The Foreign Service Journal, April 2015

74 APRIL 2015 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL This month I review the State Department’s collaborative open-plan workspaces in light of their increasing use in the public and private sectors (a trend reported in a Feb. 22 NewYork Times article; see http://nyti.ms/1Gfz45S ). I believe there is a pressing need for employee input into the process. Islamabad and SA-5: The department’s first open-plan embassy is scheduled to open in Islamabad this year. During my March 2014 trip to South Asia, I toured the construction site (see my June 2014 column) and, b ack in Washington, met with the Bureau of Overseas Building Operations to learn more about the proposed collabor- ative employee workspaces. Several months later, I met with the Bureau of Interna- tional Information Programs to discuss the introduction of collaborative open-plan workspaces in State Annex-5, which would be the depart- ment’s first open-plan domes- tic spaces. As part of the required union consultation, IIP arranged for us to visit the General Services Administra- tion’s headquarters at 1800 F Street NW, which had recently gone through an impressive multimillion-dollar transfor- mation, and replaced almost all private offices with open- plan collaborative space. GSA Transformation: On the agency’s sixth floor we Open-Plan Offices: Boon or Bane? met with Dan Tangherlini, then-GSA administrator, in his “office.” He greeted us from his triangular desk in the center of the floor and described the transforma- tion’s cost savings ($30 mil- lion annually) and employee productivity gains (increased collaboration, efficiency and innovation). To see a photo of the open-plan GSA space, go to http://bit.ly/1800_f_ st_nw. Tangherlini also stressed the importance of a holistic approach and partnering with stakeholders (i.e., unions) to execute the change. He noted that gains could only be real- ized when matched by invest- ments in enabling technology (IT hardware and software, VoIP phones and wireless signal boosters). He emphasized that a collaborative open-plan workspace does not mean no offices at all, but rather different types of collabora- tive spaces of various scalable sizes with ergonomic furni- ture. He also suggested that agencies wishing to replicate the transformation could use savings from rent and admin- istrative expenses to finance the required investments in technology and furniture. Working Group: Returning to the State Department, I was struck by the possibilities of collaborative workspaces to transform how we sup- port and conduct diplomacy domestically and overseas. I was also conscious of the need for a more coordinated approach with extensive employee input. AFSA has proposed an OBO–Administration–Infor- mation Resource Manage- ment initiative to organize an employee focus group, with representatives from all three unions (AFSA, AFGE Local 1534, NFFE Local 1998) to consider how the depart- ment might be able to take advantage of the potential of collaborative workspaces while avoiding its pitfalls. Currently, the open- plan workspaces are being designed on a project- and bureau-specific basis, with ad hoc post- and bureau-level employee input.We think that a more centralized employee focus group would ensure that lessons are shared and mistakes avoided. Representational Space: Such a focus group could look not only at our internal spaces, but at public areas as well. The reality is that only a handful of visitors to Main State or our embas- sies will ever see the seventh floor’s Mahogany Row or the ambassador’s office. The rest of us need adequate space to meet with our interlocutors. The current overhaul of Main State is a prime oppor- tunity to create modern, IT-enabled, representational rooms for visitors on the ground floor. Such rooms could be booked online and serviced by staff with repre- sentational food and beverage expenses billed back to the relevant office. How often have we had to apologize for the conditions of our meeting rooms and scrounge around in the cupboard, or over to CVS, for some coffee, tea and biscuits? Rightsizing: While the domestic savings to be real- ized through the introduction of collaborative workspaces are substantial, the real potential is found overseas, where the construction and administrative costs of classified and unclassi- fied space are considerable. Such savings could then be invested in the technology and accoutrements required for 21st-century diplomacy. Such considerations should be included in the depart- ment’s ongoing rightsizing exercise. Change: It has taken me some time to get used to the idea of collaborative workspaces. I was spoiled as an intern with a private office in our historic consul- ate in Frankfurt. However, in Munich I oversaw the intro- duction of a modified open- plan space in our consular section and have worked in three such spaces since. The change is taking place across the federal government, and I submit that it would be more successful with employee input than without it. n Next Month: Quality of Work/Life at State. STATE VP VOICE | BY MATTHEW ASADA AFSA NEWS Views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the AFSA State VP. Contact: asadam@state.gov | (202) 647-8160 | @matthewasada