The Worst Workspaces In Tech

nicholas.m.carlson writes help you feel better about your hovel. Vallywag recently compiled a list of the top ten places to work, but the resulting submissions and exploration also provided them with an interesting look at some of the worst places to work. "What makes them so bad? Some offend with exposed fluorescent lights, gray cubicles and a dystopian corporate sheen. But others, with their pseudo-hip graffiti, kindergarten toys and plastic decorations — all in a desperate attempt to seem 'Internet-y' — come off even worse."

Office Snapshot -- A photograph collection...

[antdude]

Neatorama [neatorama.com] shares Office Snapshots [officesnapshots.com] Web site that has a collection of interior office photographs of various popular/well known companies. It is generally from Web/Tech companies.

Irrelevant Pictures and Inaccuracies

[linumax]

I noticed some of the pictures seem very very random.

From the comments:

I have worked at Microsoft in Redmond for the last 7 years. Of the Microsoft photos, only one of them looks like an actual Microsoft workspace in Redmond; the one in which there are several people crowded around what looks like a coffee table. And even that one is not a typical office or conference room. It looks like a makeshift conference room. At least two of the photos are of the Orlando, FL convention center where Microsoft has an annual event. In reality none of the photos are typical of Redmond, where most employees have single-occupancy private offices.

Re:Where is Slashdot?

[calebt3]

Here [cmdrtaco.net]

D[h]ell

[Ex-MislTech]

In 2006 when I started at Dell we had one 15" tube monitor.

We did not have cubes, we had this abomination called a pod.

The pod walls are 18 inches higher than the surface of your desk.

The person sitting across from you can be heard just as
clearly on your phone as you can.

Dell would not pay for noise canceling headsets.

Dell uses a Compaq ie. HP mainframe to run their ticket system.

Now that is some damn irony.

It took me multiple weeks of begging to receive my very own
company purchased pen and notepad.

They monitor to "the second" how long you go to bathroom and
it is part of your evaluations.

Emails to customers are expected to be done between calls,
or while waiting for reboots, or when there are no calls.

You have to get permission to work overtime to get aforementioned
emails done outside your 8 hr shift.

Yet...they constant ask you to work overtime to take more calls.

On overnight shift they ask you take "platinum calls" ie. MCSE
required when you don't have even an MCSA.

To be honest that is a contract violation.

This is not for Desktop or Workstation Support, this is for
Server Support.

So for me D[h]ell will always be #1 worst place to work period.

Wierd Silicon Valley workspaces

[Animats]

Intel is famous for their workspaces. They pioneered cubicles in the early 1970s. They have some of the world's biggest single-room cube farms. They actually built new buildings, from the ground up, with 1-acre rooms of tiny grey cubicles. Vast amounts of money were spent to create this Dilbertland. The cubicles are so tiny that two people cannot physically sit in one and talk; one has to sit out on the aisle and block traffic. They look like library carrels. This isn't a call center; it's where their engineers work.

Klutz Press has a "fun workspace" - the partitions are made out of corrugated sheet metal. The building (a warehouse) is made of corrugated sheet metal. Lots of toys in the reception area.

Softimage LA went through a period where everything, including partitions, was curved and on wheels. You could fold up the cubicle of someone who was out and push it to the side.

Sony Pictures Imageworks, an animation shop, is a typical cube farm surrounded by offices. Except for the art department, which has a big open space with drawing boards.

Silicon Valley law firms tend to have rocks. Big rocks. Polished stone surfaces. Rock gardens. And, for some reason, glass-enclosed conference rooms. Traditional law firms used to go in heavily for wood paneling, but the "high tech" law firms wanted a more modern look. The overall effect is upscale mall, but whatever.

Re:Not so bad.

[njcoder]

Walls are not that expensive to build and power outlets are not that difficult to install, unless you have a bunch of union Facilities guys at your company who work maybe 15 minutes a day and control everybody's aesthetics.

It's not that walls are expensive to build. Have you ever priced cubicles? They're not cheap. What they give you is flexibility in redesigning the space at a later date.

If you're leasing the space you may not be able to build it out. If you're the one leasing the space you may not want to have it built out in a way that makes it difficult for you to rent if the current tennant leaves.

and not even *in* Redmond

[euri.ca]

Also, http://valleywag.com/photogallery/Microsoftheadquarters/1001409798 [valleywag.com] is the Washington State Convention Center, in Seattle not Redmond.

At least http://valleywag.com/photogallery/Microsoftheadquarters/1001409785 [valleywag.com] is actually on campus (Building 33 if memory serves, which I bet it doesn't) and more than a few people do work on laptops out in the open like that (since main campus is pretty crowded and you're lucky to get a solo office without 3 or so years of seniority).

This is the most accurate look at the offices (buildings 16, 17 and 18) albeit not the lifestyle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N24TWrtlJEU [youtube.com]

Re:These people are SO out of touch

[stupkid]

Sadly, I think that this guy works for Citigroup. I have been to the offices that you are talking about. While my office is not like he describes I can second his account. It is a little dramatic, but they certainly have offices like this. That building in Irving was condemned too, so Citi got a smoking deal on it. Citi worked out a deal with the city that they would X-ray the walls annually to look for cracks. It's apparently cheaper than rebuilding the tower.

I smell a rat here...

[ayjay29]

I smell a rat here...

This [valleywag.com] photo is actually the loby of the Washington State Convention & Trade Center [wsctc.com]. Most of the other "Microsoft headquaters" photos look to be taken there as well.

Re:These people are SO out of touch

[DrVomact]

One wonders why you would still work in a place like that?

Because there are factors to consider other than my physical environment—such as the need to keep a paycheck coming in, and the difficulty of getting any other job at age 60. My immediate goal is to make it through July, which will be my 5 year anniversary, thus making me vested in their retirement fund. That means I get to take the accumulated pittance with me when they lay me off (I'm sure I'm marked for execution at the next possible opportunity). I'm sad that my career is ending in this place...things looked a lot better 20 years ago.