October 5, 2022

Younger workers tend to rely on the office more

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

A new poll claims that people belonging to “Gen Z” rely heavily on the professional and social structure of the office, with 78 percent finding it easier to bond with colleagues in the workplace and 81 percent feeling disconnected from their peers when working from home. The survey of 3,000 people, from Unispace, claims that the majority (79 percent) of younger workers felt more active when working in the office, while among older workers this figure is 66 percent. More →

October 5, 2022

Cancer Support UK introduces new course to support employees affected by cancer

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

If a work colleague told you they had cancer how would you respond? This scenario is fast becoming a reality, as by 2030 it is estimated that 1.5million people of working age will be living with cancer. The impact that a cancer diagnosis can have on an individual’s mental health is significant, yet 85 percent of employees with a cancer diagnosis want to carry on working. Knowing how to conduct a difficult conversation about cancer, and support those with cancer in the workplace, is at the heart of a new training programme – the Cancer Support Ambassador course – introduced by wellbeing experts Cancer Support UK. More →

October 4, 2022

Most business professionals feel the need to ’embrace the metaverse

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology

A new study commissioned by Ciena claims to have uncovered just how ready business professionals are to collaborate in the virtual world of the metaverse. Ninety-six percent of the 15,000 business professionals surveyed across the globe say that they recognise the value of virtual meetings, and more than three-quarters (78 percent) say they would participate in more immersive experiences like the metaverse compared to current tools, such as videoconferencing. More →

October 4, 2022

One in four pregnant women reluctant to share news with employers

by Neil Franklin • HR, News, Wellbeing

More than one in four (26 percent) pregnant women feel reluctant to share their pregnancy news due to fear of the stigma they may face from colleagues and managers, according to a new poll from Culture Shift. This jumped to almost half (46 percent) for those who had been in employment for less than six months when they fell pregnant. The survey conducted among mothers who worked while pregnant reveals more than one in five (21 percent) know someone who has faced maternity discrimination at work, while one in eight (12 percent) have experienced it themselves. More than one in ten (11 percent) say it was their manager who discriminated against them. More →

October 4, 2022

Three quarters of people admit to turning off webcam to hide what they’re doing

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology

A new poll from Showpad, claims that three quarters of ‘office workers’ in the UK (76 percent) admit to turning off their webcam on video calls to hide what they are doing. The figure for workers under 24 rises to 85 percent. According to the State of Selling study, concentration on video calls when working from home appears to be one of the main issues with 80 percent saying they are more easily distracted in virtual meetings compared to real-world ones, with over half (52 percent) saying they have an attention span of less than half an hour in virtual meetings. More →

October 4, 2022

Reliance on hero leaders holds back progress on the environment

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News

Reliance on a wise ‘guru’ leader or ‘hero CEO’ endangers progress in tackling the environmental crisis by shifting responsibility, according to a new report from CEMS. Instead, all leaders need to adopt a corporate culture of ‘collective’ responsibility, empowering all employees to make decisions with a generational outlook if real change is to take place. The new report – Leading for the Future of Our Planet – builds on findings from a CEMS survey of 4,206 professionals across 75 countries revealing that the environment is the single greatest concern facing modern-day business leaders, overtaking technological advancement. More →

September 28, 2022

Work is more visible to managers when people are in the physical workplace

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

Although workers think that their work location doesn’t matter, a new poll suggests that their bosses don’t agree. In the poll of US employees from workplace platform Envoy, 96 percent of respondents described as leaders say they take more notice of people’s work contributions when they are in the office. Just 42 percent of respondents described as employees agree. Gen Z employees, more than any other generation, value workplace visibility, with 73 percent believing their contributions are noticed more in-office than at home. Only 64 percent of Millennials, 53 percent of Gen X, and 45 percent of Boomers feel the same. Among executives, women are more likely than men to recognise work and contributions accomplished from home. More →

September 27, 2022

Corporate change forces managers to juggle different views of fairness

by Neil Franklin • Business, News

Middle managers get caught between different stakeholders’ perceptions of fair treatment in reaction to corporate change programmes, claims new research from Aalto University School of Business and published in the Journal of Business Ethics. According to Associate Professor Marjo-Riitta Diehl, from the Department of Management Studies, and her co-authors, these managers can often experience uncertainty, anxiety, and reluctance to take action as a result. The research was based on two rounds of interviews with managers in the German branch of an international company shortly before and after restructuring changes. More →

September 27, 2022

Skills shortages won’t be solved by offering people more money

by Neil Franklin • HR, News

As businesses across the country face rising costs, new research from the CIPD and Omni warns that using pay to attract talent simply isn’t enough to tackle on-going skills shortages. While an increasing number of organisations (54 percent) are inflating pay to retain talent, this approach is not sustainable for most employers in the face of rising costs. To tackle the skills shortage, organisations need to highlight other components of good working practices when recruiting, such as offering flexible working and promoting career development opportunities. For instance, the latest Resourcing and Talent Planning survey shows that 68 percent of employers that offer hybrid/ remote working say it has allowed their organisation to attract and retain more talent. More →

September 23, 2022

Digital twin in Birmingham will drive innovation and clean energy in the city

by Neil Franklin • Cities, News, Technology

A digital twin that can comprehensively model and test pathways to clean energy and net zero emissions in East Birmingham is being planned in a partnership between the University of Birmingham, Birmingham City Council and Siemens. A feasibility study has been commissioned which demonstrates how a virtual representation of the energy and transport infrastructure within East Birmingham and Tyseley Environmental Enterprise District (TEED) will help to outline pathways for decarbonisation. More →

September 22, 2022

Demand for sustainable commercial property rises modestly, but supply side still falls short

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News, Property

Progress is being seen in some aspects of the built environment on the drive to be more sustainable, according to the latest annual sustainability report produced by RICS, however the rate of advancement needs to accelerate significantly and become more widespread. The 2022 RICS Sustainability Report, which collated sentiment from almost 4,000 chartered surveyor contributors, around 1200 of which are from the UK, across commercial and construction sectors globally, shows that some improvement in the push for sustainability has been made in the past year, notably in the commercial real estate sector as demand for sustainable commercial property continues to rise. More →

September 22, 2022

Working culture a major draw for younger job seekers

by Neil Franklin • HR, News

According to a new poll from Breathe HR, a large majority of younger workers now prioritise working culture in their job searches. The study of around 1,300 people claims that workers aged 18-34 are more likely to consider company culture (86 percent) when applying for jobs, compared to those working aged 55 and over (66 percent). In addition, 81 percent of 18–34-year-olds are more likely to ask about company culture in an interview than over 55-year-olds (57 percent) and four-fifths of UK workers say they would not apply for a role that had “unrealistic expectations”. More →