May 17, 2024
Manchester is poised to become a major player in the digital government landscape following a significant land deal announced this week. The Government Property Agency (GPA) has exchanged contracts with Manchester City Council (MCC) to acquire five acres of the former Central Retail Park in Ancoats, paving the way for the construction of the Manchester Digital Campus. (more…)
May 17, 2024
What are claimed to be the South West of England’s and South Wales’s most outstanding workplaces have been announced, with British Council for Offices Awards going to six office buildings across the region. Held at The Coal Exchange Hotel, the BCO’s annual South of England and South Wales Awards Dinner celebrated the high-calibre of the region’s offices in terms of design, fit-out operation and sustainability. (more…)
May 8, 2024
Any survey that sets out to establish what people believe cuts their productivity and annoys them most about their workplace invariably throws up the same result; the noise and distractions generated by other people. So it will come as no surprise to learn that the same surveys usually find that employees believe that peace and quiet and freedom from distractions is the most important factor when it comes to getting some decent work done. (more…)
May 7, 2024
Scale AI has selected London as the location for its first European headquarters, reinforcing the company’s mission to accelerate the development of AI globally. Scale’s United Kingdom (UK) office will serve as the centre of its operations in Europe. The firm is an artificial intelligence company headquartered in San Francisco in the US State of California. The company provides labelled data used to train AI applications. The firm was founded in 2016 by Alexandr Wang and Lucy Guo who had previously worked at Quora. (more…)
May 1, 2024
The British Council for Offices Awards for London have gone to seven office buildings across the city. Held at the Park Plaza hotel, the BCO’s annual London Awards Lunch recognised projects that demonstrate best practice in office design, fit-out, operation and sustainability, setting the standard for excellence across the sector. (more…)
May 1, 2024
Disseminating information about a building to the people who occupy it has come a long way from a basic, intranet desktop interface with warnings about wet floors or notices about charity fundraising. These days apps promise a much more sophisticated workplace experience, which can be accessed in the palm of your hand. Gartner has a useful definition of workplace apps’ capabilities, stating, “They are used to explore and reserve workspaces, navigate the workplace, find colleagues, plan the best days to attend the workplace, access services and ensure that employees could feel safe in a future post pandemic workplace.” (more…)
April 22, 2024
“Artificial intelligence will outsmart humans, resolve all IT and business problems, and humans will not be needed in the workforce!” These are some of the most common misconceptions that too many companies and workforces currently have around AI and automation. To date, workforces have been inclined to broach AI with apprehension due to concerns that it will negatively affect or eliminate their jobs. Conversations have skewed towards the technology as a disruptive force, here to steal jobs and ultimately leave people redundant. A study found that 60 percent of workers are concerned about job loss in regards to working with Gen AI. Additionally, a further third worried that, despite AI being unable to completely replace them, it could make them less useful in the workplace. (more…)
April 19, 2024
A new poll from hiring platform Indeed suggests that people now consider working in jobs that positively impact society (57 percent) and the environment (55 percent) more important than they did when they started their careers. Just over a quarter (26 percent) say they would take a pay cut and 44 percent would consider retraining to enter the environmental sustainability sector. The survey of more than 1,000 workers and job seekers and 500 employers in the UK, highlights the ongoing green skills challenge. Despite the clear appetite for sustainability-related jobs among working people, 42 percent believe there are still too many barriers to entry. More than a quarter (27 percent) have been trying to transition to the sector but have been unsuccessful so far. (more…)
April 18, 2024
More than half of young professionals feel comfortable or very confident about the increasing integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in various aspects of daily life, while only 15 percent reported feeling unsettled or scared about the prospect, according to new research from CEMS, the Global Alliance in Management Education. Half (50 percent) also stated that social media impacts their life positively, while only just over a quarter (27 percent) feel that social media has a negative impact on their lives. Overall, 70 percent of graduates said that they feel optimistic about the future. (more…)
April 18, 2024
Ahead of World Earth Day, a new poll from Zest, claims that workers across the UK are increasingly focused on sustainability and expect their employers to do more – particularly younger generations. Half (51 percent) of employees are keen to see their company invest more in sustainability, rising to 61 percent of younger workers aged 18-34. The survey from Zest also reveals that over half (53 percent) would like to see their company investing in more sustainable benefits such as electric vehicles, similarly rising to two-thirds (66 percent) of 18–34 year olds – and these demands are not going unnoticed. (more…)
April 16, 2024
The new digital edition of IN Magazine is now available to read online. In this issue: reviews of both MIPIM and the Workspace Design Show; a reappraisal of scientific management; what the new generation of workplace apps tell us about how we work; a case study that prompts the question of why office designers don’t make more use of reused products; the road to hell is paved with bad information; Domino Risch on the workplace’s Kodak moment; why facilities managers are the goalkeepers of the workplace; the final word on self-awareness; and much more. (more…)
May 20, 2024
Bringing workplaces back to their prime requires a holistic approach
by Steve Elliott • Comment, Workplace design