Almost All Workers are Distracted by Audio Pain Points, Study Finds

New research from global market research firm IPSOS and audio brand EPOS finds 95% of audio end-users and decision makers experience pain points relating to sound that affect their concentration or efficiency at work.

Common complaints include being disturbed by loud colleagues (50%), overall noise levels in working environments (48%) and interruptions from colleagues (46%).

These findings and more are revealed in EPOS’ ‘Understanding Sound Experiences’ Report, which surveyed 2,500 end-users and decision makers of audio equipment, over 75% of whom work in organizations of over 200 people.

Remote communication encourages flexible working, but also has its downsides: 44% of end users report poor sound quality while making phone calls, and 39% the same with internet calls.

In total, 87% of end-users surveyed have experienced at least one pain point due to poor sound quality on calls, whether in the office or working from home. These include background noise (42%), having to repeat yourself (34%) and asking for information to be repeated (34%).

The survey says audio pain points cause a number of costs for companies that lack access to high-quality audio technology.

More from the report:

The time cost: On average end-users are losing 29 minutes per week due to poor sound quality on voice calls, time spent double checking information via follow-up emails or calls. For the average full-time worker, this equates to just over three days of lost time per year.
The productivity cost: This time wasted contributes to a productivity cost to the employer. Looking for example at the average UK wage according to OECD data, 29 minutes a week equates to £389.48 (UK) per employee, per year of salary spent on needless work. For organizations with 10 employees, this is a productivity loss resulting in £3,894.80 wasted expenditure per year. Extrapolated further, businesses that employee over 100 people risk losing over £30,000 per annum in this way.
The business cost: It’s not just productivity that can suffer due to bad audio quality. According to decision makers, poor audio quality on calls has meant dissatisfied clients (23%), financial loss due to incorrectly undertaking a task (18%), loss of a key piece of work / a deal resulting in financial loss to the company (18%), or even loss of a pitch / tender (19%).

“It is clear that employees would benefit from higher quality audio solutions to support their productivity and well-being as remote working becomes more popular,” comments Theis Moerk, Vice President of Product Management, Enterprise Solutions.

“It’s a positive development that 93% of decision makers are planning to purchase new equipment within the next 12 months, motivated in large part by the desire to keep up with the latest technology.”

If you enjoyed this article and want to receive more valuable industry content like this, click here to sign up for our digital newsletters!