Private Office Rooms | Advantages | Disadvantages

What is a Private Office (Office Rooms)?

Private office is small rooms or cabinets which are separated from the open office by partitions. They are usually meant for top executives like Managing Director, Secretary, General Manager, Sales Department Manager and the like. Sometimes, private office is provided to a group of people who are doing special project, performing confidential nature of work or need of concentration of work.

Private Office - Meaning, Advantages, Disadvantages
Image: Private Office – Meaning, Advantages, Disadvantages

Advantages of Private Office

The advantages of private office are listed below:

1. Privacy: A private office provides a good privacy for confidential work and discussions.

2. Personal Atmosphere: A sense of prestige or importance to concerned staff promotes the personal atmosphere in a private office.

3. Concentration: There is an absence of noise in a private office. Hence, greater concentration of mind is possible. This gives room for improvement of efficiency of Staff.

4. Tidy Appearance: A private office can be tidier and less regimented. Over crowding or congestion is also eliminated.

5. Healthy Atmosphere: Better lighting, ventilation, heating and cooling are available in private office. There is no transmission of diseases from one person to another.

Disadvantages of Private Office

Private office suffers from the following disadvantages:

1. Uneconomical: A lot of space is used for partitions and corridors. Therefore, the cost of office space is increased. More expense is involved in decorations, cleaning and maintenance.

2. Costly Supervision: Private office leads to difficult supervision. The supervisor loses personal contact with the staff. Hence, more supervisors are appointed for effective supervision. Thus, the cost of supervision is stepped up.

3. Poor Natural Lighting and Ventilation: Flow of natural air and natural lighting is interrupted due to many walls and partitions. Therefore, artificial lighting and ventilation are provided to every staff member. This type of practice results in high cost of operation.

4. Affects free Flow of Work: Many walls and partitions are adversely affecting the free flow of work.

5. Poor Communication: Transmission of information is hindered due to walls and partitions. Movement of files is also delayed.

6. Inflexible: Many walls and partitions make the task of office layout more complicated and less flexible.