Originally written for UNISON. Republished with kind permission here. It’s impossible to explore the future of industrial relations without first looking at how the world of work is evolving. Traditional models of full-time employment are being eroded by the growth of self-employment. Included in this is the rise of freelancing. Of the 4.8m self-employed people in […]
This article is republished from a write up of an event I participated in at Instinctif Partners on 1st November 2018 in London. The event brought together HR and Engagement professionals, all with a view to exploring where the future might lie. “Leadership will remain at the heart of engagement” was a prediction made at a […]
One of the macro-trends driving a dramatic shift in lifestyle towards 2025 is the growth of the ‘Access Economy‘. Goods and services are rented temporarily rather than being sold permanently. Younger generations especially recognise the merits of owning less, yet having access to more products and services than ever before. From the green-conscious user’s perspective, […]
Since the late 1990s, the Internet Connected Fridge has symbolised the beginning of Smart Homes. While ridiculed for its impracticality and expense, it popularised the idea of connected devices within our homes. The current definition of a Smart home is ‘a home equipped with lighting, heating, and electronic devices that can be controlled remotely by smartphone or computer.‘ You’ll […]
The Future of Housing and Lifestyle will affect us all and is particularly pertinent to me as I’m currently working with a housing association to help them explore future strategies. By today’s standards, there are some radical approaches being considered in housing that could overcome the lack of land in urban areas: Super-skyscrapers and earth-scrapers, underwater habitats. Also the […]
Synthetic biology involves the engineering and design of biological systems with a practical purpose in mind. Another way of describing it is the creation of biological machinery. To accomplish it successfully, it requires a multidisciplinary and integrative approach. This includes the disciplines of biology, computer science, engineering, genetics and medicine. Much of it is an extension of […]
You may be unfamiliar with the term ‘Neural interfaces‘ (NI). Let’s start by defining what they are. Very simply, they are interfaces that facilitate a direct connection between our nervous system and computers. The system requires machines to interpret electromagnetic signals from the brain and in return to send modulated signals back to us in a […]
It was a pleasure to participate in Garry Turner’s ‘Value Through Vulnerability‘ podcast recently. Garry is a passionate, purpose-driven human being who seeks to make the workplace more human centred. He lives his values every day and has proven with his current employer that caring about teams yields better financial results. “I loved this chat with […]
It’s my contention that in the mid-term, we can be more effective in our work and broader lives through a better understanding of how the human mind works. Quite innocently, we assume that the mind works like a camera, drawing input from the senses (sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste) or an input which we […]
Traditional hierarchical structures lack the responsiveness required in an era of accelerated technological and social change. Lessons from history demonstrate how firms such as Philips Consumer Electronics were killed off by Samsung because of a laid-back investment approach and slow decision making. Another example being Kodak who filed for bankruptcy due to a lack of innovation […]
