Global audio and video brand EPOS has launched findings examining the impact poor audio quality is having on the productivity levels of remote workers. The research found that poor audio quality causes our brains to work harder to process information. It also found that the brain undergoes significant strain when struggling to process digital audio in comparison to sounds in a physical environment.

Following the onset of Covid-19, there has been an influx of research on the long-lasting cognitive issues related to the global health crisis as well as how lockdowns and other societal shifts have affected mental health. However, there has been little research on the impact of communicating primarily through digital solutions. Sound significantly impacts cognitive function because the ear is just a vehicle to the brain that perceives and translates a series of electronic nerve signals. With much of the global workforce continuing to work remotely, background noises remain an impediment to productivity and potentially a risk to health, as it relates to levels of stress. Workforces today are largely unaware of how background noises affect them, and it is only by addressing the issue that we can begin to unlock new levels of wellbeing and productivity.