Several large companies, including Hewlett-Packard, intel Corporation and Cisco Systems, are planning experiments to eliminate the traditional office arrangement of housing employees in rows of cubicles.  Instead, their new office layouts include open areas with large tables, multiworker desks, and arm chairs where employees can bring their laptops or work--an effort to spur more collaboration, flexibility and cooperation.

Traditional cubicle arrangements have many problems, as reported in today's Wall Street Journal.  Among them, workers can hide and pretend to be working.  This act alone prevents coworkers from asking simple questions for quick answers, and perpetuates the increasing amounts of email floating through companies.  Organizations are also finding out that cubicles do not providing privacy or quiet, as many workers are completely unaware of how loud they really are.

What is key here is the movement to spur collaboration.  Workers safely nestled behind their cubicle walls have no reason to brainstorm with their neighbors.  They have no reason to reach out for quick help. They have no reason to think beyond the moment. 

Maybe this experiment will show organizations how to get the next 20% productivity increase.  Brainstorming requires intermingling, doesn't it?