Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford "And it went click" - Dawn of the Working Dead
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Mar 13, 2026 A design visionary imagines a futuristic, flexible workstation meant for creative knowledge workers. That ideal collides with managerial demands for efficiency and surveillance. Modular solutions get repackaged into cramped, dehumanizing cubicles. The story traces how workplace design decisions reshaped office life and led to modern monitoring tools.
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Who Really Buys Workplace Design
- Proopst's expensive Action Office appealed to creative workers but not to the managers who buy furniture; bosses prioritize efficiency and cost.
- That mismatch made Action Office 1 a cultural success but a commercial failure.
Surveillance Reached Executives And Warehouse Workers
- Workers like Amazon packer Wendy Taylor reported intense surveillance: cameras, activity bars and real-time profiles tracking every move.
- Corporate vice-president Carol Kramer had camera snapshots of her desk and screen dock her pay for 'inactivity' despite managerial duties.
Action Office 2's Hexagons Turn Into Honeycombs
- Action Office 2 was cheaper and modular, using 120-degree dividers to create half-hexagon workspaces intended for individual knowledge workers.
- Photographs however showed units clipped together into honeycombs, enabling managers to pack multiple workers together.
