February 4, 2021
When business leaders open up about mental health, we all benefit
The Covid-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented effect on the way in which we work and has brought in to focus the challenges around mental health and wellbeing. The recognition that we are in the midst of the biggest mental health crisis since the Second World War brings the challenge in to stark focus. Time to Talk Day (today) aims to get the nation talking more openly about mental health, and there could not be a better time for it. Research from Wondrous published this week found that one in six people (17 percent) who have switched to remote working during the pandemic have seen their mental health suffer, rising to 20 percent among women and younger workers. I suspect that the inherent stigma that still surrounds mental health is masking the true percentage of people being affected. (more…)
When the COVID-19 crisis hit the UK in March 2020, many commented that the virus didn’t discriminate and that its impact would be felt equally by everyone. However, as highlighted in Nuffield Health’s 
Lockdown meant that the choice to work from home was made for us. However, for many the decision to continue to do so post-lockdown will be a personal choice. The question we should all ask ourselves is, whether when we are outside of any lockdown restrictions, is working from home really a workplace revolution or simply an act of selfishness? For thousands of workers who’ve spent years of their lives commuting to offices that feel more like soul-less factories than inspiring and engaging workplaces, it’s no wonder that enforced work from home has proven popular. 
There’s no question that many people now, feeling the weight of lockdown 3 and with no clear view on the timing of any sort of ‘return to normal’, are finding it tough to stay motivated. Many are burnt out. We can gain some insight into what is going on for many individuals by way of neuroscience, specifically how the brain works and how it copes with changing situations. 
The uncertainty and fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic have wreaked havoc on the mental health of nearly all of us. In a recent conversation with an HR leader, she shared with me that every single person on her leadership programme reported suffering disrupted sleep due to their anxiety around business uncertainty. The irony is the business is in better shape than it has been for years thanks to the effective management of the firm’s finances during the pandemic. Regardless of reality, the uncertainty is impacting on everyone’s resilience levels. 
Philanthrocapitalism is a term that’s only 15 years old. A modern concept for the modern age. Or is it? In the late 1800s, George Cadbury bought a plot of land five miles south of Birmingham to relocate his factory and expand his chocolate empire. But greater levels of chocolate production weren’t his only concern; he also built an entire village to accommodate the new factory’s workforce. The plan was for this village – called Bournville, which now shares its name with the brand’s famous dark chocolate – to “alleviate the evils of modern, more cramped living conditions”. Port Sunlight, built on the Wirral Peninsula by the Lever Brothers, whose manufacturing company is now part of Unilever, offers up a similar story. 
With primary and secondary schools closed to the majority of pupils as of 5 January 2021, many working parents have found themselves with an impossible task. How to juggle a full day of home schooling with a full day of work, all whilst in lockdown? 
The past year will go down in history as one of dramatic change. One of the most notable upheavals was the almost overnight transition to full-time remote working for millions of ‘non-essential’ employees. With England now in its third national lockdown, many of us will likely not be going back to our offices until April 2021, over a year since we left them. Even when people are able to return to our old workplaces, just 12 percent of employees want to do so full-time, according to 
The COVID-19 pandemic left businesses in an unprecedented position of having to rapidly adapt workplace practices and implement new processes at a moment’s notice. Of course, those companies that were already accustomed to home office set-ups and flexible hours were in a much better place to adapt to these changing circumstances. However, not all businesses were prepared for the sudden change to work routines. 
February 5, 2021
Workplace things we have missed, and those we hope to regain
by Emma Morley • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design