2nd Interview w/same organization

[cube_rat]

Wish me luck everyone. I'll be out of my cube and into a bull pen in no time!

[wildcat]

Luck!

You know we did a company visit last Friday.* Walked in and nothing but cubes as far as the eye could see.* Sent chills down my spine.* First thing that came to mind ---- cube rats.* Why do companies put employees in cubes anyway?* *

[HFWR]

Temp housing for temp employees...

But, good luck anyway!!

[SteveR]

The corporate standards for employees is very specific on the size and furnishings of work areas based on job levels (grades). Most exempt employees below the Director level are in cubes. This means that managers and supervisors are in cubes. Anytime they need to have a "talk" with their employees, they need to go to an empty office (fat chance) or a conference room (even fatter chance) to get some privacy to talk. This is crazy.

Cubes are to give one the illusion of privacy. There is no such thing when you live in a cube farm. I have lived in them for many years and hated it. My wife works in an area that has Pods. Even smaller and less private (no walls) than a cube. They cram a ton of Pods on this huge floor and the noise is deafening.

I find it demeaning and distracting. Most of the people in cubes find a way to keep their sanity through headphones with music and with personal touches to the cube that most upper management would find "inappropriate." Here is a good source for these items if you are intersted. Christmas is coming and this is the place to find that certain something for the geeks on your list.

http://www.thinkgeek.com/

[Brat]

It is interesting that MS has their programmers in private offices while Valley programmers work in cubes.* Price of realestate?

Hey, it's better than 'hoteling'!

[cube_rat]

cube ghetto = corporate prison

This particular organization I interviewed with today is not a corporation, which makes all the more appealling to me. I'm sick of Dilbertism day in and day out.

[KB]

Good luck.......Hope it works out for you.

[laurence]

Good luck cube_rat!! What will you wear to the interview? You should post a pic for our collective approval!

WRT cubes, my work employs them, but fortunately I work for an aspect/department where we are compartmented into small groups in large offices, so about six of us sit behind a door only we can get into. I'm a social person (I'm sure you didn't notice) so this situation is pretty ideal to me.

[Sheryl]

Thank God I don't work for a large corporation.
Thank God I don't work for a large corporation.
Thank God I don't work for a large corporation.
Thank God I don't work for a large corporation.
Thank God I don't work for a large corporation.

You all have my sympathies on the cubes. I'm starting to feel really lucky to have a 10 x 12 office with two windows and a door!

Good luck on the interview Rat!

[KB]

I spent years working in cubes with low walls and then graduated to cubes with high walls.

The low walls were very noisy and distracting since you could see everything that was going on. For those of us that were distracted easily, it was tough to work.

High walls afforded less distraction and when paired with earphones and great music, were tolerable.
Working from home was the best, even though I worked for a large corporation previously mentioned on this board.

But not working IS the best

[Spanky]

Originally Posted by SteveR

The corporate standards for employees is very specific on the size and furnishings of work areas based on job levels (grades). Most exempt employees below the Director level are in cubes. This means that managers and supervisors are in cubes.

Managers at our place of work have nice offices.

[SteveR]

Originally Posted by Spanky

Managers at our place of work have nice offices.

The company built the building I am in 2 years ago and used Feng Shui in the design. In other words, they made the building with almost no offices and every wall is slanted (few straight lines). Managers, Assoc. Directors and supervisors are all in the "correctly sized" cube. Heaven help you if you have someone in the wrong sized one. They designed the building for an expected staffing level growth of about 5 years; however, when the actually saw what the finished building was going to really cost, the reduced the amount of built out space by 20% and made all the cubes smaller. Many people were in offices previously but when they moved here they went into cubes...low walled ones at that. The company had to bring in a shrink to deal with all the "adjustment issues" that this created. People are still #itching about it.

I have lived in both worlds; offices and cubes and I much prefer an office. There is very little gained by creating vast Prairie Dog Towns of cubes other than lower cost in building and the false sense of "teamwork" that the cubes are supposed to create. BULL! They just create more noise and keep people from speaking their minds because every one can hear everything you say. It creates stress and an artificial environment.

Another misguided management program.

[Dawg54]

My first job out of college was with a large corp that had a cube environment only without the cubes. Hundreds of desk lined up with nothing between you. How would you like to try to do your job with absolutely no privacy? I would have taken the cube back then.*

[wildcat]

My first job out of college was with a large corp that had a cube environment only without the cubes. Hundreds of desk lined up with nothing between you. How would you like to try to do your job with absolutely no privacy? I would have taken the cube back then.

Can we start PETE? People for the Ethical Treatment of Employees

[SteveR]

Talk about coincidences......., I am having a "discussion" with my boss on cube issues today. The issue is grade level (his case) against function (my case). He want to move a person recently promoted to a slightly higer grade but has no direct reports. I have a new person that has direct reports. I want the slightly larger cube for my person, even though they have a lower grade (by one grade), so they have space to have their direct report in their cube for daily discussions and as needed.

I hate corp. rules.

[cube_rat]

Originally Posted by SteveR

Talk about coincidences......., I am having a "discussion" with my boss on cube issues today.* The issue is grade level (his case) against function (my case).* He want to move a person recently promoted to a slightly higer grade but has no direct reports.* I have a new person that has direct reports.* I want the slightly larger cube for my person, even though they have a lower grade (by one grade), so they have space to have their direct report in their cube for daily discussions and as needed.*

I hate corp. rules.*

Grrr. People with direct reports need a private office. I work in place where people above me (with direct reports) share an itty bitty office! As a result people fill up conference rooms in order to to conduct their 1:1 meetings. It's not like there's no available spaces. There's tons of empty offices, but it's corporate policy to have people below a director level share an office, regardless of direct reports. What a bunch of crap. I don't want to be promoted with my current employer, thank you very much.

[Brat]

For years I worked in an enviornment out of NYPD Blue (complete with desk with WPA numbers still attached). Would have killed for a cube.

[laurence]

Talk about crazy, my new boss has 90 direct reports. 9-0. He has a double cube (I call them double-wides, because twice the amount of ghetto living space is still ghetto). Meanwhile I know a 4 guys with offices all next to each other who have no direct reports, but they are "Directors" so they have to have offices. In fact, that department just promoted two more people to Director level, and will be kicking a dozen people out of their cubes and into cubes being set up on our factory floor so that they can have offices built for them. Ah, mega-corp.

[Nords]

Originally Posted by Brat

For years I worked in an enviornment out of NYPD Blue (complete with desk with WPA numbers still attached).* Would have killed for a cube.

Yeah, I'm enjoying this thread too.

When GEN Pagonis was running his logistics show, staff meetings were held in a room without chairs. Attendees were allowed to bring any reference materials they wished, as long as they fit on an index card (pre-Palm Pilot days). It wonderfully focused everyone's attention on the business at hand, kept the BSing to a minimum, and ensured that briefs didn't drag on.

I've been in briefs where the Marines limited a person's briefing time to their ability to talk with one hand immersed in a bucket of ice water. It helps you keep on topic...

Speaking of USMC, ex-Jarhead, happy semper fi birthday!