What if the biggest mental health risk at work isn’t burnout but noise?

On any given workday, employees across industries endure a barrage of sound. Conversations overlap, phones ring, keyboards clatter and printers hum. While most of these noises seem trivial in isolation, together they form a relentless background that grinds down focus and energy.

The World Health Organization has long warned that exposure to prolonged noise raises stress hormones and can contribute to anxiety, sleep disturbance and cardiovascular risk. Yet in corporate discussions about wellbeing, noise has rarely commanded the same attention as ergonomics, lighting or flexible working. That is beginning to change.

“Conversations around mental health have expanded beyond ergonomics and wellness zones to include an often-overlooked factor: office acoustics,” said Kunal Sharma, CEO and Founder of Flipspaces. “Poor acoustics marked by echoing voices, ringing phones or constant background noise can increase cognitive fatigue and irritability, ultimately lowering productivity and workplace satisfaction.”

The modern open-plan office was designed to foster collaboration and break down barriers. But its legacy is far more complicated. Research by the University of Sydney found that employees in open-plan layouts reported significantly higher levels of dissatisfaction with noise than those in private offices. A separate study published in the Harvard Business Review found that instead of promoting collaboration, open-plan offices often led workers to withdraw and rely more heavily on digital communication to avoid interruptions.

“Constant background noise, ringing phones, and overlapping conversations may seem like small distractions, but over time they can erode focus, heighten stress levels, and affect emotional balance,” said Maanoj Tomar, Founder of AFC System Private Limited. “Good design is not just about aesthetics — it’s about empathy. Every element of a workspace should contribute to how people feel while they work.”

The paradox is stark: offices built for transparency now risk undermining both productivity and wellbeing.

For human resource leaders, noise is a peculiar challenge because it often hides in plain sight. Few employees write “the office is too loud” in surveys. Instead, the issue appears cloaked in terms such as “distractions,” “hard to concentrate” or “difficulty focusing.”

At Shivtek Spechemi Industries, such patterns are common. “Through our regular check-ins, team feedback loops, and pulse surveys, we consistently see noise and lack of quiet space emerging as recurring concerns,” said Pankaj Pandey, HR Head. “While not every comment is directly labelled under ‘noise,’ terms like distractions or need for quiet zones appear frequently, indicating that acoustics play a silent but significant role in day-to-day stress levels.”

But this picture is not uniform. At DBS India, noise seldom features as a direct complaint. “Based on thorough assessments, noise or lack of quiet space has not surfaced as a theme in employee insights,” said Navin Chaudhary, Executive Director and Head – Rewards.

The difference may lie in infrastructure. DBS has invested in wellness spaces, privacy pods, quiet zones and calming areas across its offices in Mumbai and Chennai, with similar features planned elsewhere. Chaudhary added: “Beyond physical design, employees and their families have 24/7 access to our Employee Assistance Programme, yoga classes and sound healing workshops.”

This divergence highlights a central truth: where organisations act pre-emptively, the problem is less likely to escalate into employee distress. Where they do not, noise festers as a silent stressor.

The shift to hybrid working has layered new forms of stress on top of physical distractions. The barrage of video calls, instant messages and notifications has created what experts call “digital noise.”

“We recognise that constant video calls, emails and notifications can create significant digital noise,” said DBS’s Chaudhary. “That is why we have implemented meeting optimisation practices, Focus Time on Fridays with no scheduled meetings, and Well-being Wednesdays.”

Pandey agreed that digital noise compounds the issue. “In hybrid environments, employees face both digital fatigue and physical distractions. Clear policies such as meeting-free hours, asynchronous work and dedicated focus periods can help reduce overload.”

Research backs this up. Microsoft’s 2022 Work Trend Index found that employees spent 252% more time in online meetings compared with 2020, driving reports of fatigue and disengagement. The blurring of physical and digital soundscapes has made acoustic wellbeing a multi-dimensional problem.

Noise does not affect all employees equally. For neurodivergent workers and those with sensory sensitivities, office soundscapes can be overwhelming.

“At DBS India, we collaborate with employee resource groups to embed inclusive design principles and gather diverse perspectives early in the planning process,” Chaudhary said. “Wellness spaces, quiet zones, privacy pods and phone booths help create a workplace that values inclusivity and emotional well-being.”

Shivtek’s Pandey echoed the point: “Inclusive design isn’t just about physical space but about building a work environment where everyone can focus, feel calm and perform at their best.”

This focus on inclusion aligns with broader workplace trends. A 2023 survey by Deloitte found that 80% of employees believed inclusive design features such as quiet areas or sensory-friendly spaces improved their engagement and mental wellbeing.

Even the most sophisticated design interventions can falter without cultural reinforcement. Managers are often the first line of defence in shaping how teams balance collaboration with quiet focus.

“Managers play an important role in shaping how teams approach focus and collaboration,” said DBS’s Chaudhary. “Our leadership programmes equip them to set norms around meeting discipline, communication practices and deep work hours.”

Pandey emphasised the need for team-level agreements. “Encouraging ‘deep work’ hours where notifications and calls are minimised helps teams focus better. Clear norms and open conversations about preferences can balance collaboration with the need for uninterrupted time.”

The managerial challenge is to normalise respect for silence without eroding the collaborative fabric of teams.

While approaches vary, leaders agree that noise must move from being treated as a background inconvenience to a strategic priority.

“Organisations must integrate acoustics into the core of workplace design,” said Flipspaces’ Sharma. “Early collaboration between designers, architects and acoustic consultants ensures noise management is woven into the planning process. By reimagining acoustics as a wellness priority, companies can create spaces that support focus, calm and creativity.”

For Tomar, the principle is simple: “When workspaces are designed to care for people, wellbeing becomes effortless, and productivity becomes a natural outcome.”

The evidence is mounting. Studies published in The Lancet have shown that chronic exposure to workplace noise raises the risk of stress-related illness. Data from the British Council for Offices found that 65% of employees believe noise negatively affects their productivity. The Wall Street Journal has reported rising demand for acoustic consultants as companies retrofit offices for post-pandemic work.

Taken together, the message is clear: sound is no longer a marginal consideration. It is a determinant of employee health, inclusion and performance.

On World Mental Health Day, the call is urgent. Employers must listen — not only to what workers say, but to the environments they inhabit. For too long, the soundscape of work has been ignored. If wellbeing is to be more than a slogan, it is time to make silence a design principle and acoustic care a cultural norm.

Because the true sound of stress is not silence. It is the noise we fail to notice until it has already worn us down.