Search Results for: cities

The office needs to take on the characteristics of the city. Despina Katsikakis IN conversation

The office needs to take on the characteristics of the city. Despina Katsikakis IN conversation

Despina Katsikakis, the new President of the BCO has been shaping the way we think about offices for four decades

One of the unintended consequences of the era of online meetings is a chance to gain an insight into people’s actual lives. So it is that as Despina Katsikakis and I are talking, she spots my whippet Luna wandering into shot in the background and lets out an exclamation. She too has a whippet by her feet. And as a result, this abnormal, formal situation becomes a lot more normal and relaxed.   (more…)

BCO Awards dominated by South East offices yet again but Glasgow office takes top spot

BCO Awards dominated by South East offices yet again but Glasgow office takes top spot

Barclays’ Glasgow campus was celebrated as the Best of the Best at the British Council for Offices BCO AwardsBarclays’ Glasgow campus (pictured) was celebrated as the Best of the Best at the British Council for Offices (BCO) National Awards last night, also taking home the prize for Corporate Workplace. Seven further winners of BCO Awards were recognised as leading examples of excellence in workplace design in the UK. There were no winners in any category in the Midlands or North of England, Northern Ireland or Wales, although two offices in Manchester and Widnes were commended and the President’s Award went to HMRC for its ongoing national estate management programme. (more…)

Hybrid working is here to stay. Squawk

Hybrid working is here to stay. Squawk

I hold to the idea that nobody knows what hybrid working is, by which I mean there is no universally shared idea about what it isIn his recent book, The Constitution of Knowledge, the author Jonathan Rauch argues that knowledge consists of something about which nearly everybody can agree, and which has been arrived at by a structured, ongoing and benign process of debate and discovery. (more…)

Half of firms won’t meet 2030 decarbonisation target, report claims

Half of firms won’t meet 2030 decarbonisation target, report claims

Fewer than 50% of organizations expect to meet decarbonisation targets by 2030, study reveals A new report from Siemens Infrastructure claims that there is limited agreement amongst businesses on how best to progress towards a decarbonised and resource-efficient world and under half expect to meet their net zero targets based on current thinking. According to the Transition Monitor 2023: The Great Divide on The Path to Net Zero report, whilst more than half of those surveyed believe the infrastructure transition is accelerating in their region, a quarter of senior executives said that progress on decarbonisation is “too slow”, while 29 percent believe progress is “coordinated”, and 31 percent describe it as “on target”. (more…)

Shanghai Design Week announces details of London event

Shanghai Design Week announces details of London event

Shanghai Design WeekShanghai Design Week has announced details of its ‘Design to Wonderland’ event, being staged in London for the first time later this month. The event organisers hope that the inaugural event will serve as a  global platform to spotlight Chinese innovation across a number of creative sectors, including architecture, art, fashion, and beauty. Taking place from 16th – 29th September, China Exchange Centre will host the event, a collaboration between Shanghai Design Week and the London Design Festival. As well as being a celebration of Chinese creativity, D2W is planned to serve as ‘a bridge’ between the design industries of China and the UK. London Design Festival is also hosting an event in collaboration with Insight, details of which can be found here. (more…)

First look at Sustainable Design China Summit taking place in Beijing this September

First look at Sustainable Design China Summit taking place in Beijing this September

Following on from its successful launch last year, the Sustainable Design China Summit returns for 2023.Following on from its successful launch last year, the Sustainable Design China Summit returns for 2023. The event, an evolution of Design China Beijing, is held at the Beijing Exhibition Center from 21-23 September 2023 and is a must-visit for designers, architects, developers, and decision makers looking to design a sustainable future. (more…)

Rummaging through the workplace memory hole

Rummaging through the workplace memory hole

I recently whiled away an idle hour checking which of the more deranged pronouncements from the period of peak workplace hysteria in late 2020 have been memory holedtalking of Orwell, I recently whiled away an idle hour checking which of the more deranged pronouncements from the period of peak workplace hysteria in late 2020 have been memory holed. There was some weird, wild stuff, often coupled with a feverish response to anybody urging caution. At one point somebody (I know who but won’t say) suggested I should be banned from LinkedIn for pushing back on the idea that any firm that didn’t go fully remote would be out of business within five years. (more…)

Issue 16 of IN magazine is now available for you

Issue 16 of IN magazine is now available for you

The new issue of IN Magazine is now available to read online. The print edition will be posted shortly.The new issue of IN Magazine is now available to read online. The print edition will be posted shortly. In this issue, we look at the ongoing shift in the way we think about work and workplaces but without falling back on the simple, cliched thinking that defines much of that conversation. We consider what happens now for the world’s fringe business districts as Canary Wharf sets out its plans for the future in the wake of HSBC’s announced departure. We report on how domestic design is changing in response to a rapidly evolving world. We look at how the changing work practices of architects are playing out in buildings and cities. And we announce details of our first major event. (more…)

Best practice for maintaining an agile workforce through upskilling

Best practice for maintaining an agile workforce through upskilling

Workforces need to evolve now more than ever. A report from the World Economic Forum claims that around a quarter of jobs will shift in the next five years. Its ‘Future of Jobs Report for 2023’ notes that though an estimated 69 million new jobs will be created, another 83 million will be eliminated. A few factors contributing to creating and eliminating jobs are macro trends—such as a rise in sustainability efforts among businesses, the localisation of supply chains, high inflation, and slower economic growth. (more…)

Digital nomads are starting to price out local communities around the world

Digital nomads are starting to price out local communities around the world

Remote working: how a surge in digital nomads is pricing out local communities around the world. For eight years I have studied digital nomadism, the millennial trend for working remotely from anywhere around the world. I am often asked if digital nomads are driving gentrification. Before COVID upended the way we work, I would usually tell journalists that the numbers were too small for a definitive answer. Most digital nomads were travelling and working illegally on tourist visas. It was a niche phenomenon. Three years into the pandemic, however, I am no longer sure. (more…)

Global prime office rents rise for second continuous quarter – Savills

Global prime office rents rise for second continuous quarter – Savills

An international real estate advisor says the fact that prime office rents are continuing to edge up demonstrates that demand is thereSavills latest global Prime Office Costs (SPOC) analysis claims that net effective costs for occupiers taking top quality office space in key cities around the world rose 0.3 percent in Q2, following a rise of 1.1 percent in Q1. The international real estate advisor says the fact that prime office rents are continuing to edge up demonstrates that tenant demand is still present and landlords are cautiously optimistic in some markets. (more…)

Should work help to define your identity? Perhaps, but first consider this…

Should work help to define your identity? Perhaps, but first consider this…

Dr Tracy Brower considers how work ideally forms just a part of our identity The last few years have put work at the forefront of our consideration as individuals and our discussions as a society. Globally, people are thinking consciously about their work, its meaning and its place in their lives. This focus will surely create the conditions for a great reinvention —a reset of how we work as well as where, when and for whom. Identity is an important part of the dialogue: Should work be central to someone’s identity? Is it healthy for work to occupy our focus? And how much is too much? (more…)