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Measuring the Impact of Micro Breaks on Employee Performance and Wellbeing

Problem

Our client wanted to test the impact of 10-minute micro breaks on their employees’ wellbeing and performance.

The client aimed to quantify if implementing and encouraging micro breaks would be a cost-effective strategy to improve employee cognitive performance, productivity, and wellbeing, utilizing evidence-based workplace science.

Current and potential risks: :

Many employees do not feel empowered to take breaks and feel required to be seen at their desks at all times. Back-to-back meetings and high workload are the predominant reasons for not taking breaks.

Studies show that those who take fewer breaks are likely to be more stressed than employees who do. Stress and burnout are key concerns for many employees. Surveys show that 34% of people consider their jobs “very stressful”, with younger employees the most affected.

Method

To address this question, we gathered employee experience, wellbeing, and performance data from over 50 employees, emphasizing our people-centric approach. We collected a variety of data sources over a two-week sprint period,observing employees’ wellbeing and performance in the office.

Employees were measured under three conditions: no break, active break, and mindfulness break. The benefit of running sprint-style research is that it is a cost-effective way to gather insights into specific areas, allowing for quick wins to inform change faster than traditional projects, thereby supporting workplace transformation and innovation.

Findings

A number of positive fndings were noted, principally:

Employees’ cognitive performance, specifically decision-making, significantly improved after active (5% improvement) and mindful breaks (6% improvement).

Employees reported a 7% reduction in stress after taking a mindful break.

88% of employees stated that having an active break reduced their level of fatigue.

Actions

⭕ Work with the HR team to create educational content surrounding scheduled meeting duration, ‘screen fatigue,’ and how to best support cognitive recovery between online interactions, enhancing workplace experience and culture.

⭕ Support the internal wellbeing team to increase

the quantity of physical and mental wellbeing events both in person and remotely, fostering a hybrid approach.

⭕ Provide insights to support management teams on how to lead by example in promoting regular breaks, emphasizing the importance of workplace strategy and effective leadership.

Value

By creating focused educational content, employees are equipped with the right tools to prioritise their own wellbeing. Based on industry statistics, burnout often leads to disengaged employees and, in turn, poorer performance. This could cost employers up to 34% of their annual salary as a result (Forbes). This demonstrates the impact and value of workplace consultancy and innovative solutions.

By supporting and executing mini wellbeing events that can be run over micro-breaks, targeting stress and burnout, employers could significantly reduce employee turnover. Current research shows that between 20% and 50% of employee turnover is linked to burnout (Forbes). This aligns with our commitment to employee retention and creating a supportive workspace.

Key Takeaways

The findings and actions delivered through this project allowed the client to understand the impact of micro breaks and introduce ways of

working to better promote their employees to take regular breaks. This initiative led to a workforce that is:

Higher performing

Less stressed

Less fatigued

Explore more real life examples in our solutions series and discover how our unique experience across elite sport, academic research and the corporate landscape, combined with our scientific and data-driven approach, puts us in a unique position to identify opportunities that can drive increased productivity, performance and positively impact workplace wellbeing.

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