Tag Archives: connected workplace

Why are so many of us preferring to work from home?

12 Monday Feb 2018

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

Like many, I get a lot of work done from my home office.  But there are drawbacks to it as well.  I miss the chance encounters with colleagues, I cannot catch up on the latest non-virtual watercooler info, and I miss the local lunch food options which are more plentiful in the center of the city. #foodie

But why do so many of us prefer home working?  Is it the commute, the better technology, the lack of a dress code?  😉

For me, the office environment lacks the inspirational aspects as well as the comforts.  My employer has set us up in goldfish bowl offices with no visual privacy and six to an office space (or more for the admin staff). Private conversations require departing to the hallway with the mobile. My colleagues down a floor below have created an open working space, but again with the goldfish windows and lack of atmosphere.

Personally, I love analyzing why certain office spaces make work fun.   I really enjoy the postings of such folks as Interior Architects (@IAarchitects) and Robin (@robinpowered ) who showcase the best of what workplaces can look like.

I do not need a Foosball table or a go-cart to make my life in the office complete.  But I want to work smart and live smart, as work/life are so combined these days.  I’d like a PUDO in the office, pick up/drop off dry cleaning, and group Deliveroo scheduling to save money and start conversations amongst foodies.

So why are employee experience services so low on the HR list of things to make the environment successful?    What role does HR play in the connected office?  Are role-based operations more efficient and/or more fun?

I am working on a smarter offices e-book, so if anyone wants to have conversations with me on the subject, reach out please.   🙂

Advertisement

What is an Intelligent Room?

05 Wednesday Aug 2015

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

Like many analysts, I am fascinated by the integrated possibilities that the internet of things (IoT) might be able to bring us.

Unlike many, my interests are more corporate in nature. I find the concept of a connected workplace very interesting, as it incorporates many roles and functions, more than a consumer space.

One example of this is the intelligent room. I define an intelligent room as a room that can make decisions on your behalf on the basis of sensors and role profiles. This goes beyond temperature, lighting and ambiance, and includes rerouting of communications, preferences of the occupants of the room at the time, and the rules of the organization in which the occupants represent.

Rerouting of communications may also impact mobile devices in the room at the time.  For example, if the rule is no interruptions, then calls coming into the room are rerouted to voice mail.  Or if the room is using the VOIP for a concall, any incoming calls to that number are rerouted to a human or voice mail as the users prefer.

Occupant preferences are role-based, and rules-based.  If there are several occupants, then the role of the most senior occupant takes precedence. The rules are an interesting aspect, as a more common working space in an airport, hotel or business center may have to program parameters for several kinds of organizations. Which applications are enabled for the room may be both rule based and organizationally adapted.

One company that is on trend to get to this point is Robin. Their view is: “Remarkable things can happen when a room knows who is using it. We believe buildings in the future will be like another device. You’ll install apps onto rooms instead of screens, and walking in will log you in.”

My own view of this is that facilities management as a function going forward will be one of added intelligence on how facilities work in terms of efficiency, as well as how intelligent rooms add value to the organization. My own research work highlights the needs of organizations going forward in terms of intelligent office space, and how general contractors will have to specify intelligence in the leased office space market.  The concept of connected real estate will take on new meaning for leasing companies who will need to highlight the services provided in a whole new way.

How smart is your office space now?