Something for the weekend: Forget trying to boost morale and energise your team with virtual group yoga sessions, time out with the digital office dog, online pod walkathons, and by posting snacks and drinks to them in place of the Friday night office get together (although make no mistake, the latter does play a vital role).
No, the secret to improving productivity and employee wellbeing could be as simple as listening to Ed Sheeran crooning Shape of You, according to smart home specialist Somfy, which crunched data from Spotify to discover the 10 most popular songs home workers have been playing during their working hours.
The research found people have created more than 1,000 dedicated work from home playlists, covering 187,450 songs throughout 2020.
The top 10 choices throw some light on the mindset of the UK's homeworking force - no dirges here - in fact, most are fast-paced, energetic, upbeat tunes.
Coming in at number one is Ed Sheeran with Shape of You, who also grabs tenth place with Perfect. Second favourite on the home workers playlist is Dance Monkey by Tones And I, followed by Blinding Lights from The Weekend and the Chainsmokers’ hit Closer. Other favourites include Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi, Señorita from Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello and Bad Guy by Billie Eilish.
However, a deeper dive down the playlists also revealed some ironic - and perhaps darker - choices including the Work From Home hit by Fifth Harmony, found in the top 50, along with the classic Nine to Five by Dolly Parton, Stressed Out by TwentyOne Pilots and Stuck with U by Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber.
Here at Employee Benefits, we are all bands on deck when it comes to boosting morale with a few tunes. We are also never averse to raising productivity levels with a virtual office rave, which may explain why the neighbours keep hammering on our adjoining walls.
