BUSINESS BRIEFING
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Ambition ’s latest selection of news and research tackles the topics of robots sidelining humans in the workplace, whether materialism might lead to burnout, spreading the word about responsible business and how consumer aspirations are changing. Compiled by Tim Banerjee Dhoul and Ellen Buchan
UNCERTAINTY UPENDS NOTIONS OF CONSUMER SECURITY
SCHOOL: Bayes Business School, City University COUNTRY: UK
systematic risks, such as those who make up the ‘middle class’ segments of society. Bayes Business School assistant professor in marketing Aleksandrina Atanasova said of the research: “Our study shows that in times of crisis, previous sources and markers of stability and security begin to feel like an anchor pulling one down as they require resources which consumers can no longer rely on having. In contrast, agility and flexibility (ie liquidity) are what allow one to pivot and change course when needed and adapt more quickly to an unpredictable environment.” The study, entitled Liquid Consumer Security , was co-authored with researchers at King’s Business School and has been published in the Journal of Consumer Research . It is based on a four-year ethnography and netnography of digital nomadism, including interviews, social media and observations. It also draws on data from three digital nomad hubs – namely, Bansko, Bulgaria, Valencia, Spain and Crete, Greece. EB
Global uncertainty is leading members of the middle classes to reject traditional aspirations and lifestyles, according to new research led by Bayes Business School. In the research, consumers were found to no longer be looking for traditional notions of security, such as being married, having a family or owning a house, because they believe anything tying you down could end up costing you dearly. Instead, they have been turning towards lifestyles that would previously have been viewed as unstable, for example, being a digital nomad. These non- traditional ways of life are said to offer a different type of security. Remote workers can, for instance, diversify their income by working on several different projects at once, offering them flexibility and control. The attraction of remote, digital working has also been enhanced by government amendments to related visa and tax regulations. While insecurity is by no means new, the feeling is that it is now impacting people who have been previously sheltered from such
8 | Ambition | OCTOBER 2023
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