The traditional ‘watercooler moment’ in the workplace may be on its way out, with only one in 10 employees now engaging in casual chats at this once popular office spot.
A survey of 2,000 workers revealed that they often have informal conversations with colleagues in unexpected places such as the office car park (15 per cent) or lift (14 per cent).
Behavioural neuroscientist Dr Lynda Shaw emphasises that these casual exchanges are crucial for productivity.
The research, carried out by Jakemans, underscores the significance of Monday morning chats in enhancing employee morale and focus for the forthcoming week. Dr Shaw elaborated: “After a weekend of activities with family and friends, it’s helpful to get our heads into ‘work-mode’ on Monday morning.”
She added: “This means those seemingly ‘unimportant’ conversations are actually extremely important to ensure we have the opportunity to download our thoughts with someone willing to be a sounding board.
“Of course, this should be a mutual exercise, and once achieved we can get on with work. Working from home means we need those Monday morning conversations even more, so, making sure we have them with others, even online, means we will feel far more motivated.”
The study also disclosed that 64 per cent of workers prefer to catch up with colleagues before commencing their Monday tasks, and a whopping 86 per cent believe maintaining good personal relationships with co-workers is essential.
Interestingly, research has found that nearly a quarter of employees remain in touch with colleagues over the weekend, with almost three-quarters regularly exchanging texts or WhatsApp messages and over a quarter meeting up in person.
It appears that what employees miss most about being in the office is the social aspect, with 31 per cent missing casual conversations during coffee breaks, 25 per cent missing communal lunches, and 24 per cent missing sharing laughs with colleagues about work challenges.
Commenting on the findings, Elizabeth Hughes-Gapper from Jakemans said: “Our relationships and conversations are what boosts our morale for the week ahead.”
She continued: “We depend on them to keep us driven and could be the contributing factors as to why Mondays seem to be the day people find most productive.”
Most talked about topics on a Monday:
- Weekend activities / what you got up to at the weekend
- The weather
- Netflix/ TV shows/ movies
- Family / kids
- Sport / sports fixtures
- Holidays
- Food and drink
- Weekend plans for the next weekend
- Politics
- Music