Is your office worth the journey it takes to get to it?

Is your office worth the journey it takes to get to it?

Bishopsgate officeA couple of years ago, in the wake of a surge in self-care start-ups and viral diet fads, Forbes declared 2019 as the year of the “wellness revolution”. Three years and a global pandemic later, the revolution appears to have swept our offices. Why? Quite simply, we have woken up to the fact that we could be productive remotely, while also realising the risks of not accommodating employee wellbeing in the office. More →

Working from home isolation felt more keenly by younger workers

Working from home isolation felt more keenly by younger workers

working from home isolationA new poll from RingCentral, a provider of cloud communications claims that younger workers are more likely to report feelings of isolation and anxiety when working from home. The firm claims that the results of the survey highlight the need for employers and others to ensure they stay connected and engaged with those working from home alone. Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that around 1 in 6 (17 percent) adults experienced depression during the latter half of 2021 – almost double the rate before the pandemic (1 in 10). More →

Stress of pandemic has brought people closer, claims Microsoft

Stress of pandemic has brought people closer, claims Microsoft

Stress and the workplaceMicrosoft’s new Work Trend Index Special Report, entitled “Technology Can Help Unlock a New Future for Frontline Workers”, suggests that 78 percent of frontline workers in the UK claim to feel “very bonded” to co-workers because of shared stress brought on by the pandemic and the shift to new ways of working. More →

Flexible workspace users express confidence in future

Flexible workspace users express confidence in future

labs flexible workspaceMembers of flexible workspace provider LABS have expressed confidence over their businesses’ prospects heading into 2022, with 92 percent of respondents to a survey, conducted by LABS, expecting their companies to grow over the next three years. More →

Are we witnessing the demise of the knowledge worker?

Are we witnessing the demise of the knowledge worker?

Death of the knowledge worker?While the debate about working from home versus working in the office continues, should the real conversation focus on the implications for a typical knowledge worker? ‘Knowledge work’ is a term that dates back over sixty years. It’s said to be first coined by Peter Drucker in his 1958 book The Landmarks of Tomorrow. The business guru went on to talk about knowledge workers in a later book, The Effective Executive, in 1966. He defined them as ‘high-level workers who apply theoretical and analytical knowledge acquired through formal training, to develop products and services’. More →

Great Resignation offers firms a chance to create the Great Retention

Great Resignation offers firms a chance to create the Great Retention

Great Resignation and the Great RetentionThe last 18 months have seen unprecedented change. Covid-19 has forced people to re-evaluate every aspect of their lives, including their career. As a result, we’ve seen a surge in workers taking charge of their careers and leaving their jobs as part of the so-called Great Resignation. Recent data from the ONS shows that there were nearly 1.2 million job vacancies in the UK this quarter, with 15 of 18 sectors reporting record numbers. More →

People will quit if not offered a four day week

People will quit if not offered a four day week

four day weekA new poll published today claims there is significant demand for a four day work week in the UK. The survey by Censuswide on behalf of ClickUp, suggests that nearly a third (31.2 percent) of Brits are actively looking for a shorter work week in 2022 or have already agreed to one with their current employer. More →

The way we talk about hybrid working can reflect a failure of imagination

The way we talk about hybrid working can reflect a failure of imagination

hybrid working is not the only option we haveThe events of the last 18 months have given us a once in a generation opportunity to reinvent work. Our generation can create a discontinuity between the assumptions of the past and the opportunities of the future. To capitalise on these opportunities though we have to dispense with the assumptions we hold about work and the places where work takes place, including many of the assumptions we hold about hybrid working. We have to re-examine the purpose of the office and what form it might conceivably take in the future before we can decide if it has any place in our plans. More →

Majority of employees are rethinking their career paths

Majority of employees are rethinking their career paths

employeesLumApps is releasing new workplace data claiming how employees and employers are dealing with the fallout of the Great Resignation. The survey was conducted in collaboration with CMSWire during the Fall of 2021. More →

‘Great Resignation’ offers a one off opportunity to rethink our relationship with work

‘Great Resignation’ offers a one off opportunity to rethink our relationship with work

great resignationAfter nearly two turbulent years, which for many knowledge workers have been dominated by a ground-hog day like existence, people are looking for change. This is only natural as workers around the world are re-evaluating their priorities, reigniting their passions, or simply looking for something new. This has led to a mini-exodus from businesses, which is now being dubbed the ‘Great Resignation’. More →

Warning over worker welfare on 2022’s first day ‘not back in office’

Warning over worker welfare on 2022’s first day ‘not back in office’

officeThe 4th January was the first working day of 2022 for many employees, but due to ongoing working from home restrictions the majority will not be attending their usual workplaces. According to the latest research from the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM), more than half of office workers had expected to be back in the office today, and three quarters would have been back by the end of this week. More →

Hybrid working will demand leaders develop new communication skills

Hybrid working will demand leaders develop new communication skills

hybrid workingKeeping on top of communication barriers in the business world can feel like an endless game of Whac-A-Mole, especially now in the new era of hybrid working. The usual culprits are well-known by now: patchy WiFi connections, crashing computer programmes, cloud syncing issues, important emails sneaking into spam folders – the list goes on. All can impede our ability to get the job done. More →