Talkative colleagues is the number one distraction in the Singapore and global workplace, according to a recent Robert Walters survey.

In the survey, 40% of Singapore respondents say pesky colleagues are the biggest distraction, followed by internet surfing and personal email. On the other hand, only 7% of respondents say they are distracted by smoke breaks and a further 7% by personal calls. The statistics do not differ much when compared to global employees.

Mark Ellwood, managing director of Robert Walters Singapore suggests, “Many of us spend our day glued to a computer screen and our professional interaction with colleagues tends to rely heavily on email communication. Not only has the need for office-chatter been reduced by technology, we may now see it as a distraction from our work.”