Concentration becomes nearly impossible when interruptions arrive every three minutes
En las oficinas españolas, el trabajo híbrido ha revelado una contradicción silenciosa: los espacios diseñados para reunir a las personas ya no permiten que nadie esté verdaderamente presente. Casi la mitad de los trabajadores realizan videollamadas desde su propio escritorio, sin ningún rincón donde la conversación pueda ocurrir con dignidad. Lo que emerge no es solo un problema de diseño arquitectónico, sino una pregunta más profunda sobre qué significa crear condiciones para que el pensamiento humano pueda prosperar.
- El 85% de las reuniones corporativas en España ya incluyen participantes remotos, pero las oficinas siguen sin ofrecer espacios donde esas llamadas puedan ocurrir con privacidad.
- Los trabajadores encajan hasta 275 interrupciones diarias y el 85% declara que le resulta imposible concentrarse en entornos de planta abierta.
- El 55% de los empleados reconoce realizar varias tareas a la vez durante las videollamadas, no por falta de voluntad, sino porque el entorno fragmenta la atención de forma sistemática.
- Seis de cada diez trabajadores exigen explícitamente más privacidad, y dos tercios consideran imprescindible contar con zonas dedicadas a la colaboración híbrida.
- Desde Steelcase Iberia, Alejandro Pociña señala que la solución no es volver a los despachos individuales, sino diseñar oficinas que ofrezcan distintos niveles de privacidad según la tarea.
Casi todas las reuniones que ocurren hoy en las oficinas españolas incluyen a alguien conectado desde otro lugar. El trabajo híbrido se ha consolidado hasta el punto de que el 85% de los encuentros corporativos —presentaciones, entrevistas, coordinaciones internas— transcurren simultáneamente en lo físico y lo digital. El problema es que la infraestructura no ha acompañado ese cambio.
Según un estudio de Steelcase, el 46% de los trabajadores españoles realiza sus videollamadas desde su propio escritorio porque la oficina no ofrece ningún espacio alternativo: ni cabinas, ni salas cerradas, ni rincones donde una conversación pueda suceder sin que la escuchen todos los presentes. El resultado es un entorno cada vez más ruidoso, fragmentado y agotador.
La situación se retroalimenta. A medida que proliferan las reuniones virtuales, crecen también las distracciones. Los trabajadores reportan hasta 275 interrupciones diarias, y el 85% afirma tener dificultades para concentrarse en oficinas de planta abierta. El mismo escritorio que debe servir como espacio colaborativo tiene que funcionar también como cabina telefónica, zona de concentración y estudio de videoconferencia.
La brecha entre lo que ofrecen las oficinas y lo que necesitan los trabajadores ya no puede ignorarse. El 60% pide más privacidad, el 57% quiere espacios reservables para distintas tareas, y dos tercios consideran esencial contar con zonas diseñadas específicamente para la colaboración híbrida. Para Alejandro Pociña, presidente de Steelcase Iberia, la respuesta no está en recuperar los despachos cerrados, sino en construir oficinas capaces de ofrecer distintos niveles de privacidad según lo que cada tarea exige: colaboración, concentración profunda o confidencialidad. No como opciones excluyentes, sino como posibilidades simultáneas dentro de un mismo espacio.
Nearly every meeting happening in Spanish offices now includes someone calling in from somewhere else. The shift to hybrid work has become so complete that 85% of corporate gatherings—client presentations, internal coordination sessions, job interviews, quick check-ins—routinely span both physical and digital spaces. This would be manageable if the infrastructure existed to support it. But it doesn't, at least not in most places.
Almost half of Spanish workers, 46% according to research from Steelcase, find themselves taking these video calls from their own desk because their office has nowhere else to go. No phone booth. No quiet room. No enclosed space where a conversation can happen without broadcasting to everyone within earshot. The result is a workplace that has become increasingly loud, fragmented, and exhausting.
The problem compounds itself. As video meetings proliferate, so do the distractions. Fifty-five percent of employees admit to juggling multiple tasks during screen-based meetings—checking email, responding to messages, half-listening while trying to focus on something else. It's not laziness or poor discipline. It's what happens when attention gets pulled in too many directions at once. Workers in Spanish offices report fielding roughly 275 interruptions per day: meetings, emails, notifications, colleagues stopping by. Concentration becomes nearly impossible. Eighty-five percent of employees say they struggle to focus in open-plan offices, and interruptions can arrive as frequently as every three minutes.
Open-plan design was supposed to encourage collaboration and make efficient use of space. In theory, it still does. But the theory didn't account for the reality of hybrid work, where the same desk that needs to be a collaborative hub also needs to be a private phone booth, a focused work zone, and a video conference studio all at once. More than half of Spanish workers spend their days in these open environments, which means more than half are trying to navigate competing demands with nowhere to hide.
The gap between what offices offer and what workers actually need has become impossible to ignore. Steelcase's 2025 Employee Research study found that six in ten workers are explicitly asking for more privacy—access to enclosed or semi-enclosed spaces where they can concentrate without constant interruption. Fifty-seven percent want reservable spaces they can claim for different tasks throughout the day. Two-thirds say it's essential to have dedicated zones designed specifically for hybrid collaboration and video calls.
According to Alejandro Pociña, president of Steelcase Iberia, the solution isn't a return to individual offices or isolated cubicles. "People need to collaborate, but they also need moments of privacy for meetings, calls, concentration, or just a few minutes to decompress," he explained. "The problem emerges when the office only provides open spaces and doesn't account for different levels of privacy depending on the task." The goal is flexibility—the ability to choose the right environment for whatever work is happening right now.
This represents a fundamental shift in how companies think about office design. The old model prioritized constant interaction. The new one needs to accommodate the actual cognitive demands of the work itself. Some tasks require collaboration. Others require deep focus. Still others require confidentiality. A modern office needs to offer all three, not force workers to choose between them or compromise on all fronts by taking sensitive calls at their desks while their colleagues listen in.
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People need to collaborate, but they also need moments of privacy for meetings, calls, concentration, or just a few minutes to decompress. The problem emerges when the office only provides open spaces.— Alejandro Pociña, President of Steelcase Iberia
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
So half the workers are just... taking private calls at their desks? In front of everyone?
Essentially, yes. There's nowhere else to go. And it's not just awkward—it's creating real cognitive strain. People are trying to have confidential conversations while also trying to concentrate, while also being interrupted constantly.
But companies have known about hybrid work for years now. Why haven't they built the spaces?
That's the real question. Open-plan offices were designed before hybrid became standard. They optimized for one thing—collaboration and cost efficiency. Now they're trying to do five things at once, and the design hasn't caught up.
What does 275 interruptions a day actually feel like?
It means you can't hold a thought for more than a few minutes. A meeting ends, you try to focus on something, an email arrives, someone stops by, a notification pings. Your attention never settles. That's why 55% of people are multitasking during video calls—they've already given up on single focus.
And workers are asking for this? They're not just complaining?
They're being specific about it. Sixty percent want more enclosed spaces. Fifty-seven percent want bookable rooms. Two-thirds say hybrid collaboration zones are essential. They're not asking for private offices—they're asking for choice.
What changes if companies actually listen?
Offices become responsive instead of rigid. A space for focused work in the morning, a collaborative zone in the afternoon, a quiet phone booth when you need it. It's not revolutionary. It's just matching the design to how people actually work now.