Most of the HubSpot dev team is physically co-located in the same area of our office. We do have a few great folks who are out of the office, but most of the people are here.
A while ago we started a habit of doing a random desk shuffle every 3 months. We have a map of our space, and we number the desks. We put folded notes in a wizard hat, like the one below, one note for each desk. Each notes has one number, corresponding to its desk. Then each person draws a number, and voila ;)
Trades are allowed. We routinely have multiple trades, but the overall distribution is fairly random, except a couple of people who are adamant about staying in the same desk. Those people go through multiple rounds of trading and debate. Most other people are happy to try a new location.
We do this for a couple of reasons. First, it's fun. Second, it encourages getting to know more people better. By sitting next to someone, it's more likely that you will talk more. Thirdly, it discourages tons of clutter and messy desks.
Finally, it reminds everyone that change is the one constant we can rely upon. Everything is always changing, from requirements, to technologies, to people. This is a nice physical, concrete reminder.
Do other people do something similar? Or do you more or less stay in your own office / cube / desk for a long time once settled? Do you think the principle of changing seats often is good, bad, meaningless, or something else?