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The term “smart city” was coined in the early 2000s as major technology firms such as IBM and Cisco worked to leverage connectedness for greater urban productivity, efficiency, and sustainability. Since then, cities worldwide have used data science to implement at least some features of the smart cities of the future.

To learn more, check out the infographic below, created by Maryville University’s online Master of Science in Data Science program.

What Is a Smart City?

Although no universally agreed-upon definition of smart cities exists, experts usually describe smart cities as cities that incorporate interconnected sensors, the Internet of Things (IoT), automation, data collection and analysis (data systems), and information and communication technology (ICT).

Smart cities of the future will use technology to more efficiently facilitate services such as transportation, water, waste disposal, utilities, and crime detection. In addition to improving efficiency, smart cities aim to improve equity and quality of life for inhabitants.

Smart City Data Cycle

The data cycle of a smart city is a circular model involving data input and analysis, automated decision-making, data sharing, machine and human adjustments, and more data gathering. Beyond intentional human interaction and responses to automatically assigned tasks, everything’s automated.

Data input comes from multiple sources. Automated machine and human sources include sensors, cameras, and smart devices. Intentional human sources, such as application program interfaces (APIs), apps, the internet, and terminals, also contribute. Once data is received, the data cycle of a smart city moves to data integration, modeling, analysis (often using artificial intelligence and machine learning), decision-making, and decision-sharing (to machines and humans via ICT).

AI in Smart City Technology

Sensors, smart devices, and other input methods in smart cities generate far more data than could ever be efficiently analyzed and acted on by humans alone. AI’s ability to digest and integrate massive amounts of data in seconds makes it a key component of smart city systems.

AI can be particularly useful in the following systems: intelligent transportation systems using connected and autonomous vehicles and traffic management systems; building energy systems with whole-building analytics and automation and grid-interactive efficient buildings; electric power grids using demand response and generation forecasting and optimization; and city operations, such as waste management and demand pricing for utilities.

Examples of Smart Cities

Many cities have implemented some of the technologies considered part of a smart city. Below are three global metropolises that are at the forefront of smart city technology.

Singapore

Singapore began its smart journey in 1980 with a national computerization plan, in which it automated and computerized government functions and trained more than 4,600 information technology (IT) workers. Since that time, the city-state has used ambitious national plans to:

• Move 99% of government services online
• Connect 95% of homes and businesses to national high-speed broadband
• Provide national digital identities (Singapore Personal Access, or Singpass) to 97% of citizens and permanent residents
• Launch a fleet of autonomous vehicles to transport the elderly 

Singpass uses technology to connect all citizens, even those without smartphones, with government agencies and businesses. It includes the following:

• App with facial recognition and two-factor authentication
• Digital ID card with scannable barcode
• Document wallet for digital government documents
• Inbox for government notifications to reduce phishing attempts
• Personal data storage to fill out digital government and business forms automatically
• Digital signature

London

Citizen-centered policymaking is a key smart city component, and London, England, aims to be the best in this regard. To that end, it’s:

• Become home to 46,000 tech companies
• Targeted net zero carbon status by 2030
• Committed to having 80% of travel in the city occur by foot, bicycle, or public transportation by 2041
• Targeted high-speed broadband availability for all public housing

The U.K. capital has used the following technological innovations on its way to smart city status:

• Nine next-generation network towers
• Average broadband speeds of 82.7 Mbps
• An app to help drivers find low-pollution commutes
• 10,400 electric vehicle (EV) chargers citywide
• An open platform for access to all the data the city collects

New York

A panel of civic and industry leaders reimagined solutions to big issues such as transportation, housing, safety, and employment equity in New York. The changes include the following:

• Establishing five core employment hubs to drive growth
• Increasing the transit system’s budget, expanding service, and improving walking and cycling opportunities
• Identifying and addressing barriers that keep poor people, disabled people, and people of color from full workforce participation
• Requiring large buildings to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030 and 80% by 2050
• Connecting with surrounding regions to create innovation hubs

Technological improvements include the following:

• Installing smart trackers on city buses for on-time tracking and traffic signal coordination
• Converting old phone booths into Wi-Fi hotspots and charging stations
• Improving technology available at libraries to facilitate remote work opportunities
• Using solar-powered trash and recycling bins with sensors that alert city workers when they’re full
• Employing smart water meters in more than 800,000 buildings to track usage and notify users of leaks

The Case for Smart Cities

Smart cities have their supporters and detractors.

Supporters cite pros such as reduced pollution, less traffic congestion, greater public safety, improved energy efficiency, better service delivery, and efficient resource usage.

Detractors, however, cite cons such as a greater dependency on technology, a greater digital divide, higher property values, greater impersonality, increased citizen privacy concerns, and larger investments.

Many cities have employed some smart city features, but the true smart cities of the future will weave technology into all aspects of daily life. Those cities will fully employ every smart city tool listed above as well as the ones still evolving in developers’ imaginations.

Conclusion

With the goal of using data and technology to drive efficiency, equity, and sustainability, smart cities will continue to seek improvement and find new and better solutions for their citizens.

Sources

The Agility Effect, Could London Be the Best Smart City

Built In, “We Were Promised Smart Cities. What Happened?”

Built In, “Why Smart Cities Aren’t the Future”

Data Science Central, “Smart Cities of the Future Powered by IoT”

European Commission, Smart Cities

Greater London Authority, Digital Access for All

Hello Lamp Post, Smart City Technology Benefits and the World’s Top 10 Smartest Cities

Information Age, “IBM, Cisco, and the Business of Smart Cities”

Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, “How Congress and the Biden Administration Could Jumpstart Smart Cities With AI”

IOT Analytics, “IoT 2021 in Review: The 10 Most Relevant IoT Developments of the Year”

IOT Analytics, “Smart Cities of the Future: 7 Things That Successful Cities Do”

MIT Technology Review, “We Need Smarter Cities, Not ‘Smart Cities’”

National Geographic, Smart Cities

New York City Economic Development Corp., Making New York Work for Everyone

Smart Cities Connect, “What a Smart City Is … and Is Not”

Smart Cities for Technological and Social Innovation, “Chapter 2 — Smart Cities as a Platform for Technological and Social Innovation in Productivity, Sustainability, and Livability: A Conceptual Framework”

Smart Nation and Digital Government Office, Digital Government

Smart Nation and Digital Government Office, Singpass Singapore’s National Digital Identity (Factsheet)

SmartCitiesWorld, London and Austin Ranked Top for Smart City Potential

Transport for London, Delivering the Mayor’s Transport Strategy 2021/22

TWI Global, What Is a Smart City? — Definitions and Examples

We Build Value, Hi-Tech London, Or the Making of a Smart City

Machine learning (ML) is becoming increasingly important as more people use online search engines, recommendation algorithms, and other software that relies on artificial intelligence (AI). Different machine learning algorithms have different benefits and uses, and data science professionals can help organizations decide which technique to use.

To learn more about the different types of machine learning algorithms, check out the infographic below, created by Maryville University’s online Master of Science in Data Science program.

• Supervised learning helps with multiclass classification (two or more types of answers) and ensemble learning (synthesizing machine learning models to develop predictions).
• Unsupervised learning helps with clustering (grouping data based on similarity) and anomaly detection (identifying unusual data points).
• Semisupervised learning helps with machine translation (translating language without a full dictionary) and fraud detection (identifying fraud based on available examples).
• Reinforcement learning helps with robotics (teaching physical tasks to robots) and resource management (helping organizations plan their resource allocation based on finite resources and defined goals).

Commonly Used Algorithms

• Linear regression establishes a relationship between variables by fitting them to a line.
• Logistic regression predicts the probability of an event by fitting data to a logit function.
• A decision tree algorithm classifies problems by splitting data into two or more sets based on the most significant attribute.
• The KNN algorithm stores all cases and classifies new cases based on the most similar class.
• The gradient boosting algorithm and AdaBoost algorithm are used to boost other algorithms when large amounts of data need to make predictions with high accuracy.

How to Choose the Best Algorithms and Methods

To determine which algorithms and methods to use, you should first determine a project goal. Machine learning algorithms solve specifically identified problems.

Then, work to understand the data you’re using. Is the data raw? Random? Biased? Is the data organized? Large enough? Prepared?

Once you know your data, you should evaluate the training time. Lower training quality means the ML learns faster, but it also means sacrificing the accuracy and efficiency of longer training.

Finally, you need to choose the features and parameters. Depending on the training time and quality, more features and parameters can produce higher-quality results.

The Future of Machine Learning

AI and machine learning will continue to be increasingly important. These are some of the people leading the field into the future.

Forerunners in Machine Learning

Forerunners in machine learning technology include the following individuals:

Andrew Ng

Andrew Ng is the founder and CEO of Landing AI, and the founder of deeplearning.ai. Ng developed the Autonomous Helicopter Project and the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Robot project, which are used in speech recognition systems, open-source robotics software platforms, and deep learning.

Fei-Fei Li

Fei-Fei Li is the Sequoia Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University. Li invented ImageNet, a massive data set and benchmarking drive that has helped expand AI and deep learning, and currently works on ambient intelligent systems for healthcare delivery.

Demis Hassabis

Demis Hassabis is the co-founder and CEO of DeepMind. Hassabis currently leads all AI efforts at Google and has written several award-winning papers.

Ian Goodfellow

Ian Goodfellow is the former director of machine learning at Apple. Goodfellow wrote the textbook Deep Learning and developed the system that transcribes the addresses of locations photographed by Google Street View. He currently works at DeepMind, which builds neural networks.

How to Get Involved

If you’re interested in working with machine learning, the first step is to learn more about it. Find ways to learn about AI, machine learning algorithms, and other necessary programming skills.

It’s also important to gain math skills. Study linear algebra, statistics, and probability through online courses or tutoring.

Earning a degree is another way to learn more about ML. Some machine learning jobs may require a degree in data science, computer engineering, or a related field.

Practicing with free data sets can be helpful. Use existing data sets to focus on programming and machine learning algorithms.

It’s a good idea to build a portfolio. Work on projects that highlight your skills and interests to attract employers.

Learning to Learn

Understanding the types of machine learning algorithms can help you effectively use AI and ML to mitigate risk, improve sales, and better understand the people that computer systems interact with. A solid understanding of programming, math, and communication can boost your experience with machine learning algorithms.

Sources

Built In, “The Top 10 Machine Learning Algorithms Every Beginner Should Know”

DataFlair, “Advantages and Disadvantages of Machine Learning Language”

Expert.ai, “What Is Machine Learning? A Definition”

Indeed, 10 Key Benefits of Machine Learning (with Uses and FAQs)

Indeed, “How to Break Into Machine Learning in 11 Steps”

Label Your Data, “”How to Choose the Right Machine Learning Algorithm: A Pragmatic Approach”

ReadWrite, “AI Leaders: List of the Top 10 Visionaries in the Industry”

SAS Institute, Banking Risk Management

SAS Institute, Health Care Data Analytics

SAS Institute, Retail Analytics and Consumer Goods Software

TechTarget, “Machine Learning”

The global workforce has undergone an enormous shift in the past three years. In late 2019, only 7% of workers with jobs that could be done remotely reported working off-site; as of March 2023, that percentage had increased fivefold, according to the Pew Research Center.

More than a third of individuals with jobs that can be done remotely are now working from home full time, and another 41% of these professionals say they’ve adopted a hybrid schedule, working on-site some days and at home on others.

Remote workers report that telecommuting has a variety of benefits, such as reducing or eliminating their commute time and commute-related stress and saving them money on gas and meal expenses. But working from home can also lead to increased feelings of isolation. In some cases, telecommuting can put professionals at an increased risk of overwork.

Whether they’re working remotely full time or part time, employees should make preserving their well-being a priority. Below are some steps remote workers can take to maintain their mental health.

Remote work pros and cons that impact mental health

While several factors related to working from home may improve workers’ mental health, others have the potential to harm it. The top upsides and downsides of remote work include the following:

Pros

The perks of working from home extend far beyond eliminating one’s daily commute. Other benefits associated with working from home are as follows:

• Increased flexibility and independence. Working from home can offer workers enormous flexibility. For example, many professionals who are parents find that working remotely allows them to drive their children to and from school and run errands during the day, as long as their professional obligations are met.
• Fewer distractions from co-workers and increased productivity. Working in an office can involve distractions such as loud phone conversations and unnecessary interruptions. Working off-site can eliminate many of these issues, allowing employees to be more productive during their work hours.
• Improved work-life balance and job satisfaction. Professionals who spend long hours at the office may find it difficult to keep up with both their work and household obligations. Being able to manage certain personal tasks during the day — such as doing laundry, picking up children from after-school programs, and preparing meals — can help improve professionals’ sense of work-life balance.

Cons

Working off-site part time or full time can also be associated with certain disadvantages. The most common include the following:

• Fewer face-to-face interactions with colleagues. Humans are social by nature, and fewer in-person interactions with co-workers can cause professionals to feel isolated. More than a third of remote workers reported feeling lonely in a 2022 study by Glassdoor.
• Risk of overwork. Individuals working off-site may find it hard to separate their personal time from their professional time. For example, individuals concerned about making a deadline or following up on a troubling customer complaint may be more apt to log on after hours.
• Disconnection from the workplace. Working from home may eliminate a variety of workplace distractions, but it can also lead professionals to feel disconnected from their employers and uninformed about workplace occurrences. Less connection with the workplace can decrease workers’ motivation to start or complete tasks — and can also make them less visible to supervisors, which can affect their opportunities for advancement.

Tips to stay mentally healthy while working from home

Whether someone has been working from home for years or is about to transition to a new arrangement, these steps can help remote workers maintain their mental well-being.

• Find ways to connect with colleagues. Although working from home reduces opportunities for face-to-face conversations, workers can take steps to preserve their in-office friendships. They can be proactive in finding ways to interact with co-workers, such as by scheduling group lunches, committing to off-hours activities such as hiking or volunteering, or planning remote hangouts such as virtual happy hours.
• Create a dedicated workspace. Working from home leads some people to work longer hours. Creating a designated workspace such as a home office or work nook can help professionals walk away from the job at the end of the workday.
• Stick to a work schedule as much as possible. Work-from-home professionals should create new routines to start and end their workday, such as making a pot of coffee before beginning and going for an after-work walk when the day is over. Turning off work and email notifications at night and on the weekends can contribute to a positive work-life balance.
• Schedule work breaks. Remote workers should schedule breaks throughout the day to stretch their legs, go outside, start a load of laundry, or make a healthy snack. Anything that gets workers away from their desks for a few minutes can be beneficial to their mental health.
• Connect with friends and family. Going out to lunch with a friend or partner can break up the workday. It’s especially important for at-home workers to maintain social connections and get out of the house on evenings and weekends.
• Green up the workspace. Numerous psychological benefits are associated with adding plants to one’s workspace. Plants have been shown to reduce anxiety, promote self-care, and improve feelings of positivity and happiness.
• Change up routines. Psychologists report that social interactions are important for individuals’ sense of well-being. Instead of working consistently from home, remote employees should consider working one day a week at a coffee shop, in a library, or alongside a colleague at their home office.
• Communicate with employers. Remote workers should make sure they understand their employers’ work expectations and mental health promotion programs. For example, they should clarify their employer’s policies on flextime, and whether they need to notify their manager if they have to step out during the day.

Advance your education to pursue remote work positions

Working from home can be enormously advantageous to many employees, but taking steps to maintain their mental well-being while working remotely is paramount. Not only can this help mitigate their stress, decrease their anxiety, and improve their overall sense of wellness, but also it may increase their job satisfaction.

Whether they want to work from home or on-site, professionals interested in continuing their education to advance their careers are likely to find that earning an online bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree can help them progress toward their goal.

Are you ready to take the next brave step in your career? Discover how Maryville University’s online degree programs can provide you with the knowledge and skills you need to transform your professional future.

 

Recommended Readings

Best Productivity Tools of 2023

How to Stay Relevant in Today’s Job Market

How to Communicate Effectively in the Hybrid Workplace

 

Sources:

BBC, “Is Remote Work Worse for Wellbeing than People Think?”

Built In “Working from Home and Depression” Forbes, “Does Remote Work Hurt Wellbeing and Work-Life Balance?”

Glassdoor, “Lonely at Work? What to Do When Feeling Isolated”

Indeed, “The Pros and Cons of Working from Home”

Pew Research Center, “About a Third of U.S. Workers Who Can Work from Home Now Do So All the Time”

SocialSelf, “Why Being Social Is Important, Benefits and Examples”

Humans are social creatures by nature. Developing strong relationships in both personal and professional circles offers a feeling of connection that may help people cope with stress and adversity.

Although recent trends in remote and hybrid work environments have, in some cases, led to fewer opportunities to connect with colleagues in person, taking steps to develop and maintain friendships with colleagues is of paramount importance. Below are just a few of the reasons to consider strengthening your work friendships.

Benefits of establishing friendships at work

Various personal and professional benefits are associated with establishing friendships in the workplace. Having work friendships can not only create a more enjoyable work environment, but also help you expand your professional network and lead to career advancement opportunities.

Other benefits of establishing and strengthening office and remote work friendships include the following:

• Work friendships boost job satisfaction. Professionals with friends at work report having a greater sense of job satisfaction. Approximately 57% of respondents said having close friends at work made their job more enjoyable, according to a 2021 Wildgoose survey.
• Professionals with friends in the workplace are less likely to experience burnout. People with office friendships can turn to colleagues when they’re feeling stressed and overwhelmed. Socializing with co-workers, even briefly, can not only help reduce stress but also offer opportunities to take mental health breaks from work-related pressures.
• Work friendships can improve productivity and engagement. Professionals with friends in the workplace may be more likely to share ideas, communicate openly, and work better with their colleagues. All these things help boost productivity.
• Having friends at work can make the workday more fun. Having friends in the workplace creates opportunities for workers to engage in lighthearted conversations. These shared experiences help make the workday feel less monotonous and the workplace feel more enjoyable.
• Work friendships help create a more inclusive environment. Office friendships help promote trust, collaboration, and inclusivity, according to a 2023 Business News Daily report. Having co-workers who take a genuine interest in each other’s lives helps create a positive company culture.
• Work friendships can create additional benefits for remote workers. In addition to the above benefits, developing work friendships can help reduce feelings of isolation among remote workers. Although working from home provides opportunities to save on transportation costs and commute time and may help improve work-life balance, losing in-person contact with team members can lead some workers to feel lonely. Remote workers who maintain friendships with team members are less likely to feel isolated during the workday. Establishing work friendships can also help remote workers feel more informed and connected to their teams.

How to make work friends in the office and at home

Professionals interested in building or strengthening friendships with co-workers, both in person and remotely, have various options.

• Schedule a joint work session. Working from home doesn’t mean you need to work alone. Do you have colleagues who live nearby? Consider scheduling weekly joint work sessions at your home, their home, or a local coffee shop. If distance is prohibitive, you can opt to schedule virtual working sessions using Google Meet, Skype, Zoom, or another video calling application.
• Plan an in-person or a remote activity. Scheduling an off-hour activity, such as meeting for lunch, planning a hike, or volunteering at a local nonprofit, can be a great way to strengthen friendships with co-workers. Workers who live far away from one another can opt to schedule remote hangouts, such as virtual game sessions or book club meetings.
• Stay connected via messaging portals. Messaging platforms, such as Slack and WhatsApp Web, are great tools to help you stay connected with team members. These platforms can also help remote workers maintain daily interactions with friends from work.
• Be proactive in reaching out to the people you work with. Friendships take work. Don’t be afraid to ask your colleagues for feedback or advice. Remember that not all workplace interactions need to be about work. Take steps to learn more about the people you work with.
• Join workplace committees or employee resource groups. Joining groups and committees can be a great way to get to know your co-workers and meet colleagues who you don’t normally work with.

Advance your education and gain opportunities to expand your friendships at work

An online bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree or certificate from Maryville University can help professionals interested in starting or finishing their college degrees to advance in their current careers or switch to new ones. Making a bold career move can provide opportunities to grow your professional network — and can also lead to new work friendships.

Are you ready to take the next brave step toward starting or completing your college degree? Discover how Maryville’s online degree programs can help prepare you for the next chapter in your professional journey.

Recommended Readings

The Unexpected Perks of Online Learning: Best Friends Born from Social Work Studies

How to Communicate Effectively in the Hybrid Workplace

How to Find Legit Work-from-Home Jobs

 

Sources:

Business News Daily, “Why It’s Good to Have a BFF at Work”

Forbes, “Five Tips to Avoid Feeling Lonely When Working Remotely”

Gallup, “The Increasing Importance of a Best Friend at Work”

The New York Times, “Do We Know How Many People Are Working from Home?”

Supportiv.com,  “Building Friendships With Coworkers While Working Remotely”

ThomasNet.com, “How to Make Friends at Work Even if You’re Remote”

Time, “Why Work Friends Are Crucial for Your Health”

Wildgoose, “The 2021 Workplace Friendship & Happiness Survey”

Twenty years ago, typical employee benefits for new hires included two weeks of paid time off (PTO) and medical benefits. Today, a growing number of companies have expanded the idea of what a benefits package should include and are offering a number of other desirable work perks, such as unlimited PTO, pet-friendly offices, hybrid work environments, and free lunches.

Enhanced work perks not only help companies attract top-tier talent, but they also improve staff retention rates. Additionally, organizations that take proactive steps to ensure their staff are happy and healthy are more likely to receive positive word-of-mouth recommendations, which can help strengthen their brands.

Below are just a few of the other ways that great perks at work foster employee happiness, wellness, and loyalty.

Why Perks at Work Are Increasingly Important to Job Seekers

As of June 2023, the unemployment rate in the United States was 3.6%, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Low unemployment rates not only make it harder for organizations to recruit and retain talent, but they also provide job seekers with additional leverage to negotiate work perks.

For example, 52% of job seekers, not employers, feel they have the upper hand in today’s job market, according to the 2023 U.S. Job Market Trends Report from Joblist. Companies with robust benefits packages, such as those that offer competitive wages, flextime, and health and wellness perks, often find they’re able to differentiate themselves from their competitors and attract better talent.

Why Job Seekers Have Begun to Prioritize Wellness Perks

Professionals seeking new employment are prioritizing wellness perks for a variety of reasons. For example, not only are today’s workers increasingly aware of the need to maintain a healthy work-life balance, but they also understand that companies that offer wellness perks are more likely to have a positive work environment.

Following are some other benefits associated with working for companies that offer wellness programs:

• Improved mental health. Work pressures can exacerbate symptoms of anxiety and depression. Employees who enjoy wellness perks may have lower rates of absenteeism and turnover, TeamSense reports.
• A more enjoyable work environment. Perks such as free meals and snacks, pet-friendly offices, and flexible schedules make time spent at work more enjoyable, which may make employees less likely to job-hop.
• Increased engagement, motivation, and productivity. Employees who feel appreciated may be more likely to be motivated, engaged, and willing to go the extra mile. Happy employees are often more productive employees.
• Less burnout. Employee wellness programs can help prevent staff burnout. People who love their jobs tend to be less stressed at the workplace.

Examples of Great Work Perks in 2023

Competitive pay rates and medical benefits are just some of the work perks companies are providing to their employees. Examples of other great work perks being offered in 2023 include the following:

• Unlimited PTO. Companies offering unlimited PTO empower their staff to take control of their work schedules. This can lead to increased productivity and higher job satisfaction.
• Strong retirement plans and health, life, and disability insurance. Compensation packages designed to improve employees’ financial security, such as those that offer health, life, and disability insurance, can help professionals feel more confident about their financial futures.
• Hybrid work environments. Hybrid work environments provide flexibility and improved work-life balance. This type of arrangement often boosts job satisfaction and employee effectiveness.
• Home office stipends. Companies that provide home office stipends help staff create home office environments that are tailored to their needs. Stipends for laptop computers, monitors, printers, and furniture are among the most popular.
• Flexible hours. Flexible hours allow employees to customize their work schedules to accommodate their personal obligations. Flextime lets workers schedule medical or veterinary appointments during the day and drop off or pick up their children from school.
• Pet-friendly office spaces. People working in pet-friendly office spaces often find that pets have a calming effect on employees. Allowing pets in the office can also improve morale and encourage social interactions among staff members.
• Four-day work weeks. Job seekers are drawn to organizations that offer four-day work weeks for the additional time they get to rest, rejuvenate, and take care of their nonwork obligations.
• Free meals, free snacks, and fitness discounts. In 2021, the average American dined out 5.9 times per week, and the average American household spent about $300 per month in dining out expenses, according to BLS data. Companies that offer free meals, free snacks, and discounts on commonly used amenities, such as gym memberships, can have higher levels of employee satisfaction.
• Mental health perks. Companies that prioritize employees’ mental well-being foster a positive company culture that can lead to staff being less stressed and more engaged. Common mental health perks include offering mental health days and employee assistance programs designed to reduce costs for in-person and online counseling sessions.

Industries That Offer Great Perks at Work

Competitive industries that rely heavily on attracting top talent often provide better job perks. Examples of industries and jobs that offer the best perks at work include the following:

Earn Your Degree to Pursue Jobs with Great Work Perks

Offering employees great perks at work is beneficial for a number of reasons, including improved staff retention and workplace morale.

Professionals interested in advancing their education to pursue jobs with the best work perks are likely to find that earning an online degree from Maryville University can prepare them with the knowledge and skills needed to be competitive in today’s job market.

Are you ready to take the next brave step toward improving your job satisfaction and work-life balance? Discover how earning an online bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree or certificate from Maryville University can help you market yourself to industries that offer enhanced work perks.

Recommended Readings

A Guide to Corporate Wellness Programs: Why Employee Health Matters
Best Productivity Tools of 2023
5 Unique Careers for Creative People

Sources:

6Q, “5 Great Reasons Why Happiness Increases Productivity”
ALM Benefits Pro, “Job Seekers Retain the Upper Hand in 2023”
CNBC, “The Top 10 Industries Job-Seekers Want to Work in Right Now, According to New Research”
Forbes, “Best Employee Benefits in 2023”
Joblist, 2023 United States Job Market Trends Report
Kaiser Permanente, “Why Workers Should Care About Employee Wellness Programs”
LinkedIn, “Enhancing Employer Appeal: Top HR Practices That Attract Exceptional Talent”
LinkedIn, “Happy Employees Make the World Go Round: Why Employee Happiness Is Important in 2023”
LinkedIn, “How to Use Health and Wellness to Attract the Top Talents?”
Smartest Dollar, “Industries Offering the Best Employee Benefits [2022 Edition]”
TeamSense, “5 Reasons Employee Turnover and Absenteeism Rates Are Increasing”
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Expenditures, 2021
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, The Employment Situation, June 2023