American office workers love their jobs, and love them even more when the technology their companies use is viewed as being ahead of the curve.
A recent online survey of more than 1,000 office workers in the U.S., which Adobe conducted during two weeks last month, finds 70% saying they love what they do. And a remarkable 81% say that state-of-the-art technology was more important to them than an office’s design or on-site amenities.
Seven out of 10 U.S. workers believe technology improves the work-life balance, and 81% say technology helps them connect with colleagues more efficiently. Those respondents who think their company’s technology is “ahead of the curve” feel about twice as creative, motivated, and satisfied as respondents who work for companies with less-than-cutting edge technology.
The rub is that only 25% of the survey’s U.S. respondents think their company’s technology excels. Nevertheless, more than half (53%) expects technology to be handling more of their offices’ menial tasks—copying, filing, etc.—over the next two decades, even as 55% remain convinced their jobs could never be replaced by a machine.
In fact, there seems to be more than a hint of ambivalence about the benefits of technology among the 75% of respondents who are concerned that relationships and health suffer when people become to attached to their devices.
Technology trumps other office amenities in what keeps workers content. Image: Adobe's “Work in Progress” report.
The Adobe survey portrays an American workforce for which work and life are inseparable, almost to the point of obsession. More than half of the respondents say they’d keep working if they won the lottery. U.S. workers say they spend, on average, 78% of their waking hours during the work week and 41% of their days off thinking about their jobs. Indeed, 57% of respondents agree with the statement “work defines who I am.”
The desire to work is further punctuated by the finding that one in three U.S. office workers moonlights in jobs outside of his or her primary occupation, and that moonlighters are more likely to be happier and more optimistic than non-moonlighters.
However, 69% of U.S. workers also say they work multiple jobs because they need the money. Nearly three-fifths of American workers are likely to leave their jobs for a better opportunity. (That number is 50% even among people who say they profess love for their current job.)
Related Stories
Building Technology | Jan 31, 2020
The bidding war for Thyssenkrupp’s elevator technology business just got hotter
Engineering firm Kone Oyj raises the ante and joins three other suitor groups that have made multibillion dollar offers.
AEC Tech | Jan 16, 2020
EC firms with a clear ‘digital roadmap’ should excel in 2020
Deloitte, in new report, lays out a risk mitigation strategy that relies on tech.
Building Technology | Jan 7, 2020
Tariff whiplash for bifacial solar modules
Bifacial solar systems offer many advantages over traditional systems.
Sponsored | HVAC | Jan 6, 2020
Four Ways Building Systems Create Long-term Profitability
When accounting for the total cost of ownership and the potential return on investment, owners and developers should consider total energy usage, the lifespan of building systems equipment, the recruitment and retention of occupants, and lease rates.
Sponsored | HVAC | Jan 6, 2020
Maximize Energy Efficiency in Class A Office Buildings With Modern Building Systems
Energy-efficient building design starts with the building envelope, but the building systems have a tremendous impact on energy use as well.
| Dec 18, 2019
Reconsidering construction robotics
After decades when experts predicted that robots would become more prevalent on construction sites, it would appear that the industry has finally reached that point where necessity, aspiration, and investment are colliding.
75 Top Building Products | Dec 16, 2019
Top Building Systems Products for 2019
FabricAir’s ceiling-hung fabric duct and Ellumi Lighting’s bacteria-killing lights are among the 13 new building systems products to make Building Design+Construction's 2019 101 Top Products report.
Building Technology | Nov 15, 2019
Tools for measuring embedded carbon in building materials are on their launching pads
The Carbon Leadership Forum and Thornton Tomasetti are taking the lead to drive the industry toward zero-carbon buildings by 2050.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 12, 2019
Meet the masters of offsite construction
Prescient combines 5D software, clever engineering, and advanced robotics to create prefabricated assemblies for apartment buildings and student housing.
Multifamily Housing | Jul 23, 2019
Is prefab in your future?
The most important benefit of offsite construction, when done right, is reliability.