Page 133 - WHERE WE WORK - Schlegelmilch

Ideas in place
characterized by high transparency, are implemented to foster innovative work behaviors (Moll & de Leede, 2016; Moultrie et al., 2007). So far, we do not know how the characteristic of transparency impacts innovative employee behaviors. We argue that access to visual and task information about coworkers and their behavior (workplace transparency) is critical to employee’s innovative behaviors of idea sharing (i.e., interactions to exchange ideas) and idea implementation (i.e., transformation of abstract ideas into actions; Van de Ven, 1986). We distinguish between these two behaviors because not all ideas that are shared are necessarily implemented. However, we believe that workplace transparency impacts both behaviors because they rely on employees connecting effectively based on information they have about their coworkers. In the paragraphs below, we discuss how previous studies inform our current understanding of the impact that workplace transparency has on the two innovative behaviors.
Regarding employees’ idea sharing behavior, we can draw on previous research showing that office characteristics affect interactions. For example, the communication duration was lower in multi-room offices, but the communication frequency higher (e.g., Boutellier et al., 2008). Also, the change from freestanding desks to partially enclosed workplaces affected the type of content that employees discussed (Carlopio & Gardner, 1992; Sundstrom et al., 1982). Specifically, studies indicate that confidential conversations can be hindered by transparent places (Carlopio & Gardner, 1992; Sundstrom et al., 1982), while work-related, and discretionary interactions (Boutellier et al., 2008) – such as idea sharing – are facilitated. Typically, this positive impact is attributed to either increased physical proximity or increased privacy (Boutellier et al., 2008; Carlopio & Gardner, 1992; Sundstrom, 1986). However, workplace transparency for the observing party means increased access to visual and task information about colleagues and their behavior. Specifically, access to information about coworkers’ presence and events as well as more information about their responsibilities and expertise. Such access to information affects how often someone seeks out another person (Borgatti & Cross, 2003) and
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