Your company has established a designated “quiet time” from 1:00 to 3:00 every afternoon, during which office phones, IM, and email are disabled so that people can concentrate on planning, researching, writing, and other intensive tasks without being interrupted. However, a number of people continue to flout the guidelines by leaving their mobile phones on, saying their families and friends need to able to reach them. With all the various ringtones going off at random, the office is just as noisy as it was before. What is the best response?

a. Agree to reactivate the office phone system if everyone will shut off their mobile phones, but have all incoming calls routed through a receptionist who will take messages for all routine calls and deliver a note if an employee truly is needed in an emergency.

b. Give up on quiet time; with so many electronic gadgets in the workplace today, you’ll never achieve peace and quiet.

c. Get tough on the offenders by confiscating mobile phones whenever they ring during quiet time.

d. Without telling anyone, simply install one of the available mobile phone jamming products that block incoming and outgoing mobile phone calls.