Abstract

Organizations differ in terms of the soundscapes they shape. The workplace soundscape, i.e., the sound environment of the employee, is not only an element of organizational culture, but above all, insufficiently recognized by organizational and management researchers, a tool for stimulating or inhibiting the activity of employees. In the light of the issues outlined in this way, the article deals with the characteristics of the soundscape in an open-plan office space, which is specific due to the potential number of various sound sources spreading in the work environment without clear acoustic barriers. The aim of the article is to discuss examples of the functioning of employees in a specific sound environment and to indicate the proposed research directions on the soundscape of the workplace in an open plan office. The article is theoretical and empirical. The research interview included an analysis of the literature on the soundscape of various workspaces, an analysis of the content obtained from employees' statements on social media about the sounds that accompany their work, and an analysis of interviews with employees of the real estate service department of one of Polish corporations about the soundscape of the office space they manage. The survey shows that the workplace soundscape is not the only a matter of the employees' sense of aesthetics. Studying the sounds of work can be both an impulse for in-depth research on the organizational climate and a starting point for creating workspace management programs.

Keywords: open space, work environment, working conditions, soundscape, workplace soundscape

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