Talkative colleagues the most distractive influence at work

Australia

Talkative co-workers are the most common distraction for office workers, according to a global poll of 600 candidates by recruitment specialists Robert Walters.

When asked their most time consuming distraction at work, 48% of those polled responded ‘talkative colleagues’, 34% said personal e-mail and internet browsing, 8% claimed social networking sites, 6% smoking breaks and 5% personal calls and/or text messages.

These global results were largely mirrored in Australia, where 50% of professionals polled said talkative colleagues were the most time-consuming office distraction, followed by 38% stating personal e-mail or internet. Surprisingly however, only 2.5% claimed social networking sites were the most distractive influence – one of the lowest results across the globe, with smoking breaks (5%) and personal calls/text messages (4%) deemed a greater distraction.

Attitudes did vary somewhat across the globe with 70% of office workers in New Zealand, 67% in Hong Kong and 62% in Ireland claiming talkative colleagues were the most time consuming distraction at work. Professionals in South Africa had different concerns – 56% of respondents there claimed personal e-mail and internet usage was the biggest office distraction.

James Nicholson, MD of Robert Walters, Australia comments:

“This survey produced some interesting and surprising results. Many organisations presume that social networking sites and the misuse of internet and email are the most common distractions at work. However, it appears that across the globe and throughout Australia – talkative colleagues are the most distractive influence. Dialogue with colleagues can fuel productivity but a lot of the time professionals are engaging in conversations that are not relevant, productive or strengthening corporate relationships and networks. Of course, the odd chat during the day can provide a welcome break and increase productivity in the long-term, however there is a balance that needs to be struck.”

For more information please contact Steven Coxall or telephone +61 (0) 2 8289 319