Hot-desking
A word coined in the early nineties to describe the practice of working without a dedicated desk. Hot desking is especially suited to work that involves a large proportion of staff being out of an office at one time, desks and facilities are shared and occupied on a temporary basis as and when they are needed. Such a ‘virtual office’ relies on electronic routing of telephone calls and computerised storage of individual files, as well as lockers for personal storage.


Non-place
A term used to describe the condition of ‘supermodernity’, the common global experience of shopping malls, airport lounges and motorways throughout the industrialised world. These 'non-places' exist apart from the traditional notions of place, defined by relation, identity and history. From the book by Marc Augé , ‘Non-Places, Introduction to an anthropology of supermodernity’, Verso, London, 1995.


Organisational theory
A scientific approach to the study of organisations linked to the 'human relations' school of the 1930s and more recent 'organisational psychology'. These studies stressed the importance of social networks and groups and the flow of communication within different types of organisations.


Outsourcing
This occurs when an organisation pays to have part of its work done by another company, often to cut costs or save time. Alternatively it is used to source services or skills that are not found within the organisation.


Sick building syndrome
Sick building syndrome (SBS) covers a range of unexplained symptoms that seem to be caused by the environment within a workplace. It has been linked with a range of causes ranging from poor indoor air quality, to a lack of staff control of heating, lighting and ventilation to the adverse effects of display screens.


Sustainability
A long-term attitude towards development and human activity that aims to cause little or no damage to the natural environment.


Taylorist
The application of 'scientific management' to the workplace. First used by F.W. Taylor (1856-1915) to study working practices in the factory to minimize time and effort to improve efficiency. Closely linked to Henry Ford's innovation of industrial mass-production and production targets, Taylorism is still used today to describe a top-down or instrumental management style.


Teleworking
The practice of working from home or from a remote location from the office, enabled by new computer and telecommunications technology. Widely expected to render the traditional office obsolete in the early nineties, generally this has not happened due to the importance of social interaction within most organisations.