Managed.IT - issue 57

6 MANAGED.IT 01732 759725 Experientialism is future of brand engagement, says Epson Experientialism is the new consumerism. So says Epson in a new report highlighting the need for businesses to provide customers with experiences that trigger emotions and create a powerful connection with brands. The Experiential Future highlights a growing appetite for new and exciting immersive experiences delivered through large- scale projections, interactive displays, holograms, virtual reality and augmented reality, with 60% of consumers surveyed saying that experientialism will become the future of events, hospitality and leisure. This belief is shared by all age-groups, including Millennials (68%), Generation Z (58%), Generation X (57%) and Baby Boomers (54%), although older consumers are less willing to pay more for tickets with an experiential element – 17% of Baby Boomers, compared to 57% of Millennials. Neil Colquhoun, Vice President CISMEA and Professional Displays, Epson Europe B.V., said: “New technologies are drastically changing the way that brands engage, entertain and communicate with their audiences. Our research creates a strong call to action for businesses and attractions to focus on including experiential elements for consumers.” bulletin Short, clear soundbites best for allaying rising levels of anxiety and stress Fears over job security due to coronavirus are causing heightened levels of anxiety, stress and distraction for 61% of UK workers, according employee engagement survey experts Inpulse. In engagement surveys for clients, Inpulse asks employees to choose their two most dominant feelings at work from committed, stressed, focused, valued, curious, anxious, distracted, indifferent and enthusiastic. In previous surveys, ‘committed’ represented 21% of all emotions chosen. However, in a survey conducted in March, after coronavirus had caused event cancellations and a reduction in face to face meetings, but before the lockdown and social distancing, this had fallen to 14%. Just 7% selected ‘focused’ as a top emotion. At the same time, negative feelings have become more dominant, with ‘anxious’ up to 28% (from 5%), ‘distracted’ up to 22% (from less than 1%) and ‘stressed’ up to 11% (from 5%). Matt Stephens, CEO of Inpulse, said: “We have never seen these levels of anxiety and stress in ‘normal’ times; it is unprecedented and shows the impact COVID-19 has had on employees’ wellbeing. People are consumed by the uncertainty surrounding the pandemic – and it’s massively impacting their work.” Inpulse says it is important for leaders and managers to stay in regular communication with staff at this time. Senior leaders should provide clear communications about the short-term future of the business, while line managers should provide short, focused objectives for staff and set clear expectations to help teams stay focused and avoid being distracted. More investment planned to support remote working One third of businesses lack the tech infrastructure to manage long-term remote working, claims private equity provider Leonne International. In a poll of 200 senior business decision-makers from large and medium- sized companies, conducted on March 18-19, 33% said they lacked the technology infrastructure to manage long- term remote working during the Covid-19 crisis; 26% said they lacked the in-house skills needed to manage remote working. Four out of 10 (41%) plan to increase their IT investment to support remote working. leonneinternational.com Beware coronavirus email scams Beware email purporting to be from the WHO (World Health Organisation), CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, North America) and the United Nations (UN). In its blog, Facing down the myriad threats tied to COVID-19 , Sophos reports that the volume of COVID-19 and coronavirus email scams nearly tripled in the third week of March, with cybercriminals impersonating the WHO, CDC and other healthcare organisations and distributing malware via documents disguised as official information on how to stay safe during the pandemic. Another tactic is to impersonate charities and relief organisations like the WHO’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund to trick victims into sending them Bitcoin. Sophos Principal Research Scientist Chester Wisniewski said: “With global spam volumes estimated to be in the hundreds of billions, for 2-3% of those to be COVID-19 themed is significant.” news.sophos.com/en-us/ Interactive, immersive and playful experiences are a key feature of a new exhibition that surveys the creative and scientific developments within artificial intelligence (AI) being held at World Museum, Liverpool from July 10 to November 1, 2020. Shown for the first time outside London and featuring work from leading scientists, researchers and artists, AI: More than Human examines what it means to be human in an era of AI, algorithms and machines. www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/wml/ PoemPortraits by Es Devlin. Photo credit: Tristan Fewings/Getty Images Station to station ChargedUp, operator of a 3,000-strong network of phone charging stations across the UK, Netherlands and Germany, is modifying the design of its phone charging stations to dispense hand sanitiser instead. In an initiative dubbed CleanedUP, the company is offering to supply UK hospitals, supermarkets, train stations, pharmacies and other shops with free-standing hand sanitising stations at cost price. ChargedUp says it is able to produce more than 1,000 units per month and supply enough Alcohol and Non-Alcohol sanitiser to keep each station fully stocked. CEO Hugo Tilmouth said: “With the majority of our usual network of pubs, clubs, cafes and shopping centres closing down due to the COVID-19 crisis, we wanted to find a way to use our skills, our resources and our network to help out during what is a tough period for everyone. We put our heads together – virtually – and CleanedUp was born.” www.cleanedup.green

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDUxNDM=