June 19, 2024

Secret AI cameras have been tracking the emotions and demographics of rail passengers

Many thousands of unsuspecting train passengers in the UK have had their emotions and demographics recorded by hidden AI camera systems at major stations, a new report reveals. The news, raising serious privacy concerns, comes after a freedom of information request by Big Brother Watch. For over two years, Network Rail, the company overseeing Britain’s railway infrastructure, conducted a covert trial program at key stations like London’s Waterloo and Euston, Manchester Piccadilly, and others across the country. More →

June 18, 2024

Generative AI could rewrite history, including that of the Holocaust

by Neil Franklin • AI, News

A UNESCO report published today warns that unless decisive action is taken to integrate ethical principles, AI could distort the historical record of the Holocaust and fuel antisemitism. The report cautions that not only can Generative AI enable malicious actors to seed disinformation and hate-fueled narratives, but it can also inadvertently invent false or misleading content about the Holocaust. More →

June 13, 2024

A new generation of workplace apps is transforming people’s experience of work

by Helen Parton • Facilities management, Features, Technology, Workplace design

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, workplace apps promise a much more sophisticated 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 →

June 11, 2024

Two thirds of working parents considering quitting because of childcare costs

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Workplace

More than two-thirds (70 percent) of working parents in the UK have quit or are considering quitting their job due to lack of affordable childcare options, according to a new poll from Remote. The research explores the financial and mental impact return to office mandates and a lack of flexible hours has on parents, as well as outlining the consequences of what the report calls the ‘Working Parents Crisis’ on the UK’s workforce shortages. More →

June 7, 2024

How Gulliver’s Travels predicted AI and our attempts to make sense of it all

by Mark Eltringham • AI, Comment, Technology

Gulliver’s Travels is one of those books we assume we know. But what we tend to recall is some stuff about Lilliput, giants, talking horses and possibly something about scientists trying to extract sunbeams from cucumbers. It’s really about one man’s descent into disillusion with the human race. It is acerbic, occasionally tediously detailed, and offers insight into some aspects of the human condition, which makes it timeless. More →

June 4, 2024

What is the role of a change manager?

by Jennifer Bryan • Comment, JB

There seems to be a constant debate as to when a change manager should join a project based on the perceptions of what a change manager does. Many change managers feel they are brought onto a change programme only once the programme/project team realise they need to start communicating to the business about the change. The fact of the matter is that although communication is a key element of generating change, it is not the sole element or what enables change to happen. You can literally have thousands of communications of all different kinds from emails, posters, videos and townhalls, to name a few, but none of this will mean that change will actually occur. More →

May 30, 2024

Four simple ways to embrace neurodiversity in the workplace

by Mark Catchlove • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace, Workplace design

It is thought that up to 20 percent of the UK population is neurodivergent and while many companies now are more educated on the need for diversity, many still have some way to go to adapt their workplaces both culturally and physically to ensure these individuals feel they are truly supported, valued, respected and able to the excel in their role. Sadly, a recent study by Birkbeck found that 65 percent of employees with a form of neurodiversity fear discrimination at work, despite companies increasingly recognising the need for inclusivity. More →

May 29, 2024

MIT professor pours cold water on the prevailing hype about AI and the economy

by Neil Franklin • AI, News, Technology

A study by MIT economist Daron Acemoglu appears to challenge the prevailing optimism surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) and its economic impact. While many experts predict a future fuelled by AI-driven productivity booms and reduced inequality, Acemoglu’s research paints a more cautious picture. His findings suggest that AI’s impact on productivity and inequality may be far less dramatic than anticipated, and could even exacerbate the gap between the rich and the poor. More →

May 29, 2024

Two-thirds of menopausal women say they face workplace discrimination

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing

A new survey claims that over two-thirds (69 percent) of people in the UK believe women face discrimination at work when going through menopause. According to the Faculty of Occupational Medicine, almost 8 out of 10 menopausal people are in work. Forth, which provides hormone tests for women surveyed over 2,000 people to reveal attitudes towards discrimination against women with menopause in the workplace. More →

May 24, 2024

ChatGPT produces half-baked answers most of the time, but people trust it anyway

by Marvin Gort • AI, News, Technology

A new study from researchers at Purdue University has found that 52 percent of ChatGPT’s responses to programming queries were ‘riddled’ with misinformation. Even so, people were more likely to trust its answers because they found the application to be so damn polite and well-spoken. It’s the Buster Scruggs of AI. More →

May 23, 2024

Remote work overseas could lead to double tax for firms, employees and digital nomads

by Marvin Gort • Flexible working, News

The rise of remote work, fuelled by the pandemic, may serve up a hidden danger for employees. Accountants warn that employees who relocate abroad while working for a UK-based company could end up paying income tax in both countries, on top of social security contributions in their host nation. More →

May 22, 2024

Some questions about AI, a world drowning in content and the human centipede of creativity

by Mark Eltringham • AI, Comment, Technology

One unintended but welcome result of the new fixation with AI is that many of the people who became experts on the workplace in 2020 are now experts on AI. You’ll find them on social media and they’ll have written a book about it by May to sit on the shelf alongside the one about hybrid working and The Great Resignation. So, if you want some certainty about where generative AI taking us, go talk to one of them because people who know about the subject seem to have little or no idea or raise even more questions. More →