February 1, 2024

Firms want to embrace AI, but bewildered by range of options

The vast majority of Chief Information Officers plan to increase AI tool spending in 2024, but say their teams are overwhelmed by the number of apps on the market. As a result, 77 percent are concerned about application sprawl adding to their complexity and security risks. That is according to a new report from Canva which includes insights from more than 1,360 CIOs on their priorities, opportunities and the challenges of managing their IT amid the AI boom. The company commissioned Harris Poll to survey CIOs from the UK, US, France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, India, and Australia to understand how they’re managing application sprawl and making decisions about workplace tools in the AI era. More →

January 31, 2024

The three biggest disruptors of our time

by Jennifer Bryan • AI, Business, Comment, Environment, JB, Technology

When we look at the context for change, we many times just look internally at what we think needs to change for whatever reason and then set about making that happen. Rarely do we think about what is going on for the people within the organisation and just how ready they and the organisation itself are for the actual change and the disruptors that underly it. Are there the right people, systems, processes, etc in place to support the change or are there a number of elements that will hinder it? Not to mention the fact there will be a number of external elements that could and will also either help or hinder the change one way or another. More →

January 30, 2024

Return to office mandates linked to higher business travel costs

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology

The majority of UK travel managers (89 percent) say travel is a growing business priority in 2024, anticipating increased budgets driven by return-to-office policies, inflation and ESG requirements. This is a key finding in new research by Uber for Business which claims to reveal a resurgent demand for business travel. The research, drawing insights from over 250 corporate travel managers across the UK, sets out to explore the top business travel trends and challenges to watch in 2024. In this landscape of shifting dynamics, where emphasis on ESG requirements is intensifying, there is an increasing need for innovative travel management solutions, the firm says. More →

January 18, 2024

Workplace piffle, humane design and throwing away the blank slate

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

The piece I wrote on workplace bullshit came in for quite a bit of attention when it was published and also meant I was pointed to this excellent article on how to spot it when you see it. Lots is said about the skills we’ll need to cope with the challenges of the current Century, but this is perhaps one of the most important. Especially trying to spot it in ourselves. Paradoxically, but understandably, we already seem reasonably able to spot it in our politicians and other people we don’t quite trust. More →

January 17, 2024

CEOs remain optimistic about short term growth, quarter are planning to replace people with AI

by Neil Franklin • AI, Business, News, Technology

The proportion of CEOs who believe global economic growth will improve over the next 12-months has more than doubled. At the same time, the proportion of CEOs concerned about their long-term business viability has risen to 45 percent as tech and climate pressures accelerate, according to PwC’s 27th Annual Global CEO Survey. However the survey, published to coincide with the annual World Economic Forum jamboree in Davos, also reports that artificial intelligence will result in dramatic job losses in 2024 and beyond. A quarter intend to cut their headcounts by at least five percent “due to generative AI. More →

January 16, 2024

Technology is stealing your time in ways you may not realise

by Ruth Ogden, Joanna Witowska and Vanda Cernohorská • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing

Technology is supposed to make our lives easier. Smart phones provide a palm-size window to the world, enabling us to do almost anything at the touch of a button. Smart homes look after themselves, and virtual meetings mean that for many, time spent commuting is a thing of the past. So we should have more free time. Time which is now spent sleeping, relaxing or simply doing nothing – right? More →

January 15, 2024

AI roles now make up over a quarter of all tech jobs advertised in the UK

by Neil Franklin • AI, News, Technology

AI-focused roles now make up 27 percent of all tech jobs being advertised in the UK, according to a new report from Thomson Reuters. An analysis of 6,073 live tech roles advertised online in January 2024 found that 1,652 roles fundamentally required AI skills. Demand for talent with relevant skills has boomed in the last year with the rise of generative AI tools offering significant boosts to productivity and efficiency in the workplace. More →

January 8, 2024

Time to put down the devices if you really want things to look up

by Anoushka Pacquette • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

In 2022, data from Statisica revealed UK users spent an average of 4.25 hours per day using their mobile devices. A different Statistica survey found that 31 percent of UK social media users aged between 16 and 24 years reported spending between 1-2 hours per day using TikTok, while 25 percent reported spending between 3-4 hours per day on the social video app. More →

December 19, 2023

Flexible working is delivering the gift of seasonal productivity

by Frank Weishaupt • Comment, Flexible working, Technology

Employees have made it clear that they are keen for flexible working arrangements to stay. In fact, according to the Owl Labs 2023 State of Hybrid Work report, 40 percent of employees would decline a job if they were required to be in the office five days a week. With the festive season in full swing, employees will look to utilise the benefits of flexible working as they return home to their families. More →

December 19, 2023

How employers should navigate the ICO’s guidance on monitoring workers

by Anthony Woolich and Michelle Chance • Comment, Technology

As technology continues to advance at a rapid pace, so does the prevalence of firms monitoring workers and the sophistication of the tools available to employers to monitor their staff’s activities. Hand in hand with the increasing prevalence of workplace monitoring tools are concerns that their excessive use may infringe workers’ data protection and privacy rights. Employers must take heed of recent ICO guidance to ensure they do not fall foul of the law in pursuit of the hoped for benefits of workplace monitoring, such as boosting productivity and profit. More →

December 18, 2023

A bit of alien thinking on coffee and some other BS

by Mark Eltringham • Facilities management, Features, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

I’ve sometimes highlighted how our perceptions of the workplace are subject to an apex fallacy. The daily consumption of narratives about campuses, tech palaces and ‘cool’ design can obscure the fact that most people don’t experience this stuff in their daily lives. They work in adequate or possibly nice offices. Some in shabby offices or horrible offices. Many travel into work at the same time each day and sit with roughly the same people and do roughly the same things. They may work from home more frequently now, but they have a routine there too. Most will work in a mundane or nice home that mirrors the mundane office that awaits at the other end of the commute. More →

December 8, 2023

Ten years of Insight and a few things I think I know (one of our most read pieces this year)

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

This website started in late 2012 as a way for me to explore both a new media format and a new way of thinking about work and workplaces. I’d already been active in various roles in the workplace, design and facilities sector for twenty odd years, but needed a new challenge. And this was it. I was going for a ride with an idea to see where it went. More →