Small talk beats digital distraction

By flexibleboss on December 17, 2015 • ( 0 )

Traditional workplace distractions consume more employee time than digital distractions, according to a US survey.

The Bamboo HR survey of over 1,000 full-time employees found that the number one time waster is the ‘water cooler break’, followed by bathroom breaks and small talk with colleagues. After that they named corresponding with family, surfing the web and social media.

Senior managers waste more time on these distractions than frontline staff and one in five workers say their productivity is damaged by them. However, the same number believe workplace distractions enhance rather than hinder their performance.

More than half (53%) the employees said they spend over 30 minutes a week being unproductive because of unnecessary distractions.

The results also suggest work and life are blended, with 56% of employees saying they try to make up for time spent on personal, non-work-related activities while at work by working at home or in the office after standard work hours. Of those, 39% spend more than 30 minutes a day making up for it.