The science of work: eight lessons from WORKTECH London

Spanning three days, WORKTECH’s flagship London conference this year offered a festival-like style meeting of the minds to discuss the latest workplace thinking. The event, hosted across various locations in London between 18 -20 November 2024, included two sector-specific roundtables, six immersive tours of London’s most innovative workplaces, and a full-day conference bringing together global thought leaders. Here are some of the key learnings from the conference:

AI is more about co-creation than co-existing

There is a new wave of disruption emerging at the convergence of physical and digital worlds, according to Ajay Chowdhury, founder of music app Shazam and now author. In his keynote presentation, Chowdhury explained that location barriers are dissolving, and technologies such as digital twins and smart glasses are becoming more sophisticated, allowing humans to create digitally and implement physically. This process will see the rise in symbiotic collaborative relationships between humans and AI – where they co-create, not just co-exist.

Recovering the lost generations of AI

A panel discussion between Rob Garlick of Citi Bank, Jeremy Coleman of Norton Rose Fulbright and Katherine Harvey of UnWork, examined the skills gap that the rapid development of AI is bringing with it. Garlick explained that AI is already doing routine tasks typically reserved for those at the early stages of their career so it’s more complex to demonstrate career progression.

Jeremy Coleman raised the issue of the ‘lost generation’ – those who fall in the cracks between jobs that will be absorbed by AI and more experienced leadership positions. The panel discussed integrating new certifications and training programs in AI and other skills, such as empathy and leadership, to mitigate the risks for the lost generation.

The least important thing about the 15 Minute City is the 15 minutes

Professor Carlos Moreno of the Pantheon Sorbonne in Paris, and pioneer of the 15-minute city concept, told the conference that it didn’t matter whether urban dwellers could access all services for daily needs by walking, cycling or using public transport in 10, 15, 20 or 30 minutes. What mattered were the environmental and social equity gains earned from curbing car use.

In a fascinating session, Catherine Gall, executive director of Moreno’s Entrepreneurship, Territory, and Innovation Lab, then followed up with an analysis of the core values that underpin the 15 Minute City concept and their implications for the future of work. Paris, Melbourne, and Copenhagen are among the cities implanting the concept that has made Moreno famous around the world.

The science of work is driving innovation

When Jane Watson of data startup XY Sense told the conference that her mission was to ‘bring science to the subjectivity of space’, her words resounded through many of the sessions at WORKTECH London 2024. GSK’s joint presentation of its impressive new central London HQ with Art Health Solutions reinforced the idea that workplace science is the key to creating the healthiest office buildings. From circadian lighting and curved screens to sit-stand desks and staggered commuting patterns, GSK was able to produce the data behind its workplace decision-making.

Image of the farm at GSK, courtesy of Simona Melville

Modern digital infrastructure is fragile

According to Andy Targell, who runs real estate technology globally at JLL, you can’t keep pushing apps at employees and piling new boxes on top of the tech stack and expect everything to work seamlessly together. Targell explained that far too many companies lament: ‘We digitised but we didn’t digitally transform.’ Targell’s recipe for greater stability and less fragility draws on the analogy of urban planning. He says that in the same way as we can’t just let a city ‘just happen’, so digital infrastructure needs clear strategies and goals, adaptable technologies and flexible ways of working.

The power of prototyping

Alexa Lightner of Mapiq told the conference that we need to start designing the workplace as a product. The workplace is designed to serve the diverse needs and preferences of those who use it, but too often it can fall short because the design hasn’t gone through the right process. Borrowing from the cadence of product development, Lightner suggests that workplace designers should take a similar iterative approach – with particular emphasis on the prototyping stage. Prototyping is a critical stage to engage stakeholders and support change management throughout a transformation project.

Incremental innovation in traditional legal workplaces

The launch of WORKTECH London occurred on Monday 18 November at Burges Salmon’s new London offices, and centred around the trends shaping the legal workplace. A panel of legal experts – Audrey Cowan and Will Mellor (Burges Salmon), David Crew (Hogan Lovells International), Michelle Marwood (Norton Rose Fulbright) and Simon Ryan (Cameron McKenna) – discussed the nuances of the legal workplace – highlighting that law firms remain one of the last strongholds of traditional office layouts with a preference for assigned seating and hierarchical structures.

The legal roundtable at Burges Salmon. Left to right: Simon Ryan (Cameron McKenna), Audrey Cowen (Burges Salmon), Michelle Marwood (NRF), Corneilius Medvei (UnWork), David Crew (Hogan Lovells), Will Mellor (Burges Salmon), Kasia Maynard (WORKTECH Academy).

A key takeaway from the discussion was the importance of benchmarking against peers to effect change in the workplace. Instead of looking outside the industry, law firms want to see successful and demonstrable change occurring within the legal sector before making change within their own firm. This setup reflects the cautious nature of the industry, which prefers incremental change over radical innovation.

Read more about the legal roundtable here.

The financial workplace adopts AI tools

In an exclusive roundtable event hosted at Convene Sancroft on Tuesday 19 November, a series of experts in the financial and professional services sector discussed the key innovations occurring in the financial sector. Experts from HSBC, CBRE, EY, Unwork and Modo Labs highlighted the rise of AI-powered platforms like GoSpace and Microsoft Viva Insights that are streamlining workflows and enabling seamless employee coordination. Tools such as HSBC’s personalised app unify workplace functions, from room bookings to emergency procedures, while future tech will automate tasks and enhance decision-making.

The WORKTECH London Special Edition demonstrated the power of an evidence-based approach to navigating workplace transformation. From AI’s potential for co-creation to the science of healthier office spaces and the need for traditional industries like law to take an  evidence-based approach, the event offered actionable insights for businesses striving to adapt to rapid change.