How To Solve A Too-Quiet Corporate Office
If you’ve established that your workplace is too quiet and it’s affecting your employee’s productivity, you may wonder what you can do about it.
An office that is quiet can seem like a great idea for productivity, but the reality is somewhat a little different.
What does the research say?
A study entitled ‘Is Noise Always Bad? Exploring the Effects of Ambient Noise on Creative Cognition’, found that workers who were exposed to a moderate level of ambient noise outperformed those working in environments that were silent.
This suggests there is a direct link between noise levels and work productivity and creativity.
Doors slamming, phones ringing, conversations, and laughter are noises that are commonly cited as distracting in the workplace, and yet some of these are also difficult – or sometimes impossible – to avoid.
Having a work environment that’s too quiet means these irritating noises are heightened.
An open-plan office that is too quiet is also not the best working environment for extroverts, who generally prefer more environmental stimulation to stay energised.
Quiet offices can also cause a lack of speech privacy, which can impact employee comfort, wellbeing and confidentiality in the workplace.
How to solve a too-quiet office?
Now that you’re familiar with why it’s important to have the correct acoustic environment, we’re going to outline some effective solutions that solve a too-quiet office.
Addressing an office that is too quiet is not as simple as creating a louder office. It’s about getting the balance right.
The good news is there are several proven ways to solve a too-quiet office that don’t involve turning up the volume on the radio or setting up a music playlist.
Can Sound Masking help?
Sound masking distributes ambient sound through emitters and masks distracting noises. These speakers can be strategically placed in your office space to ensure optimum coverage, and with modern technology you can also control the volume.
Sound masking matches the frequency of human speech, which helps drive conversations from across the room into the background. It works on the basis that unintelligible speech or noises are significantly less distracting.
This acoustic technology reduces the audibility of distracting noises without making the office uncomfortably silent.
You can also layer soundscapes over the top of the neutral sound masking to create an environment that is both calming and productive. From cityscapes, to more natural birdsong and weather-orientated sounds, soundscapes are the result of extensive research and can create a harmonious office space to improve workplace wellbeing.
Final thoughts
A blend of soundscapes and masking is the perfect solution to solve a too-quiet office. If you’re interested in learning more about this acoustic technology or seeing how it could benefit your office, contact Remark Group today to arrange a demonstration.