Search Results for: technology

Workers increasingly concerned that AI will come for their job in the very near future

Workers increasingly concerned that AI will come for their job in the very near future

Two thirds of IT workers and nearly half of office workers think that generative AI may come for their jobs within five yearsTwo thirds of IT workers and nearly half of office workers think that generative AI may come for their jobs within five years, according to a new report from Ivanti. The poll of nearly 8,000 respondents worldwide also suggests that 57 percent of people report ‘serious friction’ with workplace technology at least weekly and 61 percent say negative experiences with work tech affects their morale. (more…)

Knowledge workers have a particularly unhealthy relationship with work

Knowledge workers have a particularly unhealthy relationship with work

Three quarters of UK knowledge workers say they have an unhealthy relationship with work and two thirds of those say that work has had a negative effect on their health and wellbeingThree quarters of UK knowledge workers say they have an unhealthy relationship with work and two thirds of those say that work has had a negative effect on their health and wellbeing. That is one of the headline findings from a new report into the working lives of 15,600 people worldwide from HP. The report also suggests that three quarters of respondents would take a pay cut to be happier at work or to work wherever they want. (more…)

Is the Flexible Working Bill a game changer or paper tiger?

Is the Flexible Working Bill a game changer or paper tiger?

The need for more flexible working arrangements has been heard and employees are getting what they want – right? As LinkedIn data has shown, demand for work flexible working is high. And it outpaces the current availability of remote work offers. In the UK alone, listings for remote jobs have increased by 277 percent. Job postings for hybrid or remote positions received an increase in applications (189 percent) over in-office roles. People want to work remotely for various reasons. So they can live in their chosen home rather than in a tiny flat in London without sacrificing their career. So they can care for family – children, parents, grandparents. The demand for flexible work is driven by a desire for balance. The need has been clearly voiced – and the workforce is hungry for new modes of work. Looking at this background – the cheerful response to the passing of the bill is understandable. (more…)

Half of firms won’t meet 2030 decarbonisation target, report claims

Half of firms won’t meet 2030 decarbonisation target, report claims

Fewer than 50% of organizations expect to meet decarbonisation targets by 2030, study reveals A new report from Siemens Infrastructure claims that there is limited agreement amongst businesses on how best to progress towards a decarbonised and resource-efficient world and under half expect to meet their net zero targets based on current thinking. According to the Transition Monitor 2023: The Great Divide on The Path to Net Zero report, whilst more than half of those surveyed believe the infrastructure transition is accelerating in their region, a quarter of senior executives said that progress on decarbonisation is “too slow”, while 29 percent believe progress is “coordinated”, and 31 percent describe it as “on target”. (more…)

Is there ever a genuinely good or bad time for change?

Is there ever a genuinely good or bad time for change?

There are two questions that seem to plague quite a lot of people:  is there a good or bad time for change and is there a good or bad change?There are two questions, regarding change, that seem to plague quite a lot of people:  “is there a good or bad time for change and is there a good or bad change?” Now it may seem the answers would be quite straight forward, but probably as no surprise the actual answer is “it all depends”. That is because change is about people and we all know there is no formula for people, so it is impossible to give a formulaic, straight forward answer. (more…)

Is the workplace experience shaped more by maintenance or by design?

Is the workplace experience shaped more by maintenance or by design?

The workplace experienceWhat has resilience got to do with the workplace experience? It is a word that has been used a lot recently as the great British public has demonstrated massive amounts of resilience in coping with Covid-19, fuel shortages, worries about food availability and a massive shift in how we work. So what is it? The dictionary gives two meanings: firstly the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties, i.e. toughness. And then secondly, the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; elasticity – like nylon for example.   (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

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…)

AI is giving business leaders the heebie-jeebies, new poll suggests

AI is giving business leaders the heebie-jeebies, new poll suggests

An overwhelming majority of business leaders (94 percent) admit to some form of 'tech anxiety' when it comes to AI, according to a new surveyAn overwhelming majority of business leaders (94 percent) admit to some form of ‘tech anxiety’ when it comes to AI and other technology, according to a new survey from Kin + Carta. This anxiety is on the rise as the pace of digital and technological change accelerates, and is prompting top executives to invest more in digital transformation, according to the survey. The report defines tech anxiety as the feeling senior leaders have as a result of the rapid pace of advancements in technology that are causing concern when it comes to how their business operates. While the top source of that anxiety is cyber security (cited by 24 percent of respondents), close behind, and rounding out the top three, are concerns over AI and machine learning (19 percent), and anxieties about sustainability strategy and tracking (17 percent). (more…)

Breaking eggs and a two thousand year quest to make the most of each day

Breaking eggs and a two thousand year quest to make the most of each day

make the most of each dayThe fracturing of time and place underlies every one of the great workplace issues of our time. Everything that springs from this – the where, when, how, what and why of work – is defined by the shattering of any fixed idea we may once have had of a time and a place to work. Because the challenge to these traditional ideas is now so inextricably linked in our minds with new technology, we might often  forget that people have been asking questions about how we can get the most out of each day for thousands of years. Tempus fugit after all, and as a consequence we’ve always known that how we spend our days is how we spend our lives. (more…)

Firms look to consolidate office space in response to persistence of hybrid working

Firms look to consolidate office space in response to persistence of hybrid working

Many firms are taking the opportunity to consolidate office space presented to them by the persistence of hybrid workingWorkers able to work remotely are still only coming into an office for an average of 1.75 days a week, a study of 119 workplaces in 22 countries by workplace consultancy AWA claims. The responses, collated in April-May 2023 and representing organisations employing close to 155,000 people, saw a slight increase on AWA’s study a year ago, indicating that office attendance has reached a more or less steady state and that hybrid working is still a favoured solution. (more…)

First look at Sustainable Design China Summit taking place in Beijing this September

First look at Sustainable Design China Summit taking place in Beijing this September

Following on from its successful launch last year, the Sustainable Design China Summit returns for 2023.Following on from its successful launch last year, the Sustainable Design China Summit returns for 2023. The event, an evolution of Design China Beijing, is held at the Beijing Exhibition Center from 21-23 September 2023 and is a must-visit for designers, architects, developers, and decision makers looking to design a sustainable future. (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

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…)