Receptionist robots, the rise in protests and why we are lying about our age

 How does music define generations? Is guitar music dead? Has digitalisation democratised  the industry at the expense of creativity?
These are just some of the questions we tackle in Ep.4 of It's All Relative Podcast with Smiths' legend Johnny Marr and his son Nile Marr.
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Episode 5 is dropping this Thursday featuring top  Tory politician Lord McLoughlin (who, after working in the mines, served in every Conservative government since John Major) and his son, podcaster and former Downing Street advisor, Jimmy McLoughlin. We address political attitudes and social mobility across the generations..... 

Say hello to the receptionist robot who takes your picture, can communicate in any language and always greets you with a smile. ...

Over the past three months I've been out and about speaking to a range of businesses including the financial services sector on the inheritance economy and the future of the family; venture capitalists and entrepreneurs about changing demographics and the implications for commerce; marketeers and advertisers on the evolution of values; as well as speaking to different sectors (from law to insurance to accountancy) about the post-pandemic world of work. I've done virtual appearances, IRL, Q&As, panels,  5-min segments, hour-long discussions, across continents and time-zones..... Two things are clear: we used to talk a lot about disruption; well,  real disruption has happened and it came in the form of a pause and has changed how many people see their lives, work and family. Secondly, the pandemic has accelerated change in every area of business (all sizes, all sectors) but the decision over what the post-pandemic world of work looks like remains very much up for discussion. It's impeded by the fact that the tech is just not there to facilitate what CEOs and employees both actually want: the ability to transcend space, i.e., how do we create an equality of experience regardless of your location? Also, from what I can tell the political class are even more uncertain about what all this means. Don't expect them to take charge. 

It's a daft question. The truth is we are all heading for a longer life but also a longer working life which will end not because of a fixed retirement age but because of ill-health. We face living up to 20% of our lives 'not in good health' and nursing chronic health conditions.

Stuff I've Consumed.... 

1. Roll out the Banners... Gen Z are often labelled the protest generation and not without good reason. This global report  sponsored by Columbia Uni concluded that the number of protests has tripled in the last 15 years. And unlike 1848 and 1968, it is truly global: from farmer protests in India to pro-Democracy marches in Hong Kong. If protest moments in previous centuries are a model, then the next ten years will be transitional ones as the political elite reforms and responds. Expect the 2020s to be years of significant social and economic change. Centuries often begin in the 20s rather than 00s (think 1920s rather than the Edwardian period as when the 20th century really began). If so, the 21st century has finally arrived. 

2. Can you fix it? Yes you can.... as anyone who has made a desperate dash to an iStore will know,  Apple has always designed its products so only their engineers could fix them. But last week in a significant reversal of policy, Apple announced that it is embracing DIY and allowing their customers and independents a 'right to repair'. The reason? Regulatory wars in the US....   The tech-lash is here but until they force Apple to maintain the same charging design for all their updated products, I shall not consider it a win for the consumer. 

3.  Great is (not) good. The UK  Atom bank is switching to a four day-week while the CEO of Air BnB thinks that home is the future of travel. People are beginning to speak about the 'Great Convergence' between home and work ( 'great' in a business context tends to mean bad not good - think Great Recession, Great Resignation ). The truth is that the disruption to our working patterns will take half a decade to resolve.

4.  Age is just a number? A report by Working Wise revealed 44% of workers over 45 have altered their age on their CV. Given how much longer we are all going to have to be working, we are going to have to keep up the lie for a very long time. 

5. Thanks for the TES for the striking illustration below. The education gap that is building during this pandemic is huge and irreversible. Seems to me that this should trigger a much needed conversation about the point and purpose of education this century. 

Feast for the Senses

READING:  The Big Sort by Bill Bishop. This book is over a decade old but its (US based) analysis of how we live in homogeneous communities and the ensuing polarisation as a result is startling to resonant post-pandemic. We've never talked about diversity so much and yet our workplaces, communities and digital spaces have never been so homogenised. 
LISTENING:  Michelle Obama's workout Spotify playlist 
WATCHING:  Trains-potting TikTok.... strangely compelling and surprisingly emotional. This guy has 1.7 million followers. Speaking of trains, here's a fascinating Twitter thread for London tube geeks. 
VISITING: My doctor's surgery for a booster jab.

Thanks for reading, Eliza