The difference between Office Pods and Office Phone Booths

The trend for open floor plans is becoming increasingly popular in the workplace, with many companies exploring ways to maximise space while maintaining staff efficiency. Organisations are finding that adopting an open floor plan can certainly reduce costs, while other goals are often to promote creativity, enhance collaboration and build solidarity among colleagues.

As with any new trend, the open plan office style comes with its own vocabulary. For those still adopting this trendy new style, the terminology of different types of workspace can be confusing. For example, the word 'pod' is often dropped in relation to open, individual workstations as well as enclosed soundproof sheds. Office pods and office telephone booths both have valid uses in the modern workplace. Below are some of the differences between these types of furniture and some of the pros and cons of each.

Office pods

The term 'pods' refers to fancy cubicles. Office furniture companies have moved away from ugly, outdated booths and replaced them with more modern, cleaner pods. These workspaces are often modular and can be moved around to utilise space in different sized offices. Often these pods can be grouped together to keep teams close together while providing privacy through small walls or storage spaces. (Do not confuse this type of workstation with a small freestanding building that can be placed outside the backyard and used as a single room. They are more suited to external home offices and they are not the focus of this article.)

 Some of the benefits of using Pod workstations in an open plan office include better communication between staff and smoother lighting and airflow as there are no walls. The use of cabinet workstations makes office design more cost effective while providing a flexible work area layout. This is particularly useful if the company is in a growth phase and plans to add more staff in the near future.

However, these open plan workstations can be inconvenient for those who need more privacy from time to time. Employees who need to make important calls may need a place to go if the office pods are too noisy and distracting. That's where the office phone booth comes in.

Office phone booths

For open plan companies who wish to provide some privacy for their employees, the installation of a soundproof telephone booth is a great solution. Office phone booths are completely enclosed within the pod (as opposed to the open plan office pod work area discussed above).

A good example of this is the office phone booth offered by PEACEPOD, based in Auckland, New Zealand. Their booths are completely soundproofed, but provide user comfort through a built-in ventilation system. Each booth is equipped with a built-in table as well as power and USB sockets. These workspaces are fully portable and allow employees to make personal calls or take part in video conferences without any background noise. It's a great way to keep employees happy where they need to work without distractions.

There are also larger four and six person conference pods that can be used as additional meeting rooms, which can be very helpful if room space is limited or often booked for larger meetings.

Use an office phone booth to provide a quiet, distraction-free workspace for employees. It can be a stress reliever for those wishing to get rid of desk pods in an open plan office floor plan. It will create a space that will help people feel like they have privacy when they need it.

For employers, it is important to know how to utilise space and increase productivity in an open plan office. Both office pods and office phone booths have their uses and each object can improve a modern workplace when used effectively.