I’ve always been fascinated by orthodoxies. The things we take for granted without knowing where they come from. When I recently worked on a new office experience, they were a topic of daily conversation. So I compiled a few of the main ones we encountered in this mini-presentation. They're fun to know about, and I leave it up to you to decide which ones are still valid today.

1. Slide for more …
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Ancient habits that still shape work today
Do you know where your
work practices come from?

2. Many of the work practices we take
for granted date back centuries
As we prepare for the next normal, we
need to check if they still make sense.
The first step in this process is to
understand their origins.
Here’s five to get you started.
You can draw your own conclusions.
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Contrary to popular belief, the 8 hour work day is a lot older
than the Industrial Revolution.
It dates back to 1593, when Philip II of Spain wanted to ensure
the ‘health and conservation’ of his workers. There were even
provisions for some flex-work and dangerous professions.
Thank you Spain!
Where does
the 8 hours
work day
come from?
ORIGIN STORY #1

4. The Romans already had a version of them.
But things only got serious in 1726, when the Royal Navy
needed a place to handle it’s growing amount of paperwork.
They created a dedicated building which you can still find in
London today.
Where do
office
buildings
come from?
ORIGIN STORY #2
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5. In the early 20th century, Taylorism saw this as a way
to maximise productivity for repetitive desk work.
It also made it easier for managers - often sitting on a raised
platform – to keep an eye on workers.
After all, when everyone sits in rows to do the same type of
work, talkers and slackers are easy to spot.
Why are
open plan
desks placed
in rows?
ORIGIN STORY #3
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6. To be fair, its inventor, Robert Prost, had good intentions.
He wanted to give open plan workers some privacy and the
chance to personalise their workspace.
But then the corporate efficiency experts got carried away
and tried to put ever more people in the same space.
In Robert’s words, they turned his invention into “Barren,
rat-hole places”.
Which
‘genius’
created the
cubicle?
ORIGIN STORY #4
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7. 17th century traders and legal professionals occasionally
had a separate office. But for most of human history, work
happened at home.
Things only changed when the industrial revolution brought
factories and time-clocks. The tension between ‘work’ and
‘life’ became our new normal.
We adapted, though we still struggle to make it work.
Why do we
separate
work & life?
ORIGIN STORY #5
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8. Do you want to update your
employee and/or office experience?.
Then let’s have a virtual coffee ☕.
I’ll gladly show how we reimagined a landmark London office
space and an int’l employee experience for the 2022 reality.
Perhaps it offers some inspiration.
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