Search Results for: productivity

Amsterdam’s Workspace Design Show Unveils Sensory-Driven Feature Spaces

Amsterdam’s Workspace Design Show Unveils Sensory-Driven Feature Spaces

The Workspace Design Show showcases the latest transformative workplace interiors products, from furniture, seating, lighting, acoustics, surfaces, biophilia, tech and moreThis November, Workspace Design Show (Wednesday 5th to Thursday 6th November 2025, RAI Amsterdam) doesn’t just ask what the workplace should be; it lets you feel the answer. Five of the Netherlands’ most creative design studios have turned conversation into atmosphere, theory into tactility, and workplace talk into spaces you can smell, hear, shift and claim as your own. (more…)

Workplace design that supports health, learning and growth

Workplace design that supports health, learning and growth

In 2025, workplace design looks to prioritise employee health, learning, and growth.In 2025, workplace design looks to prioritise employee health, learning, and growth. This article will investigate how contemporary environments enhance wellness, handle technology, and adapt to the fluctuation of work. You will learn the techniques businesses use to amplify productivity and participation. The approaches and fundamentals that construct dynamic work environments are the focus of this article. (more…)

Most people now use unapproved AI tools despite security and privacy risks

Most people now use unapproved AI tools despite security and privacy risks

A new poll from Microsoft suggests that most UK employees are now using consumer AI tools at work without approval, raising growing concerns about data privacy and cybersecurityA new poll from Microsoft suggests that most UK employees are now using consumer AI tools at work without approval, raising growing concerns about data privacy and cybersecurity. According to the research, 71 percent of UK workers have used or tried unapproved “Shadow AI” tools for work purposes, with more than half (51 percent) doing so on a weekly basis. These tools are often used for writing reports and presentations, drafting communications, and even handling finance-related tasks. (more…)

Is a smart building worth it? My research says the answer is an unequivocal yes

Is a smart building worth it? My research says the answer is an unequivocal yes

Too often, clients have paid contractors for the design and delivery of a smart building whilst ignoring the operational sideFor my book, The Smart Building Advantage, in which I tracked the evolution of the recent built environment, I trawled through more than a decade’s worth of data. I wasn’t short of material. I studied the Salesforce Tower in San Francisco, 22 Bishopsgate in London and NEOM in Saudi Arabia, amongst many extraordinary examples of how buildings and technology can work together. From these, I concluded that smart buildings are like chameleons in the way they’ve adapted to meet the shifting demands of the corporate zeitgeist. (more…)

Not just cuckoo clocks. Why Switzerland is the world’s most innovative country

Not just cuckoo clocks. Why Switzerland is the world’s most innovative country

Switzerland retains its long-standing position as the world’s most innovative economy, followed closely by the United States, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and SingaporeIn Orson Welles’ famous scene-stealing cameo in The Third Man, his character Harry Lime comes out with that (in)famous speech about Swiss culture. “In Italy for thirty years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance,” he says. “In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, they had five hundred years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.” This does the Swiss a disservice in a number of ways, not least that a major new report claims that Switzerland is maintaining a long tradition as the most innovative country in the world. (more…)

Service charges rise as firms invest to encourage people to spend more time in the office

Service charges rise as firms invest to encourage people to spend more time in the office

Office occupiers faced a 9 percent increase in service charges last year as landlords and managing agents invested more heavily in maintenance and amenities to encourage people back into workplacesOffice occupiers faced a 9 percent increase in service charges last year as landlords and managing agents invested more heavily in maintenance and amenities to encourage people back into physical workplaces. The findings come from BDO’s latest PropCost benchmarking report, which tracks more than £600 million of expenditure across over 1,000 commercial properties. The data shows the average cost increase for offices followed a 15 percent rise the previous year, underlining the pressure on both landlords and tenants from higher running costs. (more…)

Young people aren’t lazy or disloyal. They just expect different leadership

Young people aren’t lazy or disloyal. They just expect different leadership

As they join the workforce in greater numbers, this new cohort is helping to redefine what work and leadership meanFor decades, the idea of a “good job” was measured with a simple formula: a stable contract and competitive salary. That rule does not seem to hold in the same way for Generation Z, broadly understood as those born between 1995 and 2010. As they join the workforce in greater numbers, this new cohort is helping to redefine what work and leadership mean. Salary still matters, of course, particularly when it comes to gaining independence in a time of high living costs, but many young people no longer see pay as the decisive factor in choosing or staying in a job. Instead, they are attentive to whether companies are genuine in their values, whether their work carries purpose, and whether employers are aware of their social impact. (more…)

People are handing work to AI agents even though they are unreliable and lack accountability

People are handing work to AI agents even though they are unreliable and lack accountability

UK workers expect to hand over almost a third of their workload to AI agents within the next year, yet most say the technology is still unreliable and lacks clear accountabilityUK workers expect to hand over almost a third of their workload to AI agents within the next year, yet most say the technology is still unreliable and lacks clear accountability, according to a new poll from Asana’s Work Innovation Lab. The survey of more than 2,000 workers, including 1,021 in the UK, found that employees anticipate delegating 32 percent of tasks to AI within 12 months and 41 percent within three years. At present, only a quarter feel ready to do so. Despite the rapid spread of adoption, with nearly three-quarters already using AI agents, concerns about reliability and oversight remain high. (more…)

Hybrid working is now more about when work is done, rather than where

Hybrid working is now more about when work is done, rather than where

The defining issue in workplace flexibility and hybrid working is now time rather than locationA new report from Owl Labs suggests that the debate over where people work is being replaced by questions about when they work. The firm’s 2025 State of Hybrid Work report argues that the defining issue in workplace flexibility and hybrid working is now time rather than location. The study, based on a survey of 2,000 US workers, claims that almost half of respondents believe they do not have enough flexibility in their working hours. Thirty seven percent said they would turn down a job that did not provide flexible scheduling, an increase compared to last year. Around a quarter said they would find a four day week more attractive than a traditional arrangement, with many indicating they would be willing to take a pay cut in exchange for greater control over their time. On average, workers said they would give up around eight to nine percent of their salary to secure more flexible hours or a reduced working week. (more…)

AI, automation anxiety and the future of work: lessons from Daniel Susskind

AI, automation anxiety and the future of work: lessons from Daniel Susskind

Jo Sutherland reports from an enlightening lecture on how automation anxiety and fears about the future of work may not be quite as you thinkWhen I joined the audience at Gresham College for Professor Daniel Susskind’s inaugural lecture on automation anxiety, I expected the familiar line: AI is coming for our jobs. That’s not what I heard. Instead, Susskind, Professor of Business at Gresham, made a surprisingly nuanced argument, explaining that the real story was less about the number of jobs losses, and more about how the very nature of work is shifting. This piece reports on that event (available to watch below) and reflects on what his ideas mean for workplace leaders – and, from my vantage point as a communications professional working with organisations through workplace and digital transformation, how we talk to and engage our colleagues through the change. (more…)

Ten projects named as 2025 Urban land Institute Europe Awards for Excellence finalists    

Ten projects named as 2025 Urban land Institute Europe Awards for Excellence finalists    

Ten projects from eight countries across the EMEA region have been announced as the finalists in the sixth annual Urban Land Institute Europe Awards for ExcellenceTen projects from eight countries across the EMEA region have been announced as the finalists in the sixth annual Urban Land Institute Europe Awards for Excellence, which recognise exemplar projects and programmes in the private, public, and non-profit sectors. This year’s finalists comprise cutting edge refurbishment, restoration and new build projects, and include residential, healthcare, mixed use, education, community, laboratory and office projects from Italy, Germany, the UK, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, France and Spain.    (more…)

Large companies see slowdown in adoption of AI tools

Large companies see slowdown in adoption of AI tools

Drawing on the US Census Bureau’s fortnightly survey of more than one million firms, the research shows a downward trend in reported adoption of AI tools among businesses with 250 or more employeesNew analysis from Apollo Academy suggests that large organisations may be losing momentum in their use of artificial intelligence tools. Drawing on the US Census Bureau’s fortnightly survey of more than one million firms, the research shows a downward trend in reported adoption among businesses with 250 or more employees. The survey asks firms whether they have used AI tools in the previous two weeks, including machine learning, natural language processing, virtual agents and voice recognition. While overall use of AI across the economy has grown steadily in recent years, the latest figures indicate that the largest companies are no longer leading the charge. Instead, their adoption rates appear to have stalled or declined slightly. (more…)