July 31, 2019
Take-up across the UK’s ‘Big Nine’ regional office markets rose to 2.3 million square feet during second quarter of 2019 according to the latest market update from property advisors Avison Young. This is up ten percent up on a 10-year average, with activity was skewed towards flexible offices, larger deals, city centres and the technology media and telecoms sector. More →
July 31, 2019
New research from ADP claims that the UK workforce feels confident, stable and well trained. The findings point to a more positive workforce that has continuously strengthened since the financial crash. Despite worries about the future of work generally, optimism has grown with just 27 percent of respondents reporting feeling very optimistic about their future in the workplace in 2019, up from 12 percent in 2012. More →
July 30, 2019
As the consequences of climate change, social tensions and high levels of inequality are increasingly evident, the Bennett Institute for Public Policy at the University of Cambridge, led by Professor Diane Coyle, has published its initial report on how to improve economic measurement by replacing GDP as the standard measure for national prosperity with others that include wellbeing and social and environmental capital. More →
July 30, 2019
The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has launched London’s Good Work Standard, pledging to make London ‘the best place to live and work’. The standard has been developed in partnership with CIPD, claims to bring together good employment practice with resources and guidance written by CIPD experts and tested with London based CIPD members, the framework sets out to support employers of all sizes across the city improve their people management practices and create good work for all.
July 30, 2019
Emotional intelligence or emotional quotient (EQ) is an increasingly popular buzz phrase in business and understanding its impact in the workplace is becoming crucial to employers in getting the most out of their staff. A new survey from Lee Hecht Harrison Penna claims the importance placed by people managers both on finding EQ in staff, and demonstrating it themselves. The study claims the changing mind-set of managers, who see EQ as key to the career development and professional success of their employees. More →
July 30, 2019
Toxic workplace environments plague the accountancy profession, according to new research from CABA, a wellbeing charity for chartered accountants. The survey of over 250 accountants suggests that over half of chartered accountants think their workplace is toxic. Communication issues, working unrealistic hours and cliquey colleagues are also cited in the study. The survey found that 55 percent of respondents believe their workplace to be toxic.
July 29, 2019
The number of over 50s working for themselves made up 46 percent of the UKs entire self-employed workforce in the first three months of 2019, according to new research from jobs and volunteering board Rest Less. There are now 2.27 million over 50s who are self-employed – up from 1.45 million 10 years ago, an increase of 57 percent in a decade. The survey looked at data from the Office of National Statistics to highlight self-employment trends amongst the different demographic groups in the UK. More →
July 29, 2019
Employers admit they need to do more to increase workplace resilience despite increased awareness of the impact of mental health issues in the workplace, claims a report from MetLife UK. Research for the report Mental Health and Stress: Building Employee Resilience in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, claims nearly six out of ten employers admit they have to increase the focus on helping their staff to build resilience and 66 percent say organisational resilience has to be driven by the company’s leadership. But nearly a third of employers admit their company’s culture creates stress at work and employees questioned for the study say employers are not honest during recruitment about the demands on staff and the impact in stress. More →
July 26, 2019
New research from Aon, claims that flexible benefits programmes continue to be popular within organisations, despite communication challenges and a potential impact from 2018’s optional repayment arrangement (OpRA) regulations. Aon’s Benefits and Trends Survey 2019 claims that 45 percent of employers say they already have an online benefits or flex portal, with a further 20 percent saying they plan to introduce one within the next three years. This compares with last year’s 37 percent and 26 percent, respectively. More →
July 26, 2019
With the summer holidays in full swing, Bella Italia researchers polled British parents around the pitfalls of keeping kids entertained and claims that hosting playdates and sleepovers is the thing we dread the most. Overall, 84 percent of parents claim having other people’s children over to play is an “extremely stressful” experience. In fact, playdates fill parents with so much dread and anxiety, that as many as 67 percent have told a lie to another parent to back out of having their child’s friend over. 43 percent said their biggest concern was their house getting trashed, while 41 percent worry about the kids being totally uncontrollable. More →
July 25, 2019
A vicious cycle can begin with one little white lie from a co-worker, diminishing the ability of other employees to read others and then even undermining the entire workplace or business, finds a new study from researchers at Michigan, Harvard, Virginia and Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis. Dishonest deeds diminish a person’s ability to read others’ emotions, or “interpersonal cognition,” the research found. In addition, the consequences can snowball. One dishonest act can set in motion even more dishonesty. More →
July 25, 2019
UK SMEs must create a tech-friendly culture to attract and retain top tech talent, according to a new white paper from Robert Half UK, Recruiting for the future: The challenges for UK SMEs. While remuneration and work–life balance are the top reasons for job moves, SMEs’ ability to offer an innovative culture with high levels of responsibility is central to their ability to secure and retain talent over larger organisations. With the UK talent market suffering from a lack of digital skills, companies across all sectors are locked in a war for talent, competing with one another to hire skilled technology professionals to help their businesses adapt to increased digitalisation. More →
