About Neil Franklin

Neil Franklin is Insight's news editor

Posts by Neil Franklin:

Half of people say working from home has improved their relationships

Half of people say working from home has improved their relationships

A shining example of working from homeA new study from Perkbox claims that the increased amount of time spent at home together under lockdown has actually strengthened many people’s personal relationships. Just under half (45 percent) of employees claim that their relationship with the people they live with has become stronger during their time working from home together. 51 percent say that their relationship is the same as before, with just 4 percent feeling that their relationship is now not as strong. More →

Employee happiness and loyalty tested by furlough schemes

Employee happiness and loyalty tested by furlough schemes

A newly commissioned survey of 1,000 people conducted by Censuswide on behalf of KnowBe4, claims that almost a third of respondents (28 percent) feel less loyal to their employer post-furlough. Of these individuals, 70 percent conceded to either not feeling supported by their employer, receiving little to no information or guidance prior to returning to work and/or did not receive regular communications from them. In fact, the actions employers take, or lack thereof, to ease the transition from furlough appears to play a significant role in employee sentiments upon their return to work.  More →

New think tank seeks to influence thinking on disability iat work

New think tank seeks to influence thinking on disability iat work

two people talking to illustrate the growing number of disabled people in self-employmentA new think tank has launched today to mark the United Nations’ International Day of Persons with a Disability. Called ‘The Forum’, the think tank seeks to increase the participation of employers and disabled people in the development of economic and social policy at a UK level. More →

Rise of remote work monitoring technology to be investigated by taskforce

Rise of remote work monitoring technology to be investigated by taskforce

Union body the TUC has today launched a new taskforce to look at the “creeping role” of artificial intelligence (AI) in managing people at work. The taskforce launch comes as a new TUC report, Technology managing people: the worker experience, claims that many workers have concerns over the use of AI and technology in the workplace. More →

One in eight firms already use software to monitor remote workers

One in eight firms already use software to monitor remote workers

monitoring remote workersA large number of British companies companies say they plan to install monitoring software of some kind to keep an eye on employees working from home, according to a new survey. Around 20 percent of employers said their firms have either implemented, or plan to implement, online software which monitors their remote workers. More →

Digital skills gap poses major economic threat, Microsoft study claims

Digital skills gap poses major economic threat, Microsoft study claims

The UK’s digital skills gap could pose a risk to economic recovery, new research from Microsoft claims, with over three-quarters of UK leaders citing a large digital talent pool as essential to driving UK competitiveness. The study, Unlocking the UK’s potential with digital skills, was conducted in partnership with Dr Chris Brauer at Goldsmiths, University of London to assess the UK’s skills gap and provide practical guidance for organisations on how to tackle it. It predicts the rise of a “Next Gen Worker” that is empowered by low-code and no-code technology, but also finds that a failure to embrace technological skills could leave companies struggling to compete on the global stage. More →

Supplier codes of conduct can be ineffective in practice

Supplier codes of conduct can be ineffective in practice

A new white paper claims that while supplier codes of conduct are important, they are ineffective if their requirements are not met with actions to bring about transparency. To be effective, codes of conduct should support an authentic determination to embed company values and to foster strong business relationships that encourage honest communication and transparency that include monitoring the effectiveness. More →

Focus shifts to refurbishment as new office building in London falls by half

Focus shifts to refurbishment as new office building in London falls by half

office building and constructionThe construction of new offices in central London has declined by half (50 percent) in six months as developers and occupiers shift their focus to refurbishment, according to Deloitte Real Estate’s latest London Office Crane Survey. The crane survey analysed office building data over the six months to 30 September, and included a poll of London’s biggest developers conducted at the end of September. The total office space under construction in central London is now 15.1 million sq ft. This is similar to the level recorded in the previous survey (15.3 million sq ft, the highest since 2002) as developments are now taking longer to complete. More →

The new era of elemental change for the workplace

The new era of elemental change for the workplace

Neil Usher Elemental ChangeIn the latest issue of IN Magazine, Chris Kane talks about his new book Where is My Office? and how this is possibly the best time to publish a book about workplace transformation, in spite of the upheavals of the last year. Another author and world-famous workplace expert to publish on a related theme is Neil Usher. His new book, Elemental Change, is also timely as many organisations look to a post-pandemic era in which they must challenge many of their previous assumptions about their structure and how, where and when they work. More →

Vitra to move London showroom from Clerkenwell to King`s Cross

Vitra to move London showroom from Clerkenwell to King`s Cross

Vitra Dancing WallAfter 20 years in their Clerkenwell showroom, global design brand Vitra is set to move into a new space in Rolling Stock Yard, Kings Cross, which will open in January 2021. The temporary Kings Cross space will host a working installation looking at new office solutions for more flexible working. Vitra will open a new permanent UK flagship showroom in the Summer of 2021 and will announce the location in the coming months. The move comes as Vitra’s lease on its current Clerkenwell space draws to an end. More →

Built environment sector must think in radical ways and act quickly

Built environment sector must think in radical ways and act quickly

built environment need for actionThe construction sector, the real estate industry and city planners must give high priority to the same goal – to drastically reduce their climate impacts. Powerful, combined efforts across all of the built environment sectors are absolutely crucial for the potential to achieve the UN’s sustainability goals. And what’s more – everything has to happen very quickly. These are the cornerstones to a roadmap presented at the recent Beyond 2020 World Conference. More →

People working from home should be taxed for the privilege, says Deutsche Bank

People working from home should be taxed for the privilege, says Deutsche Bank

working from homePeople working from home should be taxed at a higher rate to compensate for the money they aren’t spending on commuting and other expenses, according to a new report from economists at Deutsche Bank. The report argues that the move could generate billions in additional revenue which could then be redistributed to lower paid workers and those who cannot work remotely. The report argues that this should have happened anyway given that the number of Americans who regularly worked from home had already increased by 173 percent between 2005 and 2018. More →