Evidence shows that a key driver of the UK economy in recent years has been the growth of professional industries and occupations, the creative and knowledge-based Industries in particular. This, combined with the radical shift in working patterns to increased remote and homeworking following the pandemic, has meant that economic development must consider the fundamental impact of this ‘Professionalisation of the UK’ trend if it is to fully understand the current and future nature of UK economic activity nationally, regionally and locally.
SGA provides innovative expertise in defining the ‘Future of Work’ to those seeking to design, develop and implement truly sustainable economic growth.
Our Approach
We have integrated our knowledge of national and local economics and workforce dynamics, homeworking and coworking, pre- and post-pandemic, into our own methodology to interrogate UK national government historical and current data on industry, occupations and employment to quantify remote and homeworking at the regional and local area level. There is a particular focus on professional occupations and ‘Home Office Professionals’. We then use in-depth trend analysis to project forward, describing the likely impact of ‘Future of Work’ scenarios on all these critical factors.
Typically, the results of this work are used to help:
• Define parameters and characteristics for new sustainable settlements
• Determine the impacts of decisions on local target industries and occupations
• Research, analyse and define design requirements for professionals in a business hub/coworking space
• Predict the level of homeworking and hence influence dwelling design and local transport requirements
• Provide environmental impact insights
Application of our Expertise
Our expertise has recently been used in property / land development industry to help define the parameters and characteristics for a new sustainable settlement in a rural area, impacting decisions on target industries and occupations, the proportion of non-site jobs, dwelling design to suit homeworking, business hub and coworking provision, and significantly reduced external commuting.
Our now proven expertise in predicting the ‘Future of Work’ has implications for all local development and planning practitioners who seek to grow or maintain their economic growth and development by taking advantage of these established trends in professionalisation of the workforce and the shift in working patterns.
