At times, the office can feel like a circus where you are constantly interrupted by questions about this and comments about that. All the hustle and bustle makes it difficult to concentrate and that’s why you need excellent headsets to ensure you get to work in peace.
Today, people are more aware than ever of the noise all around them and they want get rid of it. This applies to us too at Jabra, but unlike other hard workers, we’re lucky to be in a special position regarding the matter. We have a wealth of expertise in-house – after all, we manufacture hearing aids as well as headsets for professional use. We understand the structure and function of the ear and speech production and utilise this knowledge in developing better than ever sound technology. In this blog article, I’ll present the most common problems that an excellent headset can solve.
Noise, poor audibility and interruptions, the plagues of the workplace
Noise is the most common problem in open-plan offices: one colleague is talking on the phone, another one is showing a customer around the office and some others are holding a powwow at the next work station. Even if you have the best concentration in the world, everyday life in the office can be one big circus at times and this makes working much harder than it needs to be. In an office setting like this, the most important function of a headset is to eliminate the noise from the environment around you.
Another problem is poor audibility. It’s not enough that you can hear what the person at the other end of the line is saying, the dialogue has to work well both ways. When you’re on the phone, it’s important to protect yourself from noise so you can concentrate on the subject at hand, but it’s equally important to have a high-quality microphone that shields the person at the other end from disruptive background noise. This ensures that they can hear what you’re saying and the usual calls of “Hello! Can you hear me?” become history.
It’s not enough that you can hear what the person at the other end of the line is saying, the dialogue has to work well both ways.
The third problem is interruptions, which research shows are a huge issue in open-plan offices. Did you know that if you’re interrupted when in a focused state, it takes about 23 minutes to regain the same level of concentration? Research also shows that the average office worker is interrupted as often as every 10 minutes during the average day. There’s no doubt that we need new methods to help us maintain our intense focus at work and to limit the number of disturbances around us.
Different jobs require different headsets
Today there are countless forms of work and ways of working, and that’s why we need many different kinds of headsets. Speech professionals, such as customer service employees and Telia VIP phone service operators may have to wear a headset all day, which means that the headset must be comfortable. Cordless and light DECT headsets are an excellent option for them. Other kinds of office workers need different features. Active noise cancellation headsets reduce the noise from the environment and bring peace to the working day. Jabra headsets can also be equipped with an integrated busylight, similar to the light on a doctor’s door, to show colleagues when the wearer is available and when not.
Ways of working have also changed, and this means that communication has to be smooth despite the distance and location. Headsets can create the illusion that you’re talking face to face when in fact you may be at different ends of the world. Instead of the traditional negotiating room, meetings can now take place while driving a car, for example, and this is when you need a cordless Bluetooth connection in your headset. Jabra’s headsets are also available with Microsoft certification, which means that they work in sync with the Skype for Business negotiating service.
To find the best headset for you, you have to try them on. However, I’m convinced that the trouble of searching is well worth it, because smooth communication in the workplace has never been as important as it is today. It doesn’t matter how sophisticated the computers and phones you use are – if people can’t hear each other, you have a communication breakdown. Headsets are the final piece in a well-functioning, productive workplace. Make sure yours are up to the challenge!
