“We’ve gone from computers that filled entire rooms… to smart watches and other wearables. Progress has come in the form of a steep uphill track. The end result is that technology inarguably permeates every area of life.”
As Generation Z prepares to enter the workplace, the market for wearable technologies is set to explode (33 million devices were sold globally in 2015, a figure expected to grow by 35% by 2018).
If you’re still getting to grips with your smartphone, it’s time to lay your inner technophobe to rest and get ahead of the curve with our guide to the wearable technologies that could be shaking up your workplace in the near future.
MONITORING YOUR HAPPINESS THROUGH YOUR PULSE
Businesses increasingly recognise the link between healthy, happy employees and healthy bottom lines, giving rise to corporate wellness programmes which rely on technology to motivate and track staff fitness.
Wristbands like FitBit are being used en masse, across organisations including Adobe and BP, to monitor employees’ activity levels, sleep patterns and even calorie intake. In a recent survey, CEOs implementing such programmes said that participating employees experience reduced stress, are more engaged and take fewer sick days, while the very existence of the programme is an enticing factor for new recruits.
On a less positive note, organisations admit that there are challenges involved in securely managing all the data generated by such devices, and that employees worry about how their personal data might be used.
THE BRAIN ZAPPER THAT COULD CURE YOUR COFFEE ADDICTION
If downing a skinny latte is an essential part of your morning routine, the breakthrough wearable of 2015, Thync, might just get you re-thinking your caffeine levels.
The forehead patch, the ‘brainchild’ of a Harvard neurobiologist, claims to make you more creative, energised, calmer, and even give you more willpower, meaning that morning coffee or evening glass of wine could become less of a crutch. It works by stimulating key regions of the brain with currents or magnetic fields, “not too different,” says The Washington Post, “from how electroshock therapy works to counter certain mental illnesses and how deep-brain stimulation smooths motion disorders such as multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease”. A brain hack in the true sense of the word, this product has a long way to go before it’s anything like commonplace in your office, but with some serious investment pouring in from Silicon Valley, it’s one to keep on your radar.
THE ENTIRE OFFICE GOES HANDS FREE
No more lugging your laptop between home and the office, conference rooms wired up to numerous desktops and tablets or last minute checks that you’ve packed your smartphone. One of the more practical advantages of wearable technologies like the Apple Phone is that all your data, from emails to calendars, is housed on your wrist.
This has particular relevance for employees of industries where remaining hands-free is critical – doctors or paramedics, for example. Wearable technologies are unlikely to replace larger, clunkier machines altogether, but as employee flexibility and remote working become increasingly important, barely-there screens might just have the edge.
THE HEADWEAR THAT COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE
In industries where safety is of paramount importance, such as truck driving, engineering or construction, a new wave of wearable technologies are set to play a critical role.
It looks like a regular baseball cap of the variety a long distance driver might wear to keep the sun out of her eyes. But the SmartCap’s sensors also keep tabs on drivers’ alertness and provide an early warning signal that a bit of shuteye is required in order to prevent fatigue-related accidents.
Meanwhile, the industrial smartglasses, Skylight, being developed by Salesforce, deliver high definition video back to a control room, whose operators can step in and guide on-the-ground workers in difficult situations through complex procedures.
