Breaking the sound barrier: The impact of office noise on the working day

“We found that Generation X (those aged 35-44) are more frustrated than Boomers or Gen Y & Z, with poor office acoustics and lack of privacy,” says Pradere. “They desperately need ‘me’ rather than ‘we’ spaces, to focus on the workload that comes with their managerial responsibilities.”

With managers stuck in the middle trying to keep the C-suite and their teams happy, Hendry says this cohort is also experiencing the most burnout. “Designing offices with a diversity of spaces suitable for different types of work is extraordinarily important in empowering individuals to be productive throughout their day,” she says.

This can include pods, phone booths and other enclosures, as well as using innovative sound-insulating furnishings and surface sprays, plus technical acoustic solutions such as ceiling baffles and wall cladding, to absorb noise.

JLL and EMOTIV’s science of work study discovered that while noise can be distracting, deathly quiet is also less than ideal. Soundscapes and white-noise generators may be common in offices of the future and some firms are already experimenting with these as they seek to create the perfect working environment.