Noisy co-workers and cramped surroundings are just two of the issues impacting staff
Employers looking to lift productivity may want to spend some time evaluating their workplace after one new study revealed environmental issues are a major distraction for many staff.
According to extensive research conducted by workplace effectiveness assessor Leesman, a huge 43 per cent of employees don’t feel their workplace facilities productivity.
The firm has been collecting data since 2010 as part of an ongoing study into workplaces – during that time, it has recorded the views of over 275,000 employees across 67 countries.
“Our workplaces have a massive impact on how we are able to perform,” said Peggie Rothe, head of insights and research at Leesman.
“They can be obstructers – forcing employees to go through obstacle after obstacle to achieve their goals or even losing staff – but they can also be catalysts that give you a competitive advantage.”
According to the Leesman research, the biggest barriers to productivity are space between workstations, dividers and noise levels.
Other contributing factors include air temperature and quality, foot traffic, lack of quiet areas, and an inability to personalise workstations.
However, despite the worrying statistics, Rothe warned employers not to make any rash decisions as many organisations invested huge sums of money into new office environments without seeing any significant return.
“Only 30 per cent of the 145 businesses that we measured ‘post-project’ are seeing any results, and that’s worrying,” she said. “When you make a change you need to look at what the organisation does and what its employees do in their daily roles before you start."
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