I think it's a trend like any other - I saw the beginnings back in the Internet boom and now the corporate laggards are getting to it. It's unclear whether it will be enduring.
I've run every day for years and am a musician but neither makes me want to compromise my high-focus responsibilities with distraction. That's not to say that others don't find it somehow (shudder) energizing.
Personally I have had the choice and have avoided it but never had to transition an existing job from office or even cubicle. From what I've seen of the new MS offices, as expensively pretty as they are, I'd be looking for another position internally or otherwise. I can't imagine that others there haven't done so - though maybe Amazon is bad enough to keep them at Azure.
There are gradations of this too. My spouse, a stone introvert, works in a mostly open environment - very low dividers - being remodeled to full open, no hiding. Her group, including the extroverts, managed to fight off the change in their area as destructive distraction. But they're policy people, not developers.
I've run every day for years and am a musician but neither makes me want to compromise my high-focus responsibilities with distraction. That's not to say that others don't find it somehow (shudder) energizing.
Personally I have had the choice and have avoided it but never had to transition an existing job from office or even cubicle. From what I've seen of the new MS offices, as expensively pretty as they are, I'd be looking for another position internally or otherwise. I can't imagine that others there haven't done so - though maybe Amazon is bad enough to keep them at Azure.
There are gradations of this too. My spouse, a stone introvert, works in a mostly open environment - very low dividers - being remodeled to full open, no hiding. Her group, including the extroverts, managed to fight off the change in their area as destructive distraction. But they're policy people, not developers.