Smarter Workplace Of Tomorrow

It is no longer new that technology is changing the way we live, work and travel. Over the last decade, it has quickly become the chief enabler of innovation and mobility and a powerful driver for the evolution of workplace – in large part because of its impact on work itself. Yet it remains challenging to integrate technology into the workplace.

"(Today’s workers) have seen first-hand the ways new technologies can help them do their jobs better, and are hungry to use the latest advancements to be more productive. While this may seem daunting, it’s a business-critical opportunity for companies to be at the forefront of the future workplace and enable the future workforce," said Allison Dew, vice president, global client solutions marketing, Dell.ⁱ

A well-planned smart office can achieve measurable business objectives by streamlining workflow, reducing inefficiencies and promoting productivity. Here are five ways you can integrate technology into your office design:

Projection made easy without wires

Ever went for a meeting and faced difficulties finding the correct wire to project your slides onto the screen? Now you don’t have to – wires are slowly becoming obsolete with the advancement of wireless technology such as Crestron Airmedia. With it, anyone can now walk into the meeting room and display their HD content onto the room screen. No matter you’re presenting from a PC laptop, Macbook or even from your smart phone, wireless connection makes presentations and collaborations fast, seamless and hassle-free.

Incorporate technology integration furniture

Modern offices are more collaborative than ever before and there is a need to adapt in order to remain competitive and relevant. Look for technology integrated into the workstation or design of furniture. This can include built-in power adapters, multimedia capabilities, wiring solutions for cables, hidden keyboard and mouse drawers, on top of flexible seating typology that boosts collaborations and brainstorming.

By using technology integrated furniture, you can help save space, increase productivity and cost effectiveness. All while encouraging teamwork and creativity.

Efficient energy management - the smart way

Make your office future-ready by integrating smart sensors that collect vast amount of data about the environment and issues reports in real-time. Through motion and environmental changes, the sensors can automatically detect energy wastages and help you cut costs.

In 2013, Standard Chartered Bank fitted its office in Singapore with smart technology and since then the bank says it has achieved energy savings of up to 60 per cent.ⁱⁱ

Ever more realistic virtual meetings

With globalisation and increasing business mobility, employees might be frequently working from different locations and across time zones. Hence it is crucial that an office can support effective real-time and asynchronous communication and collaboration. Enhanced speeds and increased network bandwidth is a basis of seamless connectivity. New services like BlueJeans has made video conferencing as easy as a phone call. Users can now hold a conference meeting from any location, on any device.

Keyless access to your office

Digitisation has enabled us to reduce the number of physical items we carry with us by multiplying the capabilities of each smart device. Since the ground-breaking launch of SPG Keyless by Starwood Hotels & Resorts (now under Marriott International) in 2014, hotel stay has been transformed. Guests can now unlock their room via a mobile app, removing the use of keycards. It’s no surprise that the same technology has been adopted in offices as well, reducing the need for keycards and the possibility of losing them.

All these technologies build on one underlying technology – a robust Broadband network. Get blazing fast Fibre connection speed of up to 1Gbps to support the tech ecosystem of your office and ensure seamless integration and user flow.

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No matter your business scale and stage, you can surely strengthen your competitive edge by tapping on the benefits of technology in your office design. Most importantly, a truly tech-enabled workplace does not focus on the technology itself. Rather, the workplace simply leverages the technology to provide a seamless experience, so that the end users can focus on business outcomes.

Finally, a quick tip - research how your employees actually work using surveys, observations, and quantifiable data to determine true work patterns and communication requirements. From there, you can build solutions around your employees’ workflow to empower them to be more productive.

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ⁱ http://www.straitstimes.com/business/smes-are-soft-targets-for-cyber-criminalsii

ⁱⁱhttp://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/1870842/how-smart-office-tech-saved-money-standard-chartered-bank-hong-kong-and