>By being in the open plan yourself, you're sending a strong message that there is no way offices will be tolerated, so there isn't any point in asking. Sorry,

>By being in the open plan yourself, you're sending a strong message that there is no way offices will be tolerated, so there isn't any point in asking. Sorry, Zack. When I read your post, I took you to be the CEO, like Joel, speaking on behalf of your 600 employees. I see now that you're a tech lead. So this last sentence should have been directed to management. You have a valid point that collaboration is important, but open plan offices are not the best way to get that. Dev work is divided into talking and coding. Private offices are by far the best way to do the former without interrupting the latter. Shutting the door is a signal: don't bother me unless it is very important. The less heads down work you have, the more you keep your door open.