June 25, 2024
The World Economic Forum has published its annual Top 10 Emerging Technologies Report featuring technologies with the greatest potential to make a positive impact in the world in the next three to five years. Among the technologies mentioned in the report are AI (obv), immersive building tech, intelligent materials and microbes that can sequester carbon. More →
June 24, 2024
Interviewing people involves trying to tease out a bit of personal colour. Sometimes I already know what that is or might be. That is certainly the case with Nigel Oseland who I have known for many years, know to be from Wolverhampton and who studied psychology and computer science at Keele University in my home town. He went on to focus on environmental psychology while working at the Building Research Establishment in Watford in the late 1980s and 1990s. More →
June 22, 2024
Livery company the Worshipful Company of Pattenmakers is looking for the next winner of its coveted annual FM award. This Award recognises a future leader in FM, rewarding a talented early-career professional with a unique personal development opportunity funded by the livery. The Award is open to newcomers working in the Workplace and FM sectors, who have a maximum of 5 years’ experience. Entry is free, and all the information needed to enter is available here, including a link to the online entry form. The deadline for receipt of entries for the Pattenmakers Future Leader FM Award is: 5th August 2024. https://www.pattenmakers.co.uk/future-leader-fm-award-2025/ More →
June 21, 2024
Chicago is a city which never fails to amaze whether you are visiting for NeoCon or for any other reason. It’s the epitome of extroversion, with its magnificent architecture, larger than life people, almost constant, ear-splitting commotion and frantic comings and goings. Annual visits to the city invariably present a profusion of elegant new skyscrapers of different shapes, styles and colours, which seem to be trying to outdo each other. It’s as if Chicago is constantly trying to outperform all other cities, as well as its own past. More →
June 20, 2024
A development on Liverpool’s Lime Street has been crowned the UK’s ugliest new building in the 2024 Carbuncle Cup, a competition organised by magazine The Fence. Designed by British studio Broadway Malyan and completed in 2019, the project replaced historic buildings with a hotel and student accommodation. The award citation called it the “very worst new building in Britain” since the competition last run in 2018. One particularly aspect that wound up the judges is the façade, featuring metal panels etched with images of the buildings in Liverpool that were demolished for the redevelopment.
June 20, 2024
Over the past couple of weeks, you might have read a few Clerkenwell Design Week reviews. For a while there, you couldn’t go to LinkedIn without seeing people’s experiences of and opinions on the event. This look back at those three days in May might be somewhat different from the vast majority you’ve already read/scrolled past. We’re not going to start by telling you how ‘super excited’ we were. Not that we don’t look forward to CDW or enjoy the festival. Far from. It’s just that this is actually our job and not a fun few days out of the office. More →
June 19, 2024
The time and distance Americans spend commuting appears to be increasingly markedly thanks to the increase in remote work, say researchers. According to the new study from Stanford University, the share of “super-commutes,” those 75 miles or longer, is up by nearly a third since the start of the pandemic. Employees who no longer have to trek into the office each day appear to be more willing to tolerate a longer commute once or twice a week if it means a higher standard of living further away, the report concludes. More →
June 18, 2024
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 18, 2024
People who experience conflict in the workplace have lower job satisfaction and are more likely to experience poorer mental and physical health, according to the CIPD Good Work Index 2024. The CIPD’s latest report showed a quarter (25 percent) of UK employees – an estimated eight million people – have experienced workplace conflict in the past year. More →
June 17, 2024
A survey published as part of National Women’s Enterprise Week suggests that around 9 in 10 working mums who started their own businesses did so to achieve greater control over when and where they work. National Women’s Enterprise Week is an initiative that looks to empower and support female entrepreneurialism. The research, which surveyed 500 UK entrepreneurs, sets out to highlight the importance of flexibility and autonomy as people juggle managing work and family life amid rising childcare costs. More →
June 12, 2024
In the wake of Mental Health Awareness Week last month, now is a brilliant opportunity to take stock of impactful employee wellbeing initiatives. Many people feel their employers are guilty of ‘wellness washing’, the practice of paying lip service to wellbeing. However, the benefits of impactful wellbeing initiatives are clear – 89 percent of employees who have wellness programmes at work report being more engaged and happy within their roles. Taking a subjective approach by catering to employees’ needs can be transformational for employee satisfaction and, in turn, boost retention. More →
June 13, 2024
Right now, GenAI mostly produces cheap grey goo for a perpetual present
by Mark Eltringham • AI, Comment, Technology