Microsoft Boss Satya Nadella Flags Late-Night Emails, Ever-Expanding Office Hours

New Delhi: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has flagged the perils of long work hours as more and more companies shift to a remote working model.

Speaking at the Wharton Future of Work Conference, he said employee well-being could be negatively affected by long work hours for an extended period of time, which has become the new normal now.

Nadella felt maintaining a healthy balance between professional and personal life is important if companies want to get the best out of their employees.

According to a recent Microsoft survey, productivity is at its peak before and after lunch. However, the remote working model has brought with it a “third peak” of productivity, which occurs late in the evening.

Nadella emphasised that managers need to have clear rules and expectations for their employees so they’re not forced to answer emails late at night.

“We think about productivity through collaboration and output metrics, but well-being is one of the most important pieces of productivity,” Nadella said.

“We know what stress does to workers. We need to learn soft skills, good old-fashioned management practices, so people have their well-being taken care of. I can set that expectation, that our people can get an email from the CEO on the weekend and not feel that they have to respond,” the Microsoft CEO added.

“I’m learning everyday,” Nadella said when asked whether he avoids sending his employees work-related communications late in the night.

The Microsoft study found that about 30 per cent of company employees experienced “peaks” of productivity in the morning and afternoon and, to a lesser extent, at around 10 pm.

It also revealed that since the start of the pandemic the average workday has expanded by 46 minutes, or 13 per cent. It also showed that time spent on after-hours work is growing significantly, at 28 per cent.