Workplace Insights by Adrie van der Luijt
Careers aren’t really ladders, they’re more like messy scribbles with occasional moments of clarity. I’ve spent decades watching talented people waste years chasing what they thought they should want rather than what actually suited them.
The posts in this section reflect what I wish someone had told me thirty years ago: that the most successful careers are built on knowing your strengths, acknowledging your limitations and having the courage to navigate workplace politics without becoming what you despise.
Whether you’re just starting out or questioning decades of choices, you’ll find honest reflections on creating a career that works for you rather than burning yourself out for an organisation that sees you as replaceable.
A brutally honest account of navigating unplanned career break challenges to care for an elderly parent, revealing the stark reality gap between claimed digital accessibility and actual user experiences.
As AI reshapes our digital landscape, who’s being left behind? A government digital standards pioneer examines the accessibility gaps in current AI systems and provides practical guidance for truly inclusive design in the age of concentrated digital control.
If you’re in a UK executive support role that expects strategic work but doesn’t recognise it, it’s time to start changing the conversation.
Workplace changes that will affect executive assistants, management assistants and other business support professionals.
The people training your AI chatbots are telling their children never to use them. They’ve seen the rushed timelines, inadequate training data, and ignored safety concerns. They’re experiencing PTSD, moral injury, and relationship breakdowns from the work. If the insiders won’t trust these systems with their 10-year-olds, how are you meeting Consumer Duty obligations by deploying them with financially vulnerable customers?
After delivering a keynote on trauma-informed content design and reflecting on government’s AI ambitions for grant management, I’m troubled by the gap between efficiency promises and vulnerability realities. Most people using public services are in crisis. If our AI can’t recognise that, we’re building expensive barriers, not solutions.
After delivering a keynote on trauma-informed content design and reflecting on government’s AI ambitions for grant management, I’m troubled by the gap between efficiency promises and vulnerability realities. Most people using public services are in crisis. If our AI can’t recognise that, we’re building expensive barriers, not solutions.
The UK contract market in 2025 faces unprecedented challenges: shrinking roles, falling rates, and fierce competition. This in-depth analysis explores how IR35, economic pressures, and shifting hiring trends are reshaping opportunities for contractors—and why these changes matter for every UK professional navigating the future of work.
Workplace investigations have always been part of the management support landscape. What’s changing now is how these investigations are conducted.
The Entrepreneurial EA is making a comeback, decades after I pioneered the concept between 1997 and 2007. It is as relevant in the AI era as it was back then.