Two screens on every desk is a common sight in offices now. Is the second screen actually making people faster, or is it just how offices look these days? For most office jobs, it pays for itself. It depends on the work, though.

Where it helps

A second screen saves time by cutting down on switching between windows. Each switch costs a few seconds and a little concentration. Over a few hundred switches a day, that adds up. Two screens help most when someone is:

• Copying details from one program into another, like invoices into accounting software or client notes into a booking system

• Writing an email or document while reading something else

• On a video call, with notes or the shared document on the other screen

• Comparing two versions of a document, spreadsheet or drawing

For admin, bookkeeping, rostering, case notes and customer service, people notice the difference on the first day.

Where it helps less

In jobs that need long stretches of focus on one thing, like writing a report, a second screen can get in the way. Email and chat sit in the corner of your eye all day. Some people also work better with one large screen, such as a 27-inch or an extra-wide model, than with two smaller screens and a frame down the middle. The aim is more useful space, not more screens for the sake of it.

Setting it up well

• Check the computer can run two screens before you buy. Most newer computers and laptop docking stations can.

• Use matching screens where you can. When both are the same size and sharpness, moving windows between them feels natural.

• Put the screens at eye height, with the main one straight in front and the second angled beside it. That stops necks and shoulders straining.

• Give laptops a docking station. Staff plug in one cable and get both screens, the keyboard, the mouse and power.

An easy win

As spending on productivity goes, a second screen is about as safe as it gets. It's a small one-off cost, and in most office jobs it pays for itself quickly. Elevated IT can supply monitors, docks and stands and set them up across your office, so everything works when staff sit down. Call us on 1800 620 449.