Search Results for: people

Smart technology needs to start with people if it wants to get smarter

Smart technology needs to start with people if it wants to get smarter

by • Features, Technology, Wellbeing

A wood carving of a blank, slumped person sitting at a desk with a laptop to depict the dehumanization potential of smart technology“My engineering students had come to class with technology on their minds.” So says artist and design researcher Sara Hendren, author of What a Body Can Do: How we Meet the Built World. It’s a fascinating book in which she consciously pushes back against the prevailing narrative that so-called smart technology has a fix for every problem. As a professor teaching design for disability at Olin College of Engineering, Massachusetts, Hendren draws attention to the assumptions that drive normative behaviours to define what is a ‘problem’ in the first place. More →

Boasting about ESG credentials can really put people off a business

Boasting about ESG credentials can really put people off a business

by • Environment, News

31 percent said they were “put off” a business that talks a lot about their ESG initiatives in the media and on social media.Efforts by some businesses to promote their environmental and social impact on society are pushing some customers away and risk damaging their reputations, according to a poll conducted by public relations agency, Clearly PR. Of the 2,072 business leaders, entrepreneurs, and marketing professionals polled, 31 percent said they were “put off” a business that talks a lot about their ESG initiatives in the media and on social media. More →

Not many people want fully remote work, but nearly everybody wants a better office

Not many people want fully remote work, but nearly everybody wants a better office

by • Flexible working, News, Technology

Just 7 percent of UK office workers back fully remote work, but eight in ten would like to see significant improvements to their company's office and more support for flexible workingJust 7 percent of UK office workers back fully remote work, but eight in ten would like to see significant improvements to their company’s office and more support for flexible working, according to the Sony State of Offices Report 2023 [registration]. The report from Sony Professional Displays and Solutions Europe suggests that over two fifths (41 percent) of UK office workers still prefer to work from a dedicated company office, and across Europe this trend is even more pronounced with over half (53 percent) favouring office-based work. However, eight in ten (79 percent) in the UK call for improvements to offices, and the tech within them, to better suit their new flexible, asynchronous working styles. More →

The challenge for office acoustics is to make people feel at home

The challenge for office acoustics is to make people feel at home

by • Comment, Workplace design

The need for quiet work remains wherever we work, and so our approach to office acoustics should shift in particular waysA number of apparent truisms about work and workplaces entered mainstream consciousness in the wake of the pandemic, and the shift to more flexible and hybrid working cultures. One of them is that people are better off carrying out focussed, quiet work at home, and creative and collaborative work in the office. And that this might suggest our approach to office acoustics would shift in particular ways. More →

People and firms often have very different views on the value of meaningful work

People and firms often have very different views on the value of meaningful work

by • Flexible working, News, Technology, Wellbeing

new study from IBM claims that while employees rank meaningful work as something they care about deeply, executives say it’s the least important factor to their teamsA new study from IBM claims that while employees rank meaningful work as something they care about deeply, executives say it’s the least important factor to their teams. The study, Augmented work for an automated, AI-driven world surveyed 3,000 global C-Suite executives across 20 industries and 28 countries. It also suggests that executives in the UK estimate that 41 percent of their workforce will need to reskill as a result of implementing AI and automation over the next three years. More →

Connection and collaboration motivate people to work from an office

Connection and collaboration motivate people to work from an office

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

The key driver for employees wanting to go into the office is the need for socialisation and collaborationThe key driver for employees wanting to go into the office is the need for socialisation and collaboration, according to the latest quarterly Workplace Index from Eptura. The report claims that this is an acknowledgement of the desire to be part of a community and the potential isolation of working at home. More →

Industrial action means people are opting for more unconventional work spaces

Industrial action means people are opting for more unconventional work spaces

by • Flexible working, News

In addition to relatively conventional adopted work spaces, such as coffee shops and cafes (24 percent), more than one in ten (11 percent) people could be logging on from their local pubAs industrial action continues to affect travel and commuting for millions of people across the UK, office workers have been seeking alternative from which to work. In addition to relatively conventional adopted work spaces, such as coffee shops and cafes (24 percent), more than one in ten (11 percent) people could be logging on from their local pub according to the poll from Uswitch.com. More →

Government scales back plans for regional office hubs as more people work from home

Government scales back plans for regional office hubs as more people work from home

by • News, Property, Public Sector

work from home settingThe UK government has announced it will be scaling back plans for thirty office ‘hubs’ outside of London by 25 percent and letting out surplus floor space to other departments as more civil service workers are choosing to work from home. In 2022 the government’s property strategy highlighted plans to relocate 22,000 posts out of London by 2030, creating 30 new regional ‘government hubs’ as it closes its older offices across the UK. However, currently just over half of that figure have been relocated. More →

People who drive networking in businesses often end up burnt out and abusive

People who drive networking in businesses often end up burnt out and abusive

by • Business, News, Wellbeing

People who adopt a role as a 'networking broker', connecting other colleagues and teams who might otherwise not know each other, often end up burnt out and more abusive towards their co-workers.People who adopt a role as a ‘network broker’, connecting other colleagues and teams who might otherwise not know each other, often end up burnt out and more abusive towards their co-workers. That is the key finding of a new study from ESSEC Business School published in The Journal of Organizational Science.  These networking go-betweens often receive career advantages such as faster promotions, unique information access, or a creativity boost. They play a critical role in the functioning of the organisational. However, there can be hidden psychological and social ramifications associated with this important role as they’re also more likely to suffer the consequences of being so socially adept. More →

Do political and social opinions belong in the office? People can’t even agree on that

Do political and social opinions belong in the office? People can’t even agree on that

by • News, Workplace

The UK workforce is divided on whether political and social opinions belong in the office, according to a new report from HiBob. According to the poll commissioned for the report, half of UK professionals (53 percent) feel that respectful socio-political discourse in the workplace should be encouraged. However, the other half (45 percent) believe socio-political discussion should be kept out of the office, citing concerns over the impact on company culture.  More →

Two thirds of bosses think people should ask permission before using AI at work

Two thirds of bosses think people should ask permission before using AI at work

by • News, Technology

68 percent of business leaders think it’s unethical for employees to use AI at work without the permission of a managerA new survey commissioned by Tech.co claims that 68 percent of business leaders think it’s unethical for employees to use AI at work without the permission of a manager. The firms believes that the  rise of generative AI tools has emphasised the need for complex ethical AI frameworks to govern its application in the workplace. Without these ethical frameworks, the technology risks threatening human roles and intellectual property in morally dubious and potentially harmful ways. More →

Cost of living crisis incentivises people to work from home

Cost of living crisis incentivises people to work from home

by • Flexible working, News

A new report claims that rising numbers of the people in the UK are choosing to shop and work from home to make every penny countA new report claims that rising numbers of the people in the UK are choosing to shop and work from home to make every penny count as the cost-of-living crisis continues. These insights mark the launch of the second Virgin Media O2 Business Movers Index – a quarterly barometer that combines anonymised and aggregated UK movement data from O2 Motion, with national polling findings to reveal key trends relating to the behaviour of 2,000 British businesses and 1,000 UK consumers. Together, the data paints a picture of movement patterns and the trends behind them. The second quarter of this year reveals a more cash-conscious image of Britain as more of the UK public change their behaviours to cope with a tough economic backdrop. More →

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