Search Results for: creativity

How to measure the impact of biophilia on individual performance

How to measure the impact of biophilia on individual performance

by • Features, Wellbeing, Workplace design

The improvement in well-being and performance in the workplace are economic and social critical factors since the loss of productivity for companies means a cost of up to US$ 550,000 million per year. Numerous studies affirm that biophilic design, defined as a response to the inherent need of human beings to be in contact with nature, in the workplace improves productivity and user well-being. As Lord Kelvin said, if you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it, so the challenge that arises is how to objectify and quantify rigorously the features that improve productivity and wellbeing in spaces designed with biophilia in mind. From this, it is necessary to go a step further and objectify the design criteria serving as an operator for performance and wellbeing in design practice.

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The horrors and harmonies of workplace hierarchy

The horrors and harmonies of workplace hierarchy

by • Comment, Technology, Workplace design

I am a child of the seventies, and one of my favourite shows when I was just a tyke was The Jeffersons. For those not familiar with The Jeffersons, it was about a black family in New York City who had, through ambition and entrepreneurship, ‘made it to the top’. George Jefferson, the patriarch, was a bolshie character. Hijinks usually ensued. But what stuck with me about that show was the catchy theme song, Movin’ On Up. The lyrics were ‘I’m movin’ on up, to the upper east side, to a deluxe apartment in the sky… I finally got a piece of the pie.’ Growing up in suburbia, this was probably the first time that I learned the idea of a penthouse, and the notion that the higher up the building, the more important you were. It wasn’t until I was about age eight that I realised the word wasn’t ‘high-archy’, but ‘hierarchy.’

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We need to take a scientific approach to the potential impact of AI

We need to take a scientific approach to the potential impact of AI

by • Comment, Technology

Should we be afraid of artificial intelligence? For me, this is a simple question with an even simpler, two letter answer: no. But not everyone agrees – many people, including the late physicist Stephen Hawking, have raised concerns that the rise of powerful AI systems could spell the end for humanity. Clearly, your view on whether AI will take over the world will depend on whether you think it can develop intelligent behaviour surpassing that of humans – something referred to as “super intelligence”.

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Friday finds: some things about life, work and everything we unearthed this week

Friday finds: some things about life, work and everything we unearthed this week

by • Features

Just because somebody’s an introvert, doesn’t mean they want to be alone

It’s really not a good idea to zap your brain to boost creativity. And yes some people are doing that

A complete, interactive map of all the world’s coworking spaces

Setting a maximum wage for CEOs would be good for everyone

Tests show the human brain must work hard to avoid sloth

How we spend our days is how we spend our lives; choosing presence over productivity

If we want to change anything, we need to care about it

Image: LEO Nova North designed by Area

When workplace strategy builds bridges between people and place

When workplace strategy builds bridges between people and place

by • Features, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

The world of work is changing rapidly and profoundly in a way that we haven’t seen since the time of the industrial revolution. Yet even as we stand at a momentous, game-changing inflexion point, the 21st century workplace strategy sector is still dithering about whether to join in the revolution. They are like the industrial mill owners of 19th century England who adopted a ‘make do and mend’ approach to business and failed to invest in new technology only to be forced out of business by foreign competitors who had invested in radical new, state of the art technology.Today the technological game changer is digital technology rather than weaving technology, but the effect is the same. Unless the workplace strategy sector embraces change and builds bridges between the ‘people’ side of the business and the ‘place’ side with other workplace specialists, their industry will become as dead as a dodo.

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The main challenge of modern working life: finding the place just right to meet

The main challenge of modern working life: finding the place just right to meet 0

by • Facilities management, Features, Flexible working, Work&Place, Workplace design

Every physical setting sends distinct signals to meeting participants – signals that set the tone and provide a context for the conversation, even when they are subtle or not in anyone’s conscious awareness.  You understand instinctively that the place where a meeting occurs has an impact on the nature of the conversation. Just imagine the difference between a conversation around a large formal conference table with expensive executive chairs and one that takes place in an informal employee lounge, with the participants seated in a circle on soft bean-bag chairs. (more…)

Half of all workplace tasks will be performed by machines within seven years

Half of all workplace tasks will be performed by machines within seven years

by • News, Technology

The world is going through a workplace revolution that will bring a seismic shift in the way humans work alongside machines and algorithms, according to new research by the World Economic Forum. By 2025 more than half of all current workplace tasks will be performed by machines as opposed to 29 percent today. Such a transformation will have a profound effect on the global labour force, however in terms of overall numbers of new jobs the outlook is positive, with 133 million new jobs expected to be created by 2022 compared to 75 million that will be displaced. The research, published in The Future of Jobs 2018, is an attempt to understand the potential of new technologies to disrupt and create jobs. It is also seeks to provide guidance on how to improve the quality and productivity of the current work being done by humans and how to prepare people for emerging roles.

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Treating employees as workplace consumers could help improve productivity

Treating employees as workplace consumers could help improve productivity

by • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Workplace, Workplace design

Treat employees as workplace consumers to help improve productivity says reportEmployers need to recognise the workplace as integral to delivering a business’ commercial strategy, and treat employees as ‘workplace consumers’ – creating ‘frictionless’ experiences and environments that help them perform to their best ability. This is according to a report: ‘Optimising performance: defining, designing, maintaining and evolving workplace experiences’ from Interserve, undertaken in partnership with Advanced Workplace Associates (AWA). The two-year study into the science behind effective working environments argues there is a need to radically re-envisage workplaces to optimise team productivity and maximise the value of physical working environments. It sets out a series of critical steps for knowledge-based businesses to revolutionise the workplace – and thereby aid employee performance. The report argues that traditional silos, from IT and HR to facilities, need to be broken down to integrate the management of the workplace as part of a ‘one-team’ approach; doing so will ensure companies can deliver a streamlined workplace experience which supports employee productivity.

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Artificial intelligence will create more jobs than it displaces, claims new study

Artificial intelligence will create more jobs than it displaces, claims new study

by • News, Technology

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and related technologies are projected to create as many jobs as they displace in the UK over the next 20 years, according to new analysis by PwC. In absolute terms, around 7 million existing jobs could be displaced, but around 7.2 million could be created, giving the UK a small net jobs boost of around 0.2 million. While the overall net effect of AI on UK jobs may be broadly neutral, this varies significantly across industry sectors. The most positive effect of AI is seen in the health and social work sector, where PwC estimates that employment could increase by nearly 1 million, equivalent to around 20 percent of existing jobs in the sector. On the other hand, PwC estimates the number of jobs in the manufacturing sector could be reduced by around 25 percent, representing a net loss of nearly 700,000 jobs.

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Half of girls are unenthusiastic about a career in STEM and technology

Half of girls are unenthusiastic about a career in STEM and technology

by • News, Technology

New research suggests that whilst young women are increasingly aware of the availability of careers in technology, half hold a belief that they are ‘unexciting’ and more than two-thirds think that roles in tech are predominately linked to gaming and IT consultancy; according to research commissioned by Yoox Net-a-Porter (YNAP) as part of their work to support digital education.

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Katrina Kostic Samen confirmed as President of the British Council for Offices

Katrina Kostic Samen confirmed as President of the British Council for Offices

by • News, Property, Workplace design

The British Council for Offices (BCO) today welcomes Katrina Kostic Samen as its new President. Katrina Kostic Samen, Founder and Managing Partner at KKS Strategy, formally takes over the position from Ken Shuttleworth, Founding Partner of Make Architects, at the BCO’s Annual General Meeting in London today, Wednesday 11th July. As Chair of the BCO Annual Conference held earlier this year in Berlin, Katrina set out the vision for her Presidential year, challenging delegates to look at the workplace from multiple occupier perspectives, and to ensure that they are designing and delivering offices which are inclusive and provide for a diverse workforce.

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Avenue HQ is named as Coworking Space of the Year by IPSE

Avenue HQ is named as Coworking Space of the Year by IPSE

by • Coworking, News

Liverpool’s Avenue HQ has been crowned ‘National Co-Working Space of the Year’ by The Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE). The award claims to ‘recognise and celebrate the important role coworking spaces play in creating a nurturing, inclusive and stimulating environment for the UK’s 4.8 million-strong self-employed workforce’. The coworking industry is booming globally as companies of all sizes recognise the importance of working environment on employee and business performance. Pioneered by start-ups, entrepreneurs and freelancers, a growing number of companies, large and small, are incorporating the concept and rapidly reaping the benefits.

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