Digital Workplace Innovations

All is not well in fully-remote OR fully in-office work. While new Gallup research reveals that fully remote workers are more engaged than even hybrid workers (and fully on-site workers are the least engaged - a slap in the face of RTO), they aren't thriving the most - hybrid workers are. It's perhaps no surprise (to all but some CEO's and managers) that fully on-site workers are thriving the least. Interestingly, hybrid workers experience the most stress (just a hair more than fully remote), and disturbingly, fully remote workers are more likely to experience anger, sadness, and loneliness - by a decent margin. Gallup believes that physical distance can create mental distance and that work becomes "just work" without deeper connections with coworkers that can be more easily formed from spending time together in person. They also think that it's the autonomy that comes with remote work which can create stress and lead to the negative emotions mentioned above. I think these are very interesting findings, and I would like to believe that most companies would take the time to reflect on them and take appropriate action. Here's what I think companies can do: 1. Address the emotional well-being of remote workers with regular check-ins, mental health resources, and virtual social activities to combat isolation. 2. Optimize hybrid work environments by creating create clear boundaries between work and home life, help their workers manage workloads effectively, and ensure hybrid workers aren't overcompensating with longer hours. 3. Explore the advantages of remote work, seek to understand what drives the higher engagement and apply these lessons across all work arrangements. 4. Given that each work arrangement faces different challenges, develop tailored well-being strategies for each work type. A one-size-fits-all approach isn't the way to go. 5. Ensure that remote workers have career development opportunities, opportunities to develop meaningful social connections, and achieve work-life balance to close the thriving gap. 6. For companies that are (or are considering moving to) fully in-office work, reconsider hybrid and/or remote work for the clear benefits. I know - wishful thinking, especially for #6. Here's the full Gallup report: https://lnkd.in/ezQB4K5q #WellBeing #EmployeeEngagement #WorkLifeBalance #FutureOfWork #RTO

In 2022, I predicted that by 2025, 60% of enterprises would actively foster socialization to combat chronic loneliness and social isolation exacerbated by digital technology. How has loneliness progressed? 🔍 Here's a snapshot according to Gallup's Global Workplace 2024 Report : 🌐 Globally, 1 in 5 employees report experiencing loneliness frequently, with those under 35 and fully remote workers most impacted. 😔 62% of employees are not engaged, while 15% are actively disengaged. 🆘 58% of employees feel they are struggling in life, with only 34% considering themselves thriving. ⚠️ 41% experience "a lot of daily stress." Loneliness and disconnection are silent problems — they often manifest as apathy, disengagement, or learned helplessness at work. So, what can we do to help? 💡 Steps to Consider: -Create a Support Network: Identify your team’s needs and implement channels to address them, such as employee assistance programs, financial planning tools, family assistance, buddy systems, communities, and ERGs. -Rethink the Work Environment: Co-design spaces for deeper relationships by mapping the employee experience and identifying changes in physical spaces, inclusive technology, and management practices. -Redesign Teams: Foster interdependence with collaboration platforms like fusion teams, cross-functional mentoring, and shadowing for problem-solving. - Recognize and Incentivize Goodwill: Acknowledge efforts with peer recognition/gratitude programs, making support visible to all. Implement an Inclusion Index: Measure fair treatment, collaboration, psychological safety, trust, belonging, diversity, and integration of differences through various feedback methods. - Train Managers: Provide managers with guidelines on the expected level of involvement in employee well-being. Train them in handling sensitive conversations, building personal connections, and evaluating mental health on a spectrum. Managers account for 70% of the variance in team employee engagement. Let's address these silent issues head-on and create a more connected and supportive workplace! 💪✨ #WorkplaceWellness #EmployeeEngagement #Inclusion #MentalHealth #FutureOfWork #Leadership #TeamBuilding For data see: Gallup's State of the Global Workforce Report https://lnkd.in/ecj8KUuw

There is growing concern in corporate mental health, especially within the Middle East, where traditional, one-size-fits-all approaches to employee mental health often miss the mark. Given the current regional context, exposure to painful conflicts, employees face specific challenges—such as secondary trauma, vicarious trauma, and PTSD—that standard wellness programs might not adequately address. The current trend of expecting managers to bridge the gap between employees' needs and corporate mental health programs is problematic. While managers can and should offer support, expecting them to manage complex mental health issues without specialized training or resources is both unrealistic and potentially harmful. The solution would involve organizations adopting trauma-informed policies and creating a workplace culture that understands and responds sensitively to these needs. These could include: 1. When choosing mental health trainings or wellness programs, make sure they are culturally tailored and region specific. 2. Have trauma-informed policies and practices which could include defining boundaries around managers' roles in supporting employees, acknowledging that they are not therapists. These policies should focus on recognizing trauma symptoms, avoiding re-traumatization, and connecting employees to appropriate mental health resources. Also, considering flexible work options for employees struggling with their mental health or having a trauma reaction. These flex work options could include having a workplace that has quiet rooms, or allow for remote work days, or flexible hours, to allow space for self-care and recovery. 3. Offer access to mental health professionals who are both trauma-informed and culturally aware, partnering with regional mental health providers who understand the local context. 4. Expand the corporate “wellness” agenda to include workshops and seminars about vicarious trauma, PTSD, and secondary trauma, focusing on how these issues can affect them indirectly through news, social connections, or work responsibilities. 5. Offer employees routine emotional well-being check-ins with a mental health professional, where they can discuss their concerns in a confidential setting, especially after significant regional events or traumatic incidents. You can also consider group debriefings for teams who may be experiencing vicarious trauma due to their work or regional news. Structured support sessions can help individuals process collective experiences. #BigIdeas2025

The hardest part of building an AI workflow today is deciding your context strategy, which is how are you going to get the data you need for the task? To help you determine this, I've detailed the 5 context strategies that you can employ in any AI workflow: 1. Local files - The fastest and most reliable way is if your workflow can just read local files. For example, when drafting meeting agendas, I rely on markdown meeting notes that I've downloaded from Granola. This makes it incredibly fast for the AI to look through all my meetings to draft the appropriate next agenda. 2. CLI tools - AI tools are incredibly good at running command-line tools, which are programs that run in the Terminal. CLIs exist for pretty much everything, they are very fast to run, and quite reliable. For example, my workflow for synthesizing customer interviews uses whisper, a command-line tool that can transcribe any video file into text. 3. MCP servers - AI tools make it easy to connect to remote content through easily installed MCP servers. These exist for getting context from Google Docs, Notion, Slack, etc. So my workflow for catching me up on Slack leverages the Slack MCP server to scan the appropriate Slack channels and summarize the context. These generally work well, but if a CLI tool exists for the same data source, I generally prefer it now for speed and reliability. 4. APIs - If there isn't a CLI or MCP for the data source I'm interested in, I check if there is an API for that data source. And then I ask the AI tool to write code to access the API. This makes it so I can get my data from nearly anywhere, but it does take additional work to set this up, since I need to typically download API tools, ensure the AI has access to the latest documentation, and it can be buggy as well. So I only go down this route if I need to. For example, I recently I used the Gamma API to auto-generate a beautiful presentation for my NPS analysis workflow. 5. Browser agent - AI tools can also open and use a browser on your behalf. They can navigate to URLs, click links & buttons, as well as extract information from pages. This gives you ultimate data access even when there are no CLIs, MCPs, or APIs. However, this is the slowest and least reliable method. So I only turn to it when there are literally no other options. For example, I ended up using this to scrape competitor pricing pages to ensure I was getting the most up-to-date information. Next time you are building out an AI workflow, know that you have all five of these strategies at your disposal for getting the data you need.

From Copilot to Pilots: Introducing AFlow and the Evolution from Chat to Agents In the dynamic world of AI, we are witnessing a significant shift from traditional chat experiences to more sophisticated agentic workflows and autonomous agents. An AI agent is a system capable of autonomous action in an environment to meet its designed objectives. Unlike chatbots, which are primarily reactive and follow predefined scripts, AI agents can make decisions, learn from interactions, and adapt to new information. 🤖 𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐯𝐬. 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 Agentic workflows completes tasks statically through predefined processes with multiple LLM invocations. Autonomous agents solves problems dynamically through flexible autonomous decision-making. Recent work aims to automate the design of agentic workflows by automated prompt optimization, hyperparameter optimization, and automated workflow optimization. 🆕 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐅𝐥𝐨𝐰 AFlow is an innovative framework introduced by Jiayi Zhang in an October 2024 paper, “AFlow: Automating Agentic Workflow Generation.” This framework automates the design of agentic workflows using large language models (LLMs), optimizing workflows through iterative refinement. AFlow represents a significant advancement in creating more efficient and adaptable AI systems. Empirical evaluations across six benchmark datasets (HumanEval, MBPP, MATH, GSM8K, HotPotQA, and DROP) demonstrate AFlow’s efficacy, yielding a 5.7% average improvement over state-of-the-art baselines and a 19.5% improvement over existing automated approaches. Additionally, AFlow enables smaller models to outperform GPT-4 on specific tasks at 4.55% of its inference cost. For more details, check out the AFlow paper on arXiv: AFlow: Automating Agentic Workflow Generation The AFlow paper on arXiv: https://lnkd.in/edc7iDmE For more details, watch the explanatory video on AFlow: https://lnkd.in/eDWFPgZZ Philippe Cordier Etienne Grass

In today’s evolving work landscape, remote and hybrid work have become the norm across many industries. While these arrangements offer unmatched flexibility, they also demand a high degree of self-discipline. Central to this is having a strong, intentional structure - one that supports productivity, well-being, and long-term success. 1. Enhancing Productivity Through Structured Routines A consistent daily routine, beginning and ending work at the same time each day, builds mental cues that help remote workers switch into and out of “work mode.” Research published in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology shows that routine strengthens focus, reduces decision fatigue, and increases output. Blocking out time for deep work, meetings, and breaks ensures priorities are managed effectively. 2. Creating Boundaries with a Dedicated Workspace One overlooked but vital structural component is where remote work happens. While home offices are common, they’re not always ideal. Hospitality venues, such as cafés, co-working-friendly hotels, or even libraries, offer a practical alternative. They provide a change of scenery, reduce isolation, and trigger a psychological shift into work mode. According to a report by the International Workplace Group plc (IWG), 70% of remote workers say they’re more productive when working from flexible public venues than from home. This external separation can reduce distractions, support better posture and ergonomics, and help establish clearer boundaries between personal and professional life. 3. Preventing Burnout and Supporting Mental Health Without structure, it’s easy to fall into the trap of overworking or always being “on.” Defined work hours, clear task lists, and designated spaces (even outside the home) help workers unplug more effectively at the end of the day. Studies have shown that remote employees who maintain structured schedules and separate workspaces report lower levels of stress and burnout. 4. Fostering Communication and Cohesion A structured approach to team communication is also essential. Scheduled check-ins, project management systems, and regular team rituals (even informal ones) help ensure remote workers remain visible and connected. Research in the International Journal of Training and Development finds that structure in communication is one of the strongest predictors of engagement and retention in remote teams. But, structure isn’t just about schedules—it’s about space, habits, communication, and boundaries. Whether it's a consistent morning routine, a dedicated workspace at a local café, or regular virtual check-ins, structure empowers remote workers to thrive (not just survive) in flexible environments.

This week's defining shift for me is that XR is a practical tool for reducing real-world risk. It helps people see what they are dealing with before they commit to a choice or an action. Teams can spot problems before they happen, drivers can get comfortable with harder scenarios before hitting the road, and shoppers can get a better feel for fit and style before purchase. Better awareness at the start tends to pay off later. This week’s news surfaced signals like these: 🏎️ Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 is using TeamViewer’s AR tools to speed up how its test rigs are put together. Engineers can point a tablet at the setup and see step-by-step guidance placed directly on the hardware. The overlays come from the team’s CAD files and help staff check part placement and confirm that everything is ready before testing starts. 😎 Tom Ford Fashion has added an AR try-on feature for its eyewear on its online stores. The experience, powered by Perfect Corp., uses a person’s pupillary distance to show frames at the right size on their face. This gives shoppers a more accurate sense of how different styles will look and can help cut down on returns. 🚘 South Carolina State University opened a VR training lab for commercial drivers, using full-size simulators to prepare people for roadway hazards such as fatigue, congestion, and aggressive driving. The system also captures physiological data to support safety research and improve training design. Why this matters: Tools that help people understand things earlier can lead to better outcomes. XR does this by making moments that used to feel uncertain easier to anticipate. As more organizations adopt it, the technology becomes a powerful way to bring more confidence into everyday decisions. #spatialcomputing #XR #virtualreality #VR #augmentedreality #AR

We hear all the time that wellbeing should be integrated into ways of working. Here’s what that actually means: - Make it part of leadership KPIs and manager training. - When planning, ask 2 questions - "How will this plan/task/project/policy impact wellbeing? Is that acceptable?" - Highlight your wellbeing policy and initiatives in your onboarding process. - Align wellbeing initiatives with the employee lifecycle (e.g. high-stress periods, promotions, 'sprints' etc.) - Encourage the creation (and sticking to) of boundaries based on needs. - Encourage (possibly incentivise) the creation of foundational health behaviours and normalise their daily practice. - Make wellbeing check-ins part of standard practice. - Ensure workloads and deadlines allow for recovery and sustainable performance. - Design physical and digital environments with wellbeing in mind (think good ergonomics, greenery, sunlight, smooth remote processes etc). - Provide multiple pathways for, and encourage, feedback (in-person, online, anonymous etc.). This is far from an exhaustive list but it provides a good starting point. What are some of the ways you've seen webeing integrated into work? #humanresources #wellbeing

Remote working: great for productivity… but not always for your mental health, right? Hybrid and remote models are here to stay - and for many leaders and teams, they’ve brought more focus, flexibility, and freedom. But there’s a potentially darker side to consider. When you work from home, you avoid the commute, the office noise, and the after-work drinks. Sounds healthier, right? Not always. I see plenty of high performers fall into these traps: ↪ Working longer hours because the laptop is right there ↪ Seeing less of their family (ironically) because they’re “always on” ↪ Drinking more - no need to face the team the next morning ↪ Neglecting exercise, fresh air, and simple wellbeing habits The problem? When your work and personal life happen in the same space, the boundaries blur - and your mental health takes the hit before you even notice. Here’s how to protect yourself and your team: ➡ Create a start/finish routine not just a “to do” list ➡ Set rules around habits like alcohol, snacking, and screen time ➡ Schedule regular face-to-face connection - coffee, co-working ➡ Get outside every single day, even if it’s 15 minutes ➡ Keep a coach, mentor, or trusted sounding board on your side Remote work can be brilliant. It can also be isolating and draining if you don’t manage it. I've felt this myself - nobody is immune. I work with senior leaders who look fine on the surface - but underneath, they’re running on fumes. The good news? This can change quickly with the right structure, accountability, and support. Action ➡ Momentum ➡ Results What’s your best tip for staying mentally well when working remotely? Chris, Your Results Coach.

Yesterday's post about the #Metaverse sparked quite the engagement, the subject is still alive. And it made me think about another application. With Movella Health & Sports | Xsens we are measuring people at the workspace, and at this point, the data is fed into another system to evaluate ergonomic parameters. The data helps companies validate if a workplace is healthy and safe. What if you could use this data to enhance education, and bring this data into an AR layer to help workers be safer and healthier at work? You might even add elements of a digital twin of the workplace environment. You could call this an 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲, with the goal to create a safe and healthy workplace. Workers could be 'warned' about bad postures in real-time, or educated about certain instructions. We see many car manufacturers who are innovating in this field, they use an #Xsens system to record the body motions during work, and then analyze the ergonomic parameters. But this can work for any factory where people build physical products, these are typically situations where injuries occur, and can lead to long-term issues like 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗸𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 (𝗠𝗦𝗗). Again, I see the Metaverse as a mix of real and virtual. But it does not have to be about gaming or social, it can be about safety, education, health, and much more. The images in this post show how manufacturers validate a workplace by recording the body motions and showing ergonomic parameters. You see the data on a separate screen, but ideally, the worker should get this feedback in real-time using AR/XR. What is your take on this... 𝘐𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘔𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘢 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘥 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘦? __ Hit the 🔔 to get post notifications 📨 Subscribe to my #LetsTalkAboutMocap newsletter: https://lnkd.in/en5UiQwG