The diagrams illustrate the layout of a typical Japanese office and a typical American office.
Overall, the two office designs are completely different. While the Japanese office is designed to encourage cooperation and communication among staff, the American office reflects a more independent and individual working style.
In terms of seating arrangement, personnel in the Japanese office are organised into two sections, with employees’ desks placed close together and parallel to each other around rectangular tables. The section managers’ desks are positioned at the head of each group, enabling them to supervise their team members easily, while the department manager sits in a central position to oversee the whole office. By contrast, the American office contains several separate L-shaped desks arranged in the middle of the room, creating individual workspaces for employees. The offices of both the section managers and the department manager are situated on the right-hand side.
Regarding other features, the Japanese office has only one large window located behind the department manager’s desk. In comparison, the American office features windows on both the eastern and western walls, allowing more natural light to enter the workspace. Furthermore, the American office includes functional facilities such as a printer and copier room, storage space, and two conference rooms on the left side, which are not present in the Japanese office.