times make computer work difficult, things outside might be interesting but distracting, etc.

Headphones are also a must, and you should consider the costs of context-switching—every time someone is interrupted, it takes them about 15 minutes, on average, to get back into their work. That doesn't mean you shouldn't talk to each other, but it does mean you should be deliberate about it and be aware of the effect your conversations might have on your officemate. Also consider maker-master schedule issues—you're on a master's schedule, I bet, where you're continually switching your focus, talking to people a lot, on conference calls, making connections, etc. Your direct report, on the other hand, might be on a maker's schedule, and making things and executing tasks requires singular focus for often long periods of time, along with good personal time management in general. So your work styles might not be 100 percent compatible, and you should do what you can to make it easier for your direct report to get their work done without feeling pressure to stay late if they get distracted and/or because they want the benefits of face time with you.

Overall, they might not be as candid with you as they might be with another officemate because you're their manager, so out of politeness, they might not raise things with you that make them uncomfortable or impact their ability to do their work, even if that's just "Ew, your sandwich smells." Your job is in part to be open to and provide opportunities for that kind of feedback, and be polite, as you would with anyone. Be aware that the power differential leaves you vulnerable to some of this stuff, and take steps to make sure your officemate can be radically candid with you. Also, consider options that would give your colleague flexibility about where and how they work, e.g., if you're going to be on a 2-hour conference call and they need to be heads-down on writing something, maybe they get to work remotely during that time. If it gets cold in your office, consider going in on a space heater together, etc.

And thanks for asking this—too many people would just assume they know what's best and not ask, so it's good that you did!
posted by limeonaire at 10:24 PM on March 13, 2018 [12 favorites]

I would HATE to be facing the other person, particularly if they spoke on the phone a lot. I think maybe ask the other officemate what they prefer, and make sure to check in frequently and actually implement & praise any suggestions they offer, so they feel truly comfortable making suggestions despite your power differential.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 11:12 PM on March 13, 2018

Sketching it out, face-to-face is the best use of space, assuming the door is opposite the window and the desks are the standard 30"x60", but consider putting a divider between the desks so you aren't staring at each other.
posted by rhizome at 1:30 AM on March 14, 2018

Let your officemate work from home as much as possible, if they are in a situation to do so. The idea of sharing a 10 x 10 box with my boss while they are on the phone all day and I am trying to get work done sounds miserable.
posted by rockindata at 4:30 AM on March 14, 2018 [7 favorites]

Response by poster: This is great stuff, thanks! I forgot to add some context that we’ve been sharing an office (with desks face to face) for he last 2 years, but the points about asking, checking out the space in person etc still stand. Ideally we can both look at new space together and visualize/ sketch it out. *I* think it’s been fine the last two years except When we are both on the phone. The new space is smaller so anything I can do to upgrade it will help. I’ll see if we can buy good noise canceling headphone.

Any suggestions for: noise canceling headphones that work for both VOIP and cell phones? Wired ideally.

Any experience with room dividers? Recommendations welcome! Thanks again.
posted by jlittlew at 4:34 AM on March 14, 2018

Facing each other results in the most noise from the phone.
Soft furnishings like padded cubicle walls, carpet, plants, wall hangings, and sound-absorbing materials, will help a lot.
posted by theora55 at 5:40 AM on March 14, 2018

if you eat lunch at your desks please don't use metal utensils with glass/ceramic dishes (unless maybe you both are hardcore headphoners). change either the utensils or dish to plastic/wood and your mealtime will no longer be a source of annoying irregular but repetitive clinking.
posted by noloveforned at 5:53 AM on March 14, 2018

I was just thinking about the hell that would be sharing with someone who's on the phone all day: can you schedule time in a conference room or a phone room in your company regularly to take your calls? Not all day, but for a good couple hour chunk every day? Maybe your employee could do the same. My company has really small 2-person conference rooms that lots of people in our open-office layout use for that purpose. I get that you have an office and of course you'd want to use it, but it might be nice if you each gave each other some alone time in the office.
posted by clone boulevard at 8:50 AM on March 14, 2018 [1 favorite]

Facing each other with a barrier is good. When back to back, you will always be hyper alert to the sounds and movements behind you. When it’s in front of you, it ma be easier to relax.
posted by MountainDaisy at 11:44 AM on March 14, 2018 [1 favorite]

More light sources than just the ceiling panel and your screens. Art & plants make office spaces less grim.
posted by Iris Gambol at 6:55 PM on March 14, 2018

When I worked in a small space, having the desks face the wall was awful because sound bounced off the wall and was actually amplified by the hardspace. We ended up sitting side by side facing the same direction, but if that doesn't work I'd vote for facing each other with some sort of divider (it doesn't have to more than a coupke of feet higher than your desk).
posted by vignettist at 11:14 PM on March 14, 2018