Smart thinking

Concerns over personal and business data breaches need to be overcome in order to unlock the benefits of smart buildings, writes Akshay Thakur, head of technology consulting, EMEA, at JLL.

Businesses might be hesitant to start tracking and using data more effectively because of concerns over privacy, and fears over employee backlash. At the same time, businesses may also be put off from smart buildings that integrate data into operations because of cybersecurity risks. It could be argued that these twin hurdles, by no means insurmountable, need to be cleared before the benefits of proptech can percolate through the sector.

The real estate sector needs to be on the front foot in getting employees to buy into workplace technology, which in turn should allow its introduction to be smoother and more effective. Crucial to this is educating staff about exactly how workplace tracking technology works, and what benefits it will bring directly to them.

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