January 24, 2020
Artificial intelligence (AI) and emerging technologies such as virtual personal assistants and chatbots will replace 69 percent of managers’ workload by 2024, Gartner, Inc. has predicted. As well as taking over routine tasks, AI will also make work more accessible for employees with disabilities, a new report from the research and advisory company claims (registration required). More →
January 23, 2020
A new report from Deloitte claims that poor mental health costs UK employers up to £45 billion each year. This is a rise of 16 percent since 2016 – an extra £6 billion a year. The research also looks at how employers can tackle this problem, finding that it pays to support employees’ mental wellbeing. On average, for every £1 spent on supporting their people’s mental health, employers get £5 back on their investment in reduced presenteeism, absenteeism and staff turnover. More →
January 23, 2020
As AI continues to disrupt the world of work, a new report says upskilling and reskilling will be crucial in developing workers’ competencies to complement technological innovation. Yet according to the 2020 Talent Trends Report released by Randstad Sourceright, only about a fifth of businesses around the world (22 percent) are currently training existing employees to help them adapt to AI. More →
January 22, 2020
Two thirds of employees say they are more productive when they work remotely yet many are being held back because flexible working technology is not optimised. Research carried out among 2,016 UK flexible workers by 99&One suggests that companies are still not getting some basic technology configurations right. According to the research, nearly one in five (17 percent) employees still experience connectivity issues when working remotely. More →
January 21, 2020
It has become vogue to refer to the workplace as being ‘all about people’. It points in all directions at once. Organisations need fit, healthy, happy, skilled, motivated, engaged and purposeful people being (and feeling) productive and doing their best work every day. They want their people working closely together – they’ve spent a lot of time and money drawing in those they feel can contribute to a whole that is other than the sum of the parts. More →
January 17, 2020
Cass Business School and Slack have published new research into the nature future of teamwork which identifies the relationships between team alignment and execution, drivers for competitive advantage, and the role of new workplace technologies. It suggests that teams are the fundamental building blocks of modern organisations but their role in delivering better outcomes for an organisation is still undervalued. More →
January 16, 2020
Most chief people officers (CPOs) in the US realise they need new skills to meet the demand of the 21st century role, but few are prepared, citing a lack of development and investment from the C-suite, meaning they feel unprepared for the future of work. This is according to a new study by HR People + Strategy (SHRM’s Executive Network of business and thought leaders in human resources) and with Willis Towers Watson, a global advisory, broking and solutions company. The study, based on direct input from more than 500 executives, examined the key changes shaping the CPO role and identifies a pathway for developing and accelerating this next generation of HR leaders. More →
January 15, 2020
The share of renewables in global power should more than double by 2030 as part of a ‘decade of action’ to advance global energy transformation, achieve sustainable development goals and a pathway to climate safety, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). Renewable electricity should supply 57 per cent of global power by the end of the decade, up from 26 per cent today. More →
January 14, 2020
It’s been six years since Workplace Insight first appeared as a blog. I’d been in the office design and management sector for twenty years already, but I created Insight to explore both a new medium and a new conversation about work and workplaces. Since that time we have published over 6,000 stories with contributions from over 400 people. And – get this – we have been read by over 2.5 million people both in the UK and around the world. Clearly, we have been on to something, chronicling the development of what is essentially a new discipline. More →
January 14, 2020
Cast your mind back a decade or so and consider how the future looked then. A public horizon of Obama-imbued “yes we can” and a high tide of hope and tolerance expressed in the London Olympics provides one narrative theme; underlying austerity-induced pressure another. Neither speaks directly to our current world of divisive partisan politics, toxic social media use, competing facts and readily believed fictions. More →
January 14, 2020
Office design and expectations around professionalism in the workplace are evolving along with the modern workforce in America, according to a new report from researchers at Olivet Nazarene University. The Modern Office Study claims that office design is evolving in parallel with changes in working culture, especially in the way that traditional North American cubicles, which were once the default model of office design in the US, are rapidly being replaced with open plan layouts. The report claims that these are now found in over half of American workplaces. More →
January 22, 2020
We might spot patterns in office design, but a global picture is beyond us
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Facilities management, Workplace design