NeoCon announces full programme of dynamic events

NeoCon announces full programme of dynamic events

NeoCon FrameryWith more than 400 companies showcasing thousands of new products, programming from the industry’s top thought leaders, and more, the 2022 edition of NeoCon (June 13-15) will be jam-packed with innovation and opportunities to experience the future of commercial interior design first hand. A hub for community and connecting within the industry, this year’s NeoCon will offer a wealth of engaging installations, as well as on-site activations and events that will provide invaluable moments to gather together, learn from each other, and share ideas. More →

Firms rethink office portfolios to accommodate hybrid working

Firms rethink office portfolios to accommodate hybrid working

hybrid workingA significant majority of businesses, (68 percent) expect to be promoting a more regular return to the office by the middle of this year, according to the latest EMEA Occupier Sentiment Survey from real estate advisor CBRE. Nearly a quarter of those surveyed (23 percent) said the process is already underway, with 45 percent focussing on the remainder of H1 as the return period. However, nearly three quarters are doing so as part of a shift to hybrid working. More →

Google opens new Bay View campus in California – image gallery and video

Google opens new Bay View campus in California – image gallery and video

Google Bay View CampusGoogle has announced the opening of its new Bay View campus in Silicon Valley, representing the company’s first time developing its own major campus.  The Bay View campus was designed by architects Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and Heatherwick Studio, as well as Google’s design and engineering teams, and spans 42 acres adjacent to the NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley. It totals 1.1 million square feet, with 20 acres of open space, two office buildings, an 1,000-person event centre, and 240 short-term employee accommodation units. More →

‘Return to office’ remains a divisive issue

‘Return to office’ remains a divisive issue

return to officeAccording to a survey conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Citrix Systems, employees remain divided on how they want to work going forward. Based on the poll: the majority enjoy the flexibility they’ve been given to work from anywhere and are willing to leave jobs to maintain it. Of the 6,500 workers polled in ten countries, 57 percent prefer hybrid work, and 69 percent will ditch their current positions if it isn’t an option and they are asked to return to office based working. More →

Circular economy accelerator launched to address role of built environment in climate change

Circular economy accelerator launched to address role of built environment in climate change

circular economyThe World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) and its network of over 70 Green Building Councils have launched a Circularity Accelerator — a global programme that sets out to accelerate the adoption of circular economy and resource efficiency principles in the building and construction sector. Last week, the United Nations (UN) reported we have a 50 percent chance of exceeding 1.5°C of global heating in the next five years. Between the UN Climate Summit of COP21 in Paris and COP26 in Glasgow, the global economy consumed 70 percent more raw materials than the Earth can safely replenish. More →

Lack of flexible working could drive half of women out of current roles

Lack of flexible working could drive half of women out of current roles

women flexible workingNew research from LinkedIn claims to highlight a potential impending ‘flexidus’ amongst women in the UK workforce, with 52 percent saying they’ve considered leaving, or have left, their role due to a lack of flexibility. According to the research, a perceived lack of flexibility at work is having a significant impact on women’s careers. Of the women who have left a job because of a lack of flexible working, more than one in five (21 percent) say their career progression has been hindered, and 25 percent decided to take a career break as a result. More →

Despite low productivity, UK firms still don’t look for ways to improve on past performance

Despite low productivity, UK firms still don’t look for ways to improve on past performance

low productivity

Despite the UK’s persistent low productivity, less than a fifth of business owners are actively looking back at projects to identify areas for improvement. A large proportion of business owners (65 per cent) and senior managers (82 per cent) have increased their use of project-based methods on everyday tasks, such as introducing measures to identify and manage risk. Despite this, many are still failing to assign enough dedicated project managers to the work. New research from the Association for Project Management (APM)  claims that only 35 per cent of senior managers who participated in the survey regularly assign dedicated project managers to tasks, and only a quarter for business owners. More →

Competition for talent is fierce, but employers edge away from pay to attract people

Competition for talent is fierce, but employers edge away from pay to attract people

competition for talentNew CIPD research claims that almost half (45 percent) of UK employers report having vacancies that are hard-to-fill, and almost two thirds (65 percent) anticipate problems filling vacancies in the next six months. The most common response made in the past six months by employers with hard-to-fill vacancies has been to increase pay (44 percent). However, only a quarter (27 percent) of organisations plan to raise wages in response to the competition for talent in the future. This suggests that organisations may be approaching their limit on this ‘quick win’ strategy and are exploring alternative options, such as upskilling people and flexible working, to attract and retain people. More →

London office market activity hits post-pandemic high … for smaller, better, greener offices

London office market activity hits post-pandemic high … for smaller, better, greener offices

london officeA study of the London office market from Gerald Eve suggests that there is now the highest number of lettings since before the pandemic with activity focused on smaller requirements and environmentally friendly buildings. Lettings between 10,000 and 20,000 sq ft made up a significant portion of demand with 713,000 sq ft (or 23 percent) of all activity, which totalled 3.1m sq ft in Q1. Tenants are now voting with their feet for best-in-class space, with sustainability at the forefront of decision making. Post-covid requirements continue to shape the criteria for office space as subjective business-linked or staff retention demands rank higher than overall cost in the search for office space. More →

Flexible working now arriving at aisle three

Flexible working now arriving at aisle three

flexible working tescoRemote workers might soon be able to do their jobs and shop for groceries at the same time, under a new “Spaces” project between Tesco and flexible office operator IWG. A trial at a branch of Tesco in New Malden that will start later in this month and will accommodate 12 private desks, 30 co-working spaces and a meeting room. The 3,800 sq ft space within the store would normally have been used for electrical goods, music, and other forms of entertainment, most of which are now mainly purchased online. The aim is to make better use of floor space and, if successful, Tesco stores across the country could become flexible working hubs. More →

Flexible working is the new hybrid working, apparently

Flexible working is the new hybrid working, apparently

flexible workingFlexible working is the new hybrid working as a third of European workers would decline a job if flexible hours were not offered. That is the key claim of a new report from Owl Labs, a collaborative technology company. The annual State of Hybrid Work study polled 10,000 full-time employees across UK, Germany, France, Netherlands and Scandinavia – which suggests that flexibility is key to retaining top talent in 2022 and beyond. Over a third (37 percent) of European employees are prepared to decline a job if flexible hours are not offered and just over two thirds (69 percent) would accept a pay cut to have flexible hours. More →

Small business owners continue to struggle with mental health

Small business owners continue to struggle with mental health

mental healthTwo out of five (40 percent) small business owners believe that their emotional recovery from the pandemic will take much longer than that of the financial disruption. And, according to a new study by Xero those investing in wellbeing initiatives were more likely to hold on to staff and grow revenues. Nine out of 10 (92 percent) small business owners experienced symptoms of poor mental health over the last two years, according to the study with the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) and Opinium. Professional responsibilities played a significant part, with more than half (52 percent) said that running their business has contributed to those symptoms. More →