![]() ![]() Knowing that the length of working sprints has increased since the study was first published points towards the tendency of longer work hours, and that the pandemic has accelerated the rate of this growth. The productivity ratio from right before the pandemic was 80/17 – 80 minutes of working sprints followed by an average of 17 minute breaks. To uncover this, we extracted the data from February 2020, right before the pandemic exerted impact on the working lives of people around the world. One important aspect to understand was if the changes in the productivity ratio are only due to the pandemic, or if there was already an observable change before that. Throughout my work, I’ve found that people are spending much more time in meetings than previously.” – Katrina Osleja, Mg.Psych., Organizational Psychologist A growing trend – even before Covid-19 This may be an indicator as to why longer hours are being recorded. Meanwhile, if a meeting used to result in leaving the computer to go to a meeting room, now meetings happen on screen and result in even more computer time. As a result, these breaks are no longer a treat, but rather even more work. Now, they use breaks to put in a load of laundry, help children with schoolwork, make their family lunch, and more. People used to use breaks to make a coffee, stretch their legs, or relieve themselves. When working from home, work and home life responsibilities merge together, and breaks become longer. However, a statistical increase in burnout rates and demand for psychotherapists speaks to the contrary. “At first glance, one may think that working remotely has led to longer breaks, and as such, improved work-life balance. Organizational psychologist, Katrina Osleja, also commented that the rise of online meetings could also contribute to more time spent sitting at the computer. It has also blurred the boundaries between work and life, thus contributing even more to the extra hours worked. The increase in working time can be partially attributed to the work from home model, which has been proven to show that remote workers tend to compensate for not being in the office by working longer hours. ![]() Through dramatically shifting work as we know it, it’s not incomprehensible that the productivity ratio would have shifted. The results of the repeated study need to be observed through the lens of the pandemic, which has taken over work norms for the past year and a half. The pandemic effect – increasing work hours If previously it was found that a person would work at their computers for just under an hour, now they’re spending nearly two hours at a time sitting at their desks. That’s over twice as long of a working sprint, and nearly twice as long of a break. It was found that the top 10% most productive individuals now work at an average rate of 112 minutes, and then take a 26 minute break. 112/26 becomes the new productivity ratio ![]() That study went viral, being referenced in every major news outlet from the BBC and The Atlantic to Inc and FastCompany, referenced in academic journals, and even has had digital tools created based on its findings.ħ years later, we’ve repeated the study to see what’s changed. ![]()
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