About 70 percent of US companies have adopted an open office. The benefit of having an open office is that it maximizes space while keeping down costs, since it reduces the cost per square foot of each employee. But the amount of distractions employees encounter often hurt productivity. As the CIO of the company, there are ways that you can reduce distractions through the use of technology.

TURN OFF COMPUTER SOUNDS

Computer sounds are a major source of interruption and are distracting for many employees.

NOISE CANCELLING HEADPHONES

Noise cancelling headphones have become a must-have in office accessories.  By wearing noise cancelling headphones, it indicates that the employee is busy and doesn’t want to be interrupted, as well as eliminates background noises within the office.

MASK THE SOUND BY INCREASING BACKGROUND NOISE

This one may sound a little funny, increasing noise helps to eliminate it?  It actually works.  White noise (like a small fan running at your employees’ desks), makes conversations sound unintelligible to the listener.

WORK AT NON-PEAK TIMES

Stagger employees schedules or allow remote working capabilities. One of the best ways to work in a quiet office is to do it when most people aren’t at work.  By offering a flexible work environment, employees will have the ability to stagger their schedule to reflect their needs.

QUIET ZONES

Most companies who have an open office, have incorporated areas that are quiet zones.  By having the quiet area integrated to technology, it will allow for an easy transition from the desk to the quiet zone when time is of the urgency.

While there are many benefits to an open office, a recent study suggests that distractions have the potential to cause 86 minutes of lost productivity a day. Taking a few measures to eliminate distractions throughout the work day is important to achieve a productive, positive office environment.