November 8, 2017
Deus ex machina; what will the coming era of automation and robotics mean for the workplace?
The only two things we know for certain about the era of robotics and automation in the workplace are that it will be with us far sooner than many of us expect, and its implications will be far reaching and unlike those most routinely anticipated. However, a clear picture is beginning to emerge about its implications for workplace designers and managers as well as property owners and workers themselves. On 23 November at an event hosted by Vitra in London, a panel of workplace and technology experts including Neil Usher, Kerstin Sailer and Mark Eltringham will present the most up to date thinking on the subject, challenge preconceptions and myths and illuminate a world that is just around the corner. If you’re interested in attending please email rsvp_uk@vitra.com. Full details below.
Office rents have begun to slip across Central London, and the chief reasons could be uncertainty around the outcome of the Brexit talks and the UK seemingly missing out on the rising level of global trade, suggests Cluttons’ London Office Market Bulletin Autumn 2017. While the report highlights that many locations in Central London have seen headline office rents hold steady for the better part of two years, rent free periods have been moving out in order to sustain this, but now appear to be at a critical tipping point, level, which is driving some landlords to consider alternative incentives, such as delayed completions. Freddie Pritchard-Smith, Head of commercial office agency at Cluttons said: “Many firms remain nervous about making a long-term commitment to more space, choosing either flexible overflow space or to reconfigure within their existing office. The exception to this of course remains the serviced office and TMT sectors, who have helped transactional levels in the West End to surpass 4 million sq ft already this year, which is paradoxical to the falling rental conditions.”
Despite recent figures indicating that work productivity is down in Britain, the UK remains a highly attractive country for employers and employees based on a combination of talent, location, quality of life and cost, according to the latest edition of Colliers International’s European Cities of Influence report. The analysis of 50 major European economic cities for employers saw London retain its top position, with all other UK cities in the analysis featuring in the top 20 (Birmingham, Edinburgh, Manchester, Bristol and Glasgow).The report finds that quality of life factors are important to accelerate business and attract talent with the research revealing that the nature of workplace strategy is evolving so rapidly that keeping up — let alone staying ahead of the curve — can be a challenge. Employers are now focused on creating a workplace that can attract and retain talent by incorporating co-working and collaborative facilities, flexible working options and ingraining a healthy mindset. With the onus on keeping employees happy and productive, the design and utilization of the workplace is helping to accelerate business productivity more than ever before.
The future workplace will replace familiar, rigid hierarchies and departments with small, collaborative networks of teams and the lines between individual organisations and ecosystems will blur as companies increasingly cast their net wider to innovate. This is one of the predictions made in a Fujitsu-commissioned whitepaper ‘
The London office market remains a buoyant market despite Brexit uncertainty, as many organisations see it as the most prestigious location for businesses of any size. In 
Businesses are concerned about the pace of commitment to improving the UK’s infrastructure, and a record number of firms are dissatisfied with the state of infrastructure in their region. With the UK currently ranking 27th in the world for the quality of its infrastructure, nearly all (96 percent) of businesses in the 2017 CBI/AECOM Infrastructure Survey see infrastructure as important (of which 55 percent view it as critical) to the Government’s agenda. From the Clean Growth Strategy and the £500 billion infrastructure pipeline to its decision to build a new runway at Heathrow and press ahead with the A303 tunnel, the Government has made clear its commitment to British infrastructure. However, only one in five firms is satisfied with the pace of delivery (20 percent) and almost three quarters (74 percent) doubt infrastructure will improve over this Parliament. This lack of confidence is attributed primarily to policy inconsistency (+94 percent of firms) & political risk (+86 percent). The digital sector is the exception, however, where 59 percent of firms are confident of improvements.
October 20, 2017
Seven workplace stories we think you should read this week (apart from ours)
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Facilities management, Technology, Workplace design
Automation and Artificial Intelligence bullshit
Science in the gig economy
The seven deadly sins of AI predictions
The flight of people back to the suburbs
The changing psychology of the workplace
The rock and roll workplace