WASHINGTON — It is no surprise that a recent survey of senior managers finds most think cluttered workspaces could be a sign of a disorganized employee, but keeping your desk too tidy could also be a red flag.
Staffing firm OfficeTeam, a Robert Half company, said more than half of senior managers interviewed (54 percent) said the most distracting or annoying aspect of employee workspaces is sloppiness and disorganization. It not only reflects the employee’s disorganization; co-workers are probably also annoyed by messy cubical mates.
But 10 percent of respondents said a desk that is too clean or bare is also a negative — and for a couple of reasons.
“A desk that is too tidy can make other colleagues in the office uncomfortable because their desk isn’t as tidy as theirs,” said Trey Barnette, metro market manager at Robert Half’s D.C. office. “And maybe it appears that they are not doing enough work and staying busy. It could come off as if you’re just not working hard enough.”
The choice of personal items you have in your workspace can also be distracting.
OfficeTeam said 15 percent of senior managers reported seeing inappropriate or offensive items on employees’ desks.
In an open office setting, items in an employee’s work area aren’t always for their eyes only, OfficeTeam said. It suggested ditching the political posters, risqué photos and anything that might be too offensive.
