Allowing employees to sleep at work can reduce stress and boost productivity, writes Rhymer Rigby

MOST OF us finding a colleague asleep at work would probably make a quip about laziness. Yet some companies take a different stance on workplace napping.

At its Geneva offices, Procter Gamble has three EnergyPods, which resemble loungers with a space-age half-dome wrapped over the headrest, made by a company called MetroNaps.

"The pods are designed to provide users with a quick recharge that can help maximise the rejuvenating effects of a brief nap," MetroNaps says. "This, in turn, helps users do more with their day from both a professional and personal point of view."

The pods have proved popular, especially with sleep-deprived employees such as those with young children and frequent business travellers.

Cisco Systems' new North Carolina offices also boast a pair of pods. "We're interested in employee wellbeing," explains community relations manager Kirsten Weeks. The technology company has a variety of ways for people to recharge their batteries, she says. "One of these is napping. Employees power-nap [for about 15 to 20 minutes] and come out refreshed . . . you can set the pod to vibrate to wake you up."

Other businesses that have installed EnergyPods include PricewaterhouseCoopers and Google.

Companies are encouraging 40 winks, says MetroNaps co-founder Christopher Lindholst, because it "improves alertness, mood and makes you more productive and reduces stress". Health, he says, has three pillars - exercise, nutrition and sleep - and, while companies have traditionally taken an interest in the first two, they are only just waking up to the last.

"Sleep pods provide a feeling of security," Lindholst says. "People feel that the outside won't bother them. You have a visor that blocks out light and music plays in the unit."

He adds that 15 to 20 minutes is ideal as it refreshes you but does not send you into the deep sleep that leaves you feeling groggy afterwards.

MetroNaps are not the only pods on the market. Lee McCormack is the British designer of a new pod called the Oculas OV2, which completely encloses the user. "A lot of businesses, especially in the US, have shown interest in it," he says. "It's not just sleep, it can be light therapy, relaxation, or time for reflection or meditation. In today's open-plan world, we sometimes need to put ourselves in a place where we can shut the world out."

William Anthony, a professor in rehabilitation sciences at Boston University and author of The Art of Napping at Work, welcomes the arrival of sleep pods in offices.

However, he cautions that their adoption by a clutch of companies does not signal the demise of the long-hours culture. He says that, while pods and designated rooms can be useful aids to napping, they are really not necessary: it is more about culture.

"If someone wants a nap, they'll either do it publicly or secretly," he says.

"Nappers are resourceful. You find people putting their heads on sweaters on their desks, going out in the parking lot to nap in their cars or even sleeping on the toilet."

What is needed, he says, is a napping policy. "Most employers do not allow sleeping - there is still that prejudice. It is thought of as lazy and unproductive, when often it is exactly the opposite."

The solution, he believes, lies with employees challenging the culture and insisting a nap is equivalent to a coffee break.

Most nappers, he says, do not need high-tech sleep solutions: "They just need permission." - (Financial Times service)