Communications of the ACM
The Rise of the Triple Peak Day
About 30 percent of Microsoft employees in the study had an evening spike in work.
Credit: Leonie Bos
Findings from Microsoft and its researchers suggest that the 9-to-5 workday is fading in an age of remote and hybrid work and more flexible hours. Traditionally, knowledge workers had two productivity peaks in their workday: before lunch and after lunch. But a third peak has emerged for some in the hours before bedtime. Microsoft researchers refer to this phenomenon as a "triple peak day."
Parents who tend to children in the afternoon make up for it by working in the evening. Others optimize work-from-anywhere flexibility by varying their hours. Some just require the extra breathing room, away from pings and business calls.
The findings bear out a more general trend: In the era of hybrid work, people are looking for flexibility.
"With the triple peak, people have the ability to do what they need to do in the moment and still have time to work later on. That's super important as far as reducing stress levels," says Mary Czerwinski, a research manager of the human understanding and empathy group at Microsoft Research.
From Microsoft
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