To Cut Costs Google Asks Some Employees to Share a Desk, Work Alternate Days

More than a quarter of Google's full-time workforce is in its cloud unit, reports CNBC. And now Google is asking cloud employees and partners 'to share their desks and alternate days with their desk mates starting next quarter, citing 'real estate efficiency.''

The new desk-sharing model will apply to Google Cloud's five largest U.S. locations — Kirkland, Washington; New York City; San Francisco; Seattle; and Sunnyvale, California — and is happening so the company 'can continue to invest in Cloud's growth,' according to an internal FAQ recently shared with cloud employees and viewed by CNBC. Some buildings will be vacated as a result, the document noted.

'Most Googlers will now share a desk with one other Googler,' the internal document stated, noting they expect employees to come in on alternate days so they're not at the same desk on the same day. 'Through the matching process, they will agree on a basic desk setup and establish norms with their desk partner and teams to ensure a positive experience in the new shared environment.' The FAQ says employees may come in on other days, but if they're in on an unassigned day, they will use 'overflow drop-in space.'

Internally, leadership has given the new seating arrangement a title: 'Cloud Office Evolution' or 'CLOE,' which it describes as 'combining the best of pre-pandemic collaboration with the flexibility' of hybrid work. The new workspace plan is not a temporary pilot, the document noted. 'This will ultimately lead to more efficient use of our space,' it said.

A Google spokesperson said they'd conducted pilot programs and surveys 'to explore different hybrid work models,' CNBC reports, with the results showing employees 'value guaranteed in-person collaboration when they are in the office, as well as the option to work from home a few days each week.' So they've devised their new system to combine 'the best of pre-pandemic collaboration with the flexibility and focus we've all come to appreciate from remote work, while also allowing us to use our spaces more efficiently.'

The article points out that Google Cloud is currently not profitable, and 'is still losing hundreds of millions of dollars every quarter — $480 million in the fourth quarter, although that was nearly half of the loss a year prior.'

An internal FAQ warns that affected employees are now expected to have 'conversations about how they will or will not decorate the space, store personal items, and tidiness expectations.'
Thanks to Slashdot reader RUs1729 for sharing the story.

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