The unheard productivity crisis: why noise is the next workplace metric

This article is the first in a three-part series exploring the rising impact of noise on the modern workplace.

Workplaces today are more collaborative, more hybrid, and more activity-based than ever before, yet the role of sound remains one of the least understood aspects of the workplace experience. Across industries, employees identify noise as a source of fatigue, distraction, and miscommunication, while organisations continue to overlook it as a strategic design and performance variable.

This series examines why noise has become a defining workplace challenge, how organisations can better understand it, and what emerging practices and technologies will shape the future of auditory experience at work.

Auditory health affects the whole person. Research shows that sound influences emotional states, stress responses, and mood regulation. Pleasant or steady auditory environments can support calm and clarity. Unpredictable or intrusive noise can elevate tension and reduce a sense of control. Extended exposure to disruptive sound can also lead to auditory fatigue, a condition in which the mental effort required to listen becomes exhausting. This fatigue affects clarity of thought, decision-making, and the ability to stay engaged in conversation.

The acoustic environment also shapes communication. In active or complex soundscapes, workers often struggle to hear one another clearly, especially during hybrid meetings that combine in-person and virtual participation. Miscommunication increases, repetition becomes common, and discussions require more time and effort. These challenges strain team dynamics and reduce the quality of collaborative work.

‘There is a heightened awareness of how sound affects focus and emotional steadiness’

This connection between sound, fatigue, and communication became more visible as work patterns shifted during and after the pandemic. Many employees spent extended periods in home-based environments where they could manage sound throughout the day. These settings shaped new sensory expectations and a heightened awareness of how sound affects focus and emotional steadiness. When employees returned to shared workplaces, they encountered environments that were more variable, more stimulating, and often less predictable than what they had grown accustomed to at home. Noise quickly emerged as one of the most challenging parts of that transition.

Noise as a cognitive load

Noise interrupts concentration, slows decision-making, and increases the mental effort required to stay engaged. When sound is unpredictable or intrusive, the brain works continuously to filter competing signals. This extra work becomes a form of cognitive load. Over time, that load accumulates and develops into auditory fatigue, where listening itself becomes effortful.

As this fatigue builds, employees report feeling mentally drained, less attentive, and less able to sustain clear thought or participate fully in discussions. Disruptive sound increases the effort required to think, and that effort contributes to the exhaustion many workers now feel by mid-afternoon.

Noise is not just heard. It is processed. That processing shapes clarity, ease of communication, emotional balance, and overall wellbeing.

A growing problem

Leesman, a leading global benchmark organisation that evaluates workplace experience across many companies, consistently identifies noise as one of the most significant barriers to effective work. The research shows an apparent mismatch between what employees need and what most offices provide.

Noise levels are an essential factor for 71% of employees, yet satisfaction with acoustic conditions remains among the lowest across all workplace features. Dissatisfaction with noise correlates strongly with reduced perceived productivity, difficulty sustaining focus, communication strain, and frustration.

Quiet Mark’s USA National Noise Report extends this picture by showing that noise now affects employment decisions, with 68% of potential hires saying workplace noise levels influence whether they accept a job offer. Together, these findings show that noise is not a secondary concern. It is a structural barrier to effective work and a factor in talent attraction and retention.

Real workplace impact

Examples across sectors show that noise affects both performance and emotional wellbeing. In one financial firm, employees reported increased distraction, communication challenges, and auditory fatigue during periods of high activity.

A technology company observed that unpredictable noise conditions influenced remote work preferences and reduced comfort in shared spaces. These patterns show that noise is not simply an environmental issue. It shapes how people experience their workplace and how effectively they participate in their work.

Noise affects culture, energy, and the overall quality of the workday.

Noise as a workplace metric

Sound is an essential part of the workplace experience, yet it is rarely measured with the same attention given to lighting, air quality, or temperature. As organisations redesign their spaces for hybrid work and more fluid collaboration, noise has become a factor that deserves greater focus. Employees consistently identify acoustic conditions as a barrier to effective work, which suggests that sound should be considered a core component of workplace planning.

A growing group of companies is helping organisations better understand and shape their acoustic environments. Solutions from Moodsonic, Soft dB, and Steelcase provide ways to assess sound patterns and create soundscapes that support focus and wellbeing. These tools move beyond simple loudness readings. They capture qualities such as variability, speech clarity, and the rhythm of activity throughout the day, offering leaders a clearer picture of how sound behaves in their spaces and how it influences communication, concentration, and comfort.

Most workplaces, however, still do not integrate sound analysis into their decision-making. Acoustic conditions remain largely unmeasured, even though noise is a persistent source of fatigue, miscommunication, and frustration for employees. This gap points to an opportunity. Considering sound as part of broader workplace metrics can help organisations design environments that better support cognitive and emotional needs. It also enables more informed zoning, space planning, and experience design.

As work becomes more interactive and more reliant on clear communication, the role of sound will continue to grow in importance. Treating noise as an area to be considered allows organisations to create workplaces that not only look well-designed but also feel more supportive and human.

A human centred imperative

Auditory health varies across individuals. Some feel energised by active environments. Others experience emotional strain and listening fatigue when the sound becomes unpredictable. Supporting auditory health is therefore not only a matter of performance. It is a matter of wellbeing.

Auditory health contributes to mood stability, ease of communication, emotional clarity, and the ability to sustain focus throughout the day.

Why It Matters Now

Organisations are reconsidering the role of the office in a post pandemic world. Employees want environments that support cognitive and emotional balance. Leaders want workplaces that bring teams together and strengthen performance. Noise sits at the intersection of both priorities.

Auditory health is becoming a central part of workplace strategy. Advancements in sensing technologies, behavioural insights, and sound design are shaping a new era of intelligent workplaces.

What Comes Next?

Noise is becoming a defining feature of workplace experience. It shapes clarity, communication, energy, and overall wellbeing. As organisations rethink the role of the office, sound will influence how effectively people can focus, connect, and contribute.

Part two of this series will examine how workplaces can use data, sensing technologies, and sound design to better understand their acoustic environments. We will look at how organisations can listen to their spaces, interpret sound patterns, and turn these insights into environments that support healthier and more effective work.

Bill Schiffmiller is the Founder of Akoio® and a Forbes contributor on accessibility and auditory health matters. A lifelong hearing aid user and former leader of Accessibility Initiatives at Apple Retail, he is currently President of the Board at the Hearing, Speech & Deaf Center (HSDC). An entrepreneur and inventor, Bill holds patents in 11 countries and advises organizations on the impact of noise, sound, and hearing on health, performance, and business.