The modern work environment would be simply unrecognisable to an employee from the middle of the 20th century. Communications technology, flexible working arrangements, global and virtual teams and 24/7 operations have combined to make the workplace a more challenging place in terms of focus and decision-making.

Employees at all levels are inundated with information, opinion and demands, meaning that being able to cut through the noise and prioritise key tasks, making best use of our limited time and attention, is what really matters. We’ve all experienced the sense of dissatisfaction at the end of a working day when we feel predictably tired – but with little of substance to show for our efforts.

We emphasise a need to move away from an old-fashioned emphasis on hours worked to a contemporary focus on quality and timely outputs. Indeed, from our perspective, improved productivity may result in fewer outputs – but all delivered to a higher quality, more efficiently and at the right time. All with a lower cost to wellbeing.

We know that employees need to balance productivity with wellbeing and need to be able to respond to changes in their environment in an effective and professional way. A single email can make all the difference to someone’s schedule – and their mental health, for better or worse.