Employees are already drawing up a hit list of tasks to delegate to robots

Employees are already drawing up a hit list of tasks to delegate to robots

by • News, Technology

Nearly two thirds (63 percent) of UK employees would outsource work tasks to a robot if they could, according to research commissioned by software firm ABBYY. For almost a quarter of Brits (24 percent) attending meetings is their most hated work activity. While one in six (17 percent) dislike reviewing long documents and more than one in eight (13 percent) don’t like speaking to customers, these are not jobs that workers want to delegate to robots. The jobs that employees would most like to hand over to a machine are inputting data (16 percent), taking minutes and notes (14 percent) and electronic filing (12 percent).

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Four key points to consider when creating a digital workplace

Four key points to consider when creating a digital workplace

by • Features, Technology

As the use of digital technologies and data to create new value propositions and operating models becomes more commonplace, workplaces across the world are being affected across sectors, from manufacturing to local government. Almost all areas have been touched by the megatrend, whether from own initiatives or to keep up with competitors. However, Arthur D. Little’s Digital Transformation Study reports that almost 80 percent of companies surveyed were only “digitally adaptive”, with digital efforts limited to products and services at best, and no comprehensive approach to adapting their mind-sets. To help traditional organizations adapt sufficiently to compete with digitally minded start-ups, we have identified four key questions to consider when developing digitalization strategies and the creation of a fully digital workplace.

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The week in seven stories about work, technology and people

The week in seven stories about work, technology and people

by • Features, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

Digital addiction: how technology keeps us hooked

Plumber wins gig workers’ rights battle

Why exhaustion is not unique to our overstimulated age

Ten red flags signalling your analytics program will fail

The CEO society and our culture of metric fixation

The bottom line on coworking spaces

It’s time we value our data – as people and society

Unlocking government’s mapping and location data will boost economy by £130m a year

Unlocking government’s mapping and location data will boost economy by £130m a year

by • News, Technology

The UK Government has announced that key parts of its OS MasterMap will now be made openly available for the public and businesses to use. It estimates that this will boost the UK economy by at least £130m each year, as  companies and startups use the data. The release of OS MasterMap data is one of the first projects to be delivered by the new Geospatial Commission, in conjunction with Ordnance Survey. The aim is  to drive forward the UK as a world leader in location data, helping to grow the UK’s digital economy by an estimated £11bn each year. The data can be used for a variety of purposes including navigating public transport, tracking supply chains and logistics. It is also essential for the application of drones and autonomous vehicle technology. Today’s announcement follows the launch of the first GovTech challenge in May this year – a competition designed to incentivise Britain’s tech firms to come up with innovative solutions to improve public services. These competitions will be delivered using the £20m GovTech fund launched in November 2017.

The CIPD says adoption of people analytics in the UK by HR is still too low

The CIPD says adoption of people analytics in the UK by HR is still too low

by • News, Technology, Workplace

CIPD says UK lags behind other markets in people analytics confidence and capabilityOrganisations with a strong people analytics culture are much more likely to report strong business performance claims new global research from the CIPD in association with Workday. However, the survey also highlights that the wide scale adoption of people analytics practice is still low and that more needs to be done to improve skills and confidence in the HR function, particularly in the UK which is lagging behind other markets in both capability and confidence. The research also highlights the importance of access to data. It found that access to people data improves outcomes but only 71 percent of HR professionals have access to this data, and just 42 percent of finance professionals do. For those with access to people data, just 22 percent use it daily in their decision-making and almost a quarter (23 percent) use it in decision-making just once a month or less. The research, People Analytics: driving business performance with people data, surveyed 3,852 business professionals globally – including HR and finance professionals – to understand attitudes towards people analytics and how it is being used in organisations.

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UK skills shift as organisations digitise and automate operations

UK skills shift as organisations digitise and automate operations

by • AI, News, Technology, Workplace

UK skills shift as organisations digitise and automate operationsAlmost half (49 percent) of companies are struggling to find skilled workers as digitisation and automation cause significant change in the skills businesses look for in professionals, according to new data from Robert Half UK. As a result, one fifth (21 percent) are now looking to recruit candidates with exceptional soft skills, with a view to developing the desired technical skills on the job. In the Robert Half research, UK business leaders consider an openness to new ideas (28 percent), an openness to change (26 percent) and good communication abilities (19 percent) as key attributes and will prioritise these areas when considering new talent. Digitisation and automation are rapidly evolving the business world. Companies are having to quickly adapt to the changing world of work, and are looking for employees who can keep pace,” says Matt Weston, UK Managing Director at Robert Half.

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Keeping people at the heart of the modern workplace

Keeping people at the heart of the modern workplace

by • Comment, Technology, Workplace design

skullcandy workplaceThe modern workplace is undergoing significant change, and it’s no surprise that many of these changes are driven by the adoption of new technologies. However, unlike previous eras of technological change, most of the technologies being adopted by organizations today have the potential to offer more autonomy, choice and flexibility to their employees. This can cause disconnects (literally) with the built environment, but it’s also possible for those who design and manage work spaces to adopt a new mindset to stay in lockstep with technological change and to ensure the creation of positive workplace experiences.

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Lack of emotional intelligence greater impediment to staff engagement than AI

Lack of emotional intelligence greater impediment to staff engagement than AI

by • AI, News, Technology, Workplace

Lack of emotional intelligence greater impediment to staff engagement than AI

A new Gallup report reveals the growth of AI is not seen as a disadvantage for employees. The real problem is lack of emotional intelligence in management, with managers failing to move beyond the role of “task manager” and adopt the coaching perspective they need in order to future proof the workforce. The Real Future of Work study interviewed 4,000 working adults in the UK, France, Germany and Spain to understand how employees are being managed and the subsequent impact this might have on the future. Worryingly, one in four UK employees say they only receive performance feedback from their manager once a year or less, a further 20 percent claim it’s only a “few times a year”. Almost one in five (19 percent) UK workers predict technology will increase the risk of losing their job – the highest in the European countries surveyed and more than double those concerned in Spain. When asked how technological changes will influence work in the next three years, seven out of ten workers in the UK felt it will increase their productivity followed by France (66 percent), Spain (51 percent) and Germany (37 percent).

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Coworking is breaking away from its cultural and geographical stereotypes

Coworking is breaking away from its cultural and geographical stereotypes

by • Comment, Property, Technology, Workplace design

There is a persistent image of a coworking space as a sort of glorified serviced office for tech and creative startups who can’t afford the eye-watering rents in the areas they need to be. This is usually in the technology hothouses of the world’s major cities where they can work alongside the corporate giants and fellow innovators that thrive there. The reason such perceptions exist is because they are largely true. It’s no coincidence that coworking spaces have thrived up till now in the world’s most expensive property markets – in London, Hong Kong and New York, serving exactly the sorts of start-ups and freelancers who rely on proximity to their potential clients.

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Areas of UK still suffering from poor connectivity and broadband speeds

Areas of UK still suffering from poor connectivity and broadband speeds

by • News, Technology

Businesses looking to invest outside of London may be deterred by the UK’s still unreliable digital infrastructure or below-average internet speeds in many areas. New data from GoCompare reveals the UK locations with the best digital infrastructure for businesses keen to relocate. The study suggests that soaring costs in the capital and post-Brexit uncertainty are combining to create a dynamic environment for businesses in the UK’s regions. A CBI report estimated that a total of £208bn in revenue could be unlocked if the regions are properly invested in. Already, 68 percent of investment in digital tech went to businesses in regional hubs outside of London.

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Overwhelming majority of property professionals now view proptech as an opportunity

Overwhelming majority of property professionals now view proptech as an opportunity

by • News, Property, Technology

The vast majority of property professionals in the UK now regard proptech as an opportunity rather than a threat, new research has found. However, a majority also remain sceptical about their own organisations’ progress on adopting new technology. Those are the key findings of a survey of more than 300 property professionals carried out by Trident Building Consultancy, in association with RICS, GoReport and Teesside University.

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Employees who work in digitally advanced workplaces are more productive and motivated

Employees who work in digitally advanced workplaces are more productive and motivated

by • Facilities management, News, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace

Companies that are less technologically advanced are at risk of falling behind the competition and not attracting top talent, claims a new global study from Aruba. By contrast, employees who work in digital workplaces are not only more productive but also more motivated, have higher job satisfaction, and report an overall better sense of well-being. The study, Digital Revolutionaries Unlock the Potential of the Digital Workplace, outlines both the business and human benefits of more digitally-driven workplaces, and how. Almost all respondents (97 percent) thought their workplace would be improved through greater use of technology, while 64 percent said their company will fall behind the competition if new technology isn’t implemented. The same portion (64 percent) believe the traditional office will become obsolete due to advances in technology. However, the survey also warns that companies must be vigilant as more digital-savvy employees are taking greater risks with data and information security.

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