Working from home experience boosts demands for hybrid working

Working from home experience boosts demands for hybrid working

working from homeNew data from Steelcase claims to highlight what the UK workforce is enjoying most about working from home, and which elements of work are suffering without access to the physical office. Nearly all (97 percent) of respondents want to return to the physical office for some or most of the time when possible, but nearly a year of working differently has altered expectations of the office, and businesses need to make vital changes to reflect this. More →

Working near home could save employees over £2,200 a year

Working near home could save employees over £2,200 a year

employeesEmployees could save over £2,200 a year and ‘get back’ 98 mins a day if companies adopted a ‘Work Near Home’ model for offices in the future, claims research from workspace company, The Instant Group and site location company, Hickey. For companies that adopt this approach, they could save upwards of 23 percent by utilising a “Hub and Spoke” model that removes reliance on city centres for office locations. More →

The workforce is exhausted from meeting on camera

The workforce is exhausted from meeting on camera

cameraAs employees continue to be forced home during the pandemic, nearly half of them are reporting high levels of exhaustion. A new study by Virtira Consulting claims 49 percent of employees experience a high degree of exhaustion from being required or pressured to be on camera during online meetings. More →

Well, at least nobody is whinging about open plan offices anymore

Well, at least nobody is whinging about open plan offices anymore

Years of pathologising offices should have prepared us for the patholigisation of virtual spaces. It seems like months since anybody has come out with that tired old rant about open plan. Certain vociferous and obsessive authors on the subject have had to find some other outlet for whatever their real problem is. Still, it’s not hard right now to find similar stuff about the toxicity of virtual meetings and especially those hosted by poor old Zoom, who get the blame for everything.

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From the archive: Flexible working may improve productivity, but does it diminish creativity?

From the archive: Flexible working may improve productivity, but does it diminish creativity?

flexible working and creativityOriginally published in December 2014. Homeworking seems to have become a bit of a hot topic this year, but one sentence published on the www.gov.uk website brought a cold sweat to the brows of many managers and employees across the United Kingdom. “From 30 June 2014, all employees have the legal right to request flexible working – not just parents and carers.” More →

Work is the silver lining to the pandemic for employees

Work is the silver lining to the pandemic for employees

pandemicThe COVID-19 pandemic has brought anxiety to many, but people are positive about their work, claims a new survey from The Myers-Briggs Company, which looks at how people’s personality type influences their feelings about the pandemic. More →

People working from home hide mental health impact from employers

People working from home hide mental health impact from employers

working from homePeople working from home during the pandemic are experiencing higher levels of stress and withholding mental health conditions from their employer, for fear of a negative impact on career progression, according to a new health and safety at work report by Lloyd’s Register. More →

Workers hatred of Mondays and Fridays threatens post Covid-19 environmental dividend

Workers hatred of Mondays and Fridays threatens post Covid-19 environmental dividend

workersWith the Government setting out its roadmap for the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions, workers are set to return to offices later this year. However, new working practices mean they will still split their time between the office and home. More →

Gig economy workers to make up fifth of employees in financial services firms, claims report

Gig economy workers to make up fifth of employees in financial services firms, claims report

gig economyMore than half of financial institutions say they expect to have more ‘gig economy’ based employees over the next three to five years, according to PwC’s report, Productivity 2021 and beyond: Upskilling the workforce of the future to create a competitive advantage in financial services. The second iteration of PwC’s productivity research, that surveyed over 500 financial services businesses globally, and received over 60 percent of responses from C-suite leaders, looked at some key workstreams implemented by financial services businesses and evaluated its impact on productivity. More →

Hybrid working is the new expectation of pressured employees

Hybrid working is the new expectation of pressured employees

The past twelve months have proved to be a watershed year fohybridr workplace digital transformation and the urgent shift to remote working has seen the world experience two years of digital transformation in two months. New research from Microsoft Surface claims to examine the impact of this transformation on the UK workforce, suggesting that employees are happier, but under more pressure working from home – despite almost 9 out of 10 (87 percent) of employees reporting their businesses have adapted to ‘hybrid working’. More →

The best places to live for work-life balance

The best places to live for work-life balance

work-life balanceAs Brits continue to spend an extensive amount of time at home, the importance of maintaining a good work-life balance has never been so vital. For their 2021 Work-Life Balance Index, money.co.uk have delved through ONS data to uncover where in Britain is best situated for its residents to achieve a good work-life balance. More →

Firms split furniture budgets between home and office

Firms split furniture budgets between home and office

home officeAs lockdown looks set to be extended until mid-March and many business professionals continue to work remotely, a new study by lighting supplier Ultra LEDs claims that only now are workers investing in their home office as they plan for the future. More →