If you always suspected there would be a downside to the increasingly popular “open office” model sweeping the business world, you may have been right. The problem? Noise. Distractions not only decrease productivity, but can inhibit learning, which may put the brakes on your training initiatives. What’s the problem, and what can you do about it?
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Employers are trying to make their facilities conducive to productivity—and wellness. Some workplaces have been restructured to remove cubicles (to foster collaboration) and wall treatments and carpeting (to let in natural light and to lessen allergens). However, these positively motivated changes may be at odds with something else that is detrimental to productivity—noise!
It’s been reported that noise in the new open office configurations is now so problematic that when employees can’t work at home, they take their work to public libraries—and even coffee shops—to get away from the on-site noise. OfficingToday reports that posts to the social platform of WeWork, the shared workplace and services provider, tell of employees working in open spaces fleeing to enclosed meeting rooms or even buying white ceiling tiles to hang around their own workspace to baffle incoming noise. And, there may be employees walking around wearing self-purchased noise-baffling headsets.
What Happened?
The removal of cubicles, with their sound-diffusing, fabric-covered walls, lets sound careen through the open space. The removal of window treatments, which soak up sound, lets sound waves bounce against the window glass, as does the popularity of glass enclosures meant to convey a collegial workspace. Removal of carpeting lets the sound of shoes clicking and carts rolling on floors resound through the workplace.
Research by Steelcase shows 90% of workers say they sometimes need a quiet place to work, and 40% say they don’t have one. Steelcase research also found that employees are interrupted by noise (phone calls, colleagues’ visits, people talking and laughing, etc.) every 11 minutes, and it can take them up to 25 minutes to get back up to speed on what they were working on.
While the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health addresses industrial noise and prevention of work-related hearing loss through regulations and initiatives such as its BuyQuiet program, workers in an office setting usually don’t fall under these requirements.
What Can Be Done?
A workplace can be plagued by awful acoustics. Noisy chatter and other disruptive background noise can be hugely detrimental to productivity and a company’s bottom line, according to a press release by Plantronics.
While excessive noise is not something that can be fixed overnight, the good news is that it can be remedied if a company takes appropriate action to “soundscape” its environment. Crucial to implementing a soundscaping solution is addressing communication requirements for all associates, no matter their location in the building. Organizational challenges, such as working in an open-plan office or delivering effective virtual collaboration, have their own unique noise issues.
An effective solution is to adopt “unified communications technology” that enables the use of communication through any device, with any application, at any internal location without increasing the noise level. Companies such as Microsoft®, Cisco®, Avaya®, and others have developed technology that enables laptops and smartphones to become the primary work contact device (meaning no more desk phone), allowing associates to easily communicate from anywhere. Headsets with enhanced audio technology are a must, says Plantronics.
Dividing facilities by task is another way to lessen noise levels, says Plantronics. One example is assigning areas such as meeting rooms and lunchrooms as “collaborative zones” where employees work together and voices are encouraged, and other areas, such as individual workspaces, as “concentration zones,” where audible distractions are minimized through noise abatement measures.
“Contemplative zones,” where employees can relax, de-stress, and practice mindfulness in a peaceful setting is a nice enhancement as well. Susan Cain, consultant for Steelcase, also advocates creation of enclosed “quiet spaces,” where one or more employees can work in relative silence.
If such measures are adopted, and sound still seems to be problem, poor acoustics caused by the building’s design may be the culprit. A consultant may be needed to address the problem through noise abatement installations, such as sound-absorbent “ceiling clouds” and other measures.