Dev environment - Cubicles or pods?

Question

We're reorganizing our workspaces at work, and are individually being given the choice of working in a more open space with a few other developers, or a more closed off space by ourselves. Which should I choose?

Answer 1

Pod. Pods give you the ability to feel like you are in a team and yet have some privacy/seclusion. While tall cubicles give some privacy, it breaks verbal communication between developers, unless you shout and also makes it much harder to just move your wheeled chair to another developer's desk. I loved working in a pod.

Answer 2

I am a huge advocate of the pod-system. I think having an open space with few walls in between developers encourages interaction. Having an open work environment fosters an atmosphere where team unity can really form. It's easier to ask questions without getting out of your desk, and even the most antisocial of people can participate in small talk that goes around.

Of course, there are downsides. Some people can't work in environments where there is too much noise. To compensate for this, workplaces that have open seating areas for workstations should also provide quiet areas of the building where employees can dock their laptops to get work done.

Still, from a team perspective, it's great having interaction and building friendships. In the end, when work gets too mundane or stressful, it's the people that keep you coming into work. It's easy to learn about coworkers when you're talking to them regularly or see them interact with other employees while in an open pod setting.

Answer 3

Closed off space. You need a quiet, private space (preferably an office with a door) so you can concentrate on programming when you need to.

Feel free to open the door and leave when you want to collaborate or socialize. :)

Answer 4

In my opinion work space and work environment must go together. Because, we can work together with a lot of spaces as a team. And with a good working environment, we can build a good output out of it.

Answer 5

The pod & open work environments are disastrous to productivity. While the typical excuses of better communication blah blah permeate the online world, its a sure fire way of reducing thinking time.

I have worked in pods & open bull pens and its crazy as hell since the level of distraction is pretty high and the total productivity per day drops off significantly.

Managers love it though, since it gives them the semblance of control.
But control over what ?