What is an Intelligent Workplace, and How Does It Improve Productivity and Employee Experience?

One of the key trends shaping workspaces right now is the adoption of smart digital technologies. In our blog earlier this year, we noted this year’s top trend for the modern office is embracing new cutting-edge technologies that drive automation and intelligent business decisions. Specifically, we foresaw a focus on smart sensors and workplace analytics.

We also saw organizations investing in cutting edge technologies to streamline workspace usage and bookings, simplify employee communications, and to shift to a more agile workplace design. Collectively, all these trends fall under creating what’s known as an intelligent workplace.

What is an Intelligent Workplace?

Today, smart offices are commonplace. Within the last few years, technological advances in machine learning and AI have empowered organizations to leverage digital technology solutions to drive efficiencies and cost savings via automation, the cloud, virtual tools, and more.

Definition of an Intelligent Workplace

But what defines an “intelligent workplace”?  An intelligent workplace is a fully digitized work environment that uses digital tools and technologies to improve employee productivity, increase employee engagement, and streamline operations.

Intelligent workplaces are configured to enable more effective and efficient work while supporting a more cost-friendly operations setup and fostering a culture of collaborative innovation.

Core Components of an Intelligent Workplace

Within an intelligent workplace, the specific tools used may vary based on the size and needs of the business and its workforce. For example,  a global company with a hybrid work model will require tools to support a physical smart workplace and a remote one that enables seamless communication and collaboration regardless of location.

Tools leveraged often include AI, machine learning, cloud computing and storage solutions, data analytics to track processes vs output, and even digital virtual assistants.  Overall, an intelligent workplace is built with smart office solutions designed to account for the modern work models and need for expediency.

Benefits of an Intelligent Workplace

Building an intelligent workplace requires strategic thought and planning, but the benefits are worth it. Some of the benefits may include:

1. Support data-driven decision making
2. Support an agile planning approach for future business needs
3. Promote and improve collaboration
4. Enable flexibility for employees
5. Offer more flexible work models to improve employee satisfaction and retention rates
6. Lower operational costs
7. Reduced tech stack and related costs
8. Increased productivity and reduced administrative burden
9. Optimized use of resources including workspaces, technology assets, catering, and more
10. Faster scalability and accelerated innovation and growth

How to Implement an Intelligent Workplace

Implementing an intelligent workplace is really about successfully applying a digital transformation to the work. Creating an intelligent workplace requires investing in workplace technologies designed to anticipate and support people’s needs ongoing.

You could also consider building a dedicated AI or innovation team in house to support workplace automation and efficiency and foster more creativity. But ultimately one of the biggest considerations is going to be your workplace spaces and tools for employee communications and connection.

And this is why many organizations are choosing Add-On Products’ office solutions. Add-On Products’ solutions are highly secure, can function as a SaaS solution, and the solutions naturally integrate not only with each other but also with Microsoft 365 products including Outlook®, Exchange, Teams, and more. This makes it easy and simple for businesses of any size to adopt a more intelligent structure. Plus, when our workplace analytics tool is connected to the Resource Central workspace booking solution, it’s easy to get detailed visibility into resource usage and needs, and quickly implement adjustments to ensure resource allocation is not an issue.

How Add-On Products Can Help

Workplaces deploying smart sensors and space and resource utilization software can ensure optimal allocation of workplace resources and avoid unnecessary overhead costs. This helps support sustainable growth models with minimal environmental impact and works to remove the redundant, repetitive tasks out of employees’ hands and give time back for more value-added work such as innovation, problem-solving, product development, and collaboration.

The Future of Intelligent Workplaces

The shift towards intelligent workplaces is only beginning. As AI and other smart technologies continue to evolve and emerge, the workplace will continue to rely more and more on digital tools. This transformation is one that will likely continue through the next few years and bring about more flexible approaches to the workday structure, communication methods, how teams collaborate, and how tasks and projects are managed.