Despite huge investment in digital tools, individual productivity continues to be sapped by back-to-back meetings, overwhelming amounts of email, and constant interruptions. Is the problem technical or is it cultural? This blog explores what is happening, why, and how IT can effect change through a better-designed digital workplace – one that enables true asynchronous work, powered by Microsoft 365.
The Problem: Endless Notifications, Constant Pings, Zero Focus
Recent years have seen huge emphasis on communication, collaboration, and knowledge sharing tools to increase individual and organisational productivity.
But in many organisations, emails and meetings are still the default. And widely used for project updates, sharing files, answering quick questions, solving problems, and aligning teams. This creates a constant state of interruption, where deep work is rare and time is wasted on repeat conversations or hunting for info buried in inboxes.
Good time management used to mean planning only fifty per cent of your time. With the other half for those things outside your control. But many modern knowledge workers can only dream of having this much time at their discretion.
This is a problem for IT leadership.
IT wants to be seen as an essential enabler, with a seat at the top table, and contributing to the organisation’s success. But, there’s typically a link between successful initiatives and future IT investment. So, if employees continue to be bogged down, this isn’t just a business productivity issue. It’s also a sign that today’s digital workplace isn’t working as it should.
This may also impact IT operationally, with support calls and complaints about “too many platforms”, cumbersome processes, or not knowing where to find the latest file.
Why Is This Happening?
Is this a technical problem or a people problem?
The root causes vary from organisation to organisation, but there can be elements of both involved.
When there isn’t a coherent vision and strategy for an organisation’s digital workplace it often results in a collection of individually good technologies which aren’t working together. Vision, strategy and implementation need to be combining to produce a connected digital workplace. If there isn’t a single central place for information, people default to asking or calling others.
Knowing where to go is one thing, but this also needs to be clear, intuitive, and easy to use – which means a clear structure and easy and reliable search.
But there are also human reasons why a digital workplace might not be working as it should. While some employees will quickly and enthusiastically adopt new technologies and tools, others don’t. Humans are fundamentally, creatures of habit. While they may understand that they can now post a link to a shared file in Teams, some continue to send files as attachments in lengthy email chains. Instead of saving files to SharePoint they continue to store them in personal OneDrives – creating confusion over which version is the most current.
If tools aren’t consistently used, are siloed, or unfamiliar, employees fall back on what’s easiest: ‘just send it over email’ or ‘let’s jump on a quick call.’
So, there may also be also challenges around adoption.
The Alternative: A Digital Workplace That Supports Asynchronous Work
You’re probably familiar with ‘asynchronous’ in the context of serial data in communications. ‘Asynchronous work’ describes a way of working in which employees collaborate without needing to be actively present and responsive at the same time. It’s a powerful concept, and not just for organisations with flexible or multi-time-zone working.
Asynchronous collaboration happens when tools, content, and people are connected in a way that lets work happen without waiting on meetings or other direct interactions.
A modern digital workplace gives employees the ability to stay aligned and informed, without needing real-time communication. This can mean fewer meetings, shorter inboxes, and more time for focused work.
With the caveat that it needs to be deliberately and intentionally designed to do so, Microsoft 365 has everything you need to make this happen:
- SharePoint as the source of truth
- Teams for contextual communication
- Power Platform for automation and notifications
- Viva Connections and Engage for surfacing news and knowledge
- Copilot to question, retrieve and summarise your content.
It can enable employees to collaborate at the times that work best for them, easily pick up where others left off, instantly find what they need, and stay informed. Regardless of time or location.
For IT leaders, it can eliminate support ‘noise’, improve higher ROI from existing tech investments, and demonstrate IT’s value in enabling business-wide productivity.
But, as we’ve already noted, humans are creatures of habit (and some are also a little but lazy!). So, change management is an important part of making your digital workplace a success. Initiatives with strong adoption and change management processes are six times more likely to succeed, according to change management specialists Prosci. This is why we’re firm advocates for using a strong programme of communication, leadership and support to help change behaviour and drive adoption. Part of this is about letting people know what they can now do, and how, but it should also be about what they now shouldn’t be doing.
What IT Leaders Can Do — With the Right Support
IT leaders have a crucial role to play in enabling far more productive asynchronous working. However, getting there requires more than just the right tools. It requires an intentional design, built on the right technology foundations, supported by a sound process of change management.
A trusted partner can help you build a programme of activity, aligned to business needs, that will develop your Microsoft 365 infrastructure into an asynchronous digital workplace. The foundation for this is SharePoint, so for many a SharePoint Audit can be a very useful first step.
Cut Through the Noise in Your Digital Workplace
Use our SharePoint Audit Checklist to spot where employees are losing focus — from clunky file storage to poor search — and uncover opportunities to enable true asynchronous working with Microsoft 365.
See What an Asynchronous Workplace Looks Like
Our free Art of the Possible session shows IT leaders how Microsoft 365 and SharePoint can reduce meetings and emails, create a single source of truth, and give employees more time for focused work.
Additional FAQs
How can we reduce time spent in meetings without losing collaboration?
Start by challenging the default: not every conversation needs a meeting. Encourage asynchronous updates via Teams or SharePoint, and use agendas and time-boxing to keep meetings focused.
Leaders can model better habits by declining unnecessary invites and promoting async-first communication. Many organisations are rethinking their meeting culture by designing digital environments that support smarter collaboration. With the right Microsoft 365 setup—think Viva, Copilot, and SharePoint—teams can stay aligned without constant calendar blocks.
Silicon Reef has helped clients embed these tools in ways that genuinely shift behaviours, not just processes.
What’s the best way to tackle email overload in a hybrid workplace?
Email overload is often a symptom of poor digital habits. Shift routine updates and discussions to collaborative platforms like Teams, where visibility and context are easier to manage. Encourage boundaries—checking email at set times, using flags and categories, and unsubscribing from noise. Tools like Viva Insights can help monitor wellbeing and identify patterns.
Organisations that rethink their digital communication strategy often find that email becomes a tool—not a trap. Silicon Reef’s work with Microsoft 365 clients has shown that small changes in platform use can lead to big improvements in focus and flow.
How can Microsoft 365 actually improve productivity across our organisation?
Organisations that take a people-first approach to M365 often see the biggest gains. Silicon Reef’s approach starts with understanding how people work, then shaping the tech around them—so productivity improvements feel natural, not forced.
What are some practical ways to encourage asynchronous communication?
Start by choosing tools that support async collaboration—Teams channels, SharePoint pages, and Viva Engage are great options. Set clear expectations around response times and use tagging to keep updates visible. Leaders should lead by example: record video updates, use shared docs for feedback, and avoid defaulting to meetings. When async-first becomes the norm, teams gain flexibility and focus.
Silicon Reef often supports clients in designing SharePoint spaces and workflows that make asynchronous communication not just possible, but preferred.
How do we measure the impact of digital workplace changes on productivity?
Begin with clarity—define what productivity means for your teams. Use Viva Insights to track collaboration patterns, focus time, and wellbeing. Monitor engagement across platforms like SharePoint and Teams, and combine this with employee feedback to get a full picture. The most effective organisations blend data with human insight. It’s not just about dashboards—it’s about understanding how digital tools are shaping the way people work.
Silicon Reef helps clients interpret these signals and turn them into meaningful, people-led improvements.
