According to recent data, the number of office jobs in New York City is at all-time high, since approximately 1.5 million of the city’s 4.5 million employees are office based. Working in an office has its advantages: you’re in a familiar environment and you have a fixed place of work (a time saver in a metropolis like New York City), but office work also comes with its drawbacks. After gathering data from many surveys, here’s a list of the top 8 grumbles of office employees.

1. Lack of Privacy

Office trends shows we’re moving away from cubicles towards open space, and this has brought some positive changes, but not everyone appreciates open plan layouts. Many office workers who spend their day in this type of setting complain about lack of privacy and about not having the right space for certain decision making or problem solving tasks. Open plan offices are not bad per se, but it’s always wise to have private spaces and design office layouts taking into account different roles and tasks.

The city of New York has been committed to implementing sustainable building practices since 1997. Over the years, the city has made significant advances in greenhouse emissions reduction, energy saving, and in creating a healthier environment. Below is a selection of the most well-known green office buildings in New York City

 Hearst Tower

This office development is located in the vicinity of Columbus Circle and serves as the global headquarters of the Hearst Communications Group. The building is often referred to as the most environmentally friendly office building in the Green Apple. In 2012, it received two LEED Certifications: Gold for New Construction and Platinum for Sustainable Building Operations. Although the tower itself was built in 1928 with no special regard for sustainability, in 2006 it underwent a makeover led by prestigious architect Norman Foster, and soon after it received the Emporis Skyscraper award. Te tower’s sustainable features include low-toxicity furniture and paint, automatically regulated artificial light, innovative cooling and heating systems, the reuse of collected rainwater, and the use of recycled construction materials, which make up 85 percent of the building’s structure. Overall, Hearst Tower is 26 percent more energy efficient than a standard skyscraper.

One Bryant Park

Also known as the Bank of America Tower, this 51-story office building is often listed among the world’s most sustainable buildings of its kind. Construction was completed in 2010 and soon after the building received a LEED Platinum certification, becoming the first skyscraper to receive it in North America. Recent reconstruction efforts have focused on preserving certain architectural elements (such as the early 20th century facade) while adding advanced sustainable elements that improved the building’s overall green ratings. Green features include an innovative air filtration system, rooftop gardens that reuse compost produced at building’s eating venues, water reclamation systems, the installation of waterless urinals, and an ice cooling system that significantly reduces air conditioning usage.

This summer, New York City will host a number of exciting business events. If you are looking for networking opportunities or forums to share ideas and innovations, these events are great for meeting potential business partners and investors.

Networking Events

The NYC Real Estate Summer Kickoff Networking Party is designed for real estate professionals and businesses to meet like-minded colleagues in a laid-back and fun environment. The free social event is planned for June 28 at 230 Fifth, a greenery-lined rooftop bar and restaurant with beautiful panoramic views of Midtown Manhattan.

Another networking event planned a week earlier on the of June 23 is the New York Social Summer Bash, a Be Social Change event at the Wix Lounge on 235 West 23rd Street. The evening is an opportunity to mingle with new business connections while kicking off the summer. Be Social Change is the city’s largest social impact community and professional development hub.

The NYC Professional Network is a creative forum for businesses and professionals to meet potential clients, business partners and investors. It also stages events throughout the year, including the New York Entrepreneurs, Start-up and Business Network on August 22. Billed as the largest event of its kind in New York City, the evening of networking brings together tech start-ups and entrepreneurs as well as professionals, freelancers and others from across the city. It is an ideal place for businesses and entrepreneurs to look for leads on co-founders, team members, partners, mentors and coaches. The event is being held at the Hudson Terrac in Hell’s Kitchen. Although it is free to attend, an RSVP is required.

For several decades, the predominant corporate culture in the United States has been characterised by long working hours and a generalised reticence to taking vacations. However, in recent years flexible working practices have begun to be frequently implemented in companies around the globe in an attempt to provide employees with a better work-life balance. This trend has of course had a direct impact on US-based firms too, and it is estimated that more than 3 million US employees now benefit from flexible work arrangements.

As one of the most prosperous and forward-looking cities in the country, New York has led the way with regards to the implementation of flexible working practices. This article provides an overview of the progress made so far, as well as a review of the most flexible workplaces in New York.

Flexible Work Arrangements in New York: General Trends

According to data published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, flexible work arrangements are particularly common among New York employees who hold managerial, executive, or administrative roles in the private sector. Within the public sector, New York employees who work for the federal government are more likely to have access to flexible working arrangements than their local or state government counterparts.

Another trend worth mentioning refers to the widespread adoption of flexible working practices across genders and age groups. For example, a New York Times article recently drew attention to the fact that telecommuting is no longer an option limited to mid-career employees, as the typical telecommuter profile has grown to include young graduates and employees close to retirement age irrespective of their gender.

Conferences are opportunities for technology entrepreneurs and start-ups to look for co-founders, investors and partners. They also provide a forum for established businesses to showcase their services and products, as well as share best practice. An international centre for business and innovation, New York City hosts several technology conferences each year.

Social Media Week

Social Media Week spurs a worldwide conversation about connecting the world through technology. Events are held in 18 cities including London, Mumbai, Chicago, Sydney, Mexico City, Los Angeles, Milan and Jakarta. The theme for 2016 is ‘The Invisible Hand’, and events will delve into the hidden forces of technology and look at ways to harness them for good. Now in its eight year, Social Media Week New York attracts thousands of marketing, media and technology professionals. Held at The TimesCenter and the SVA Theatre from February 22 to 26, the expected line-up of 230 speakers include New York Times Company CEO Mark Thompson, CollegeHumor co-founder Ricky Van Veen, and Refinery29 co-founder Philippe von Borries. Go to http://socialmediaweek.org/newyork for more information. (Twitter: @smwnyc)

Techweek NYC

The fourth annual Techweek NYC takes place from October 10 to 16. At previous events, key note speakers included Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti. The event attracts businesses and innovators from every aspect of the technology sector, from Fortune 500 CEOs sharing their success stories to start-ups looking for investors. Techweek also includes events in Los Angeles, Dallas, Miami, Detroit, Chicago, Kansas City and Toronto. Speaker sessions showcase breakthrough trends and success stories to educate delegates on what is relevant and innovative. The Entrepreneur Expo is an opportunity for companies to present their services and provide advice to tech entrepreneurs and start-ups, while the launch Competition reveals the best new businesses in the New York area. Several events are also hosted by sponsors and partners. For further information go to www.techweek.com/newyork. (Twitter: @TechweekNYC)

In a global mega city like New York, keeping up to date with the latest developments in the world of business is essential to keep your enterprise relevant and ensure continued success. Below is a list of just some of the top business conferences being held in the New York area in 2016.

Mobile Innovation Summit

@iegroup

March 10-11, 2016

The Sheraton in New York

Key Speakers include:

• Christophe Gillet (Vimeo)
• Steve Holland (Match.com)
• Jenny Gove (Google)

Event Summary:

Companies looking to benefit from mobile computing advertising get the chance to talk to the companies that are creating new ways to utilize this growing marketing platform.

In a city like New York, a constant round of business planning and development is the rule, rather than the exception. New York City is comprised of five boroughs, each of which competes for market share of technology business initiatives to increase employment, as well as to create a solid business base.

The Boom in New York City Tech Initiatives

One of former Mayor Bloomberg’s major initiatives was to create greater competition with Silicon Valley by providing funding for hi tech industries in New York City. Mayor di Blasio has continued this trend to New York City’s advantage. New York City has continued to extend tax breaks to attract technology companies, with Buzzfeed being granted a four million dollar tax credit at the end of Decemeber, 2014,  for its new 194, 000 sq/ft headquarters. Another company to benefit from a tax break was Etsy, with a five million dollar tax break and 200, 000 sq/ft of office space in Brooklyn.

More than $1.7 billion has been acquired through venture capital investments, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association, a rise of 138 percent. Evidently, tech initiatives and media disciplines are aiming to help New York City achieve goals competitive with the rest of the world.

Staten Island, although the smallest borough of New York City with a population of less than 500,000 people, has shown many positive signs of growth in recent times.

Major Economic Drivers For Staten Island

The slower acclimation of technology start-ups into the Staten Island community in comparison to the other four New York boroughs means that the area predominantly relies on other economic drivers to grow and sustain its economy, although this is starting to change.

One of the faster growing economic drivers for Staten Island is tourism. The VisitStatenIsland.com website was started in 2009 to help drive more tourism revenue to the area and the initial results indicate that visitors are responding.

The main economic driver for Staten Island remains its healthcare system. One of the more unique aspects of Staten Island is that it runs its own hospitals and is completely independent of the New York City government. Health research and healthcare remain a prime economic factor for  Staten Island residents.

Primary Industries And Employers For Staten Island

The most prominent industry on Staten Island is healthcare. Richmond University Medical Center and Staten Island University Hospital are two of the larger employers on the island for a variety of trades and professions.

Running a close second as far as dominant industries on Staten Island is the financial sales and insurance industries. There are nearly as many people employed in the financial and insurance industries on Staten Island as there are in healthcare.

Business Funding Opportunities On Staten Island

They thought that they toppled the collective financial might of the United States of America. They thought that an act of terror would cause the United States to buckle and bow to a new master. But they forgot that the people of the United States bow to no one and, when those people band together, they can do anything they set their minds to.

September 11, 2001 is a date that Americans will never forget. It isn’t just the loss of life that makes the date stick in the minds of Americans, it is the audacity that Americans could be intimidated by anyone. One World Trade Center rises as a glass and metal testament to the resolve of the American people and a grand indication of the defiant nature that resides in every resident of the United States.

The Scale Is Massive

One World Trade Center is 1,250-feet tall, which is nearly a quarter of a mile in the air. It is the largest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere and it glistens in the New York City morning sunlight. The building is 124-stories tall, but 20 of those stories are underground and make up the massive foundation of this building. It too 10,000 workers 12 years to move 48,000 tons of steel and nearly 13,000 panels of reinforced glass into place. It is a massive structure that stands high above the New York City skyline.

10. GE Building
The GE building is located in Midtown Manhattan, and is considered an art deco masterpiece. It is located specifically at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, which has led to it being referred to “30 Rock” colloquially. The building is 850 feet tall, and is the 33rd tallest building in the entire United States. It is most famously the home of the television network NBC, and it has been featured prominently in many television shows and movies throughout the years.

9. Trump World Tower
Trump World Tower is a residential building, and it stands as the tallest all-residential building in both the city of New York and the United States as a whole. It is listed as the 79th tallest building in the world, and was widely opposed by many officials and television commentators in the lead-up to its construction. It has 72 floors, but there are 90 floor buttons on the elevator panels.

8. 8 Spruce Street
The 8 Spruce Street building is also known as “New York by Gehry” after its architect Frank Gehry. The building is 870 feet tall, and is built with a unique glass/steel facade that resembles rippling water. 8 Spruce Street functions as a residential building, with 898 units being housed within its walls.

7. Citigroup Center
The Citigroup Center building is commonly referred to as simply “601 Lexington Avenue”, and was opened in 1977. An air of controversy surrounded the construction of the building when it was discovered that the building was constructed with an engineering flaw. Engineers did not account for “quartered” wind pressure, on the building, resulting in a 160% greater amount of pressure on joints than was intended.

6. 40 Wall Street
40 Wall Street is a 70 story skyscraper in Manhattan. The building was designed by H. Craig Severance, with construction being completed in 1930. One of the most interesting aspects of this building is that construction was completed after only 11 months. It was the tallest building in the world for only one month, when it was beaten out in height by the Chrysler Building.

5. American International Building
The American International Building was constructed in 1932 to serve as an office center. The building was constructed by the Cities Service Company with many design elements that are intended to portray the building as a snow-capped mountain. As a result, the building was originally known as the Cities Service Building, and has been the tallest building in the downtown area for much of the past 100 years.

4. New York Times Building
One of the youngest buildings in the New York City skyline, the New York Times Building is actually home to a number of different publishing companies. It also serves as an office center for other, non-publishing related businesses. Completed in 2007, the building cost $850 million. It has 52 floors, however some of the floors are taller than traditional floors to accommodate for retail space.

3. Chrysler Building
The Chrysler building was completed in 1930, and it is known as one of the largest examples of art deco that can be found in the world. It was the tallest building in the world in the 11 months between its completion and that of the Empire State Building. It was paid for entirely out of pocket by Walter Chrysler so that his children would inherit it after he died.

2. Bank of America Tower
The Bank of America Tower cost upwards of $1 billion to complete, and is one of the most uniquely designed buildings dominating the Manhattan skyline. After its completion in 2009, the tower was profiled on the National Geographic program “Megastructures”. In 2010, it was named the “Best Tall Building in the Americas” by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

1. Empire State Building
The Empire State Building was the tallest building in New York City until the completion of the World Trade Center. After the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001, the Empire State Building was once again the tallest building in New York. It is designed in the art deco style, and is considered a cultural icon of New York, which has bestowed “landmark” status to it.