Cisco: AI tools, better workspaces would boost appeal of in-office work

A core feature of workspace improvements could involve the integration of AI tools. Cisco found that by 2025, 73% of employers will invest in AI-powered collaboration software, with 68% planning to enhance their workspaces with AI technologies. Some 80% of employers plan to invest in AI for workspaces and collaboration by the end of 2025. “This underscores the need to accelerate AI adoption within the workplace to enhance productivity and create a future-ready office environment,” Cisco stated.

But while 43% of employees have access to AI technologies, less than half feel proficient in using them, Cisco added. “With 1 in 4 employees not well prepared to use AI, this highlights the need for training and that businesses must select AI that meets both the organization and individual team’s needs,” Cisco stated.

Mixed feelings about returning to the office

Gartner has found companies need incentives to encourage on-site work. The top three reasons employees use the office are to build relationships, collaborate, and to bring a change to their routine, according to Danielle Torgerson, principal analyst at Gartner.

“To provide compelling incentives that encourage employees to commute and commit to working on-site, start by asking employees outright through surveys, one-on-one interactions and focus groups why they value working on-site,” Torgerson wrote in a blog post about hybrid work initiatives.

Many corporations are pushing employees to come back to the office fulltime; in a recent ResumeBuilder survey, 90% of respondents said their company will institute, or already has instituted, return-to-office policies.

Some employees are pushing back, however, and arguing that remote work has made them more productive, less stressed out, and better able to balance work-life commitments. In another Cisco survey, 78% of respondents said that remote and hybrid work improved their overall well-being. If employers insist on forcing workers back to the office, some would rather quit than comply.