Columnists
January 16, 2024
Technology is stealing your time in ways you may not realise
by Ruth Ogden, Joanna Witowska and Vanda Cernohorská • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing
Technology is supposed to make our lives easier. Smart phones provide a palm-size window to the world, enabling us to do almost anything at the touch of a button. Smart homes look after themselves, and virtual meetings mean that for many, time spent commuting is a thing of the past. So we should have more […]
January 15, 2024
Forget all the talk of Blue Monday; work is still (largely) good for us
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Facilities management, Wellbeing, Workplace
So here it is. Blue Monday. Today. Officially the most depressing day of the year. We say ‘officially’, but like the idea of ‘Body Odour’ its common usage hides the fact that it was originally created as part of a PR campaign, in this case one for Sky’s travel channel in 2005. The whole idea […]
January 8, 2024
Time to put down the devices if you really want things to look up
by Anoushka Pacquette • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design
In 2022, data from Statisica revealed UK users spent an average of 4.25 hours per day using their mobile devices. A different Statistica survey found that 31 percent of UK social media users aged between 16 and 24 years reported spending between 1-2 hours per day using TikTok, while 25 percent reported spending between 3-4 […]
January 3, 2024
One wish for 2024. A more sophisticated approach to the workplace and hybrid working
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working, Workplace design
We know, and have for a long time, that the workplace is in a state of near constant flux. The meteor strike of lockdown was an accelerant, not a deviation. It also laid bare -yet again – the faulty assumption that there is some sort of general evolution towards an idealised version of the office […]
December 31, 2023
Stanley Green, protein wisdom and the perils of sitting down 0
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Furniture, Wellbeing, Workplace design
December 19, 2023
Flexible working is delivering the gift of seasonal productivity
December 19, 2023
How employers should navigate the ICO’s guidance on monitoring workers
by Anthony Woolich and Michelle Chance • Comment, Technology
As technology continues to advance at a rapid pace, so does the prevalence of firms monitoring workers and the sophistication of the tools available to employers to monitor their staff’s activities. Hand in hand with the increasing prevalence of workplace monitoring tools are concerns that their excessive use may infringe workers’ data protection and privacy […]
December 16, 2023
Hybrid working: the importance of having the right strategy
by Andrew Mawson • Comment, Flexible working
Hybrid working changes everything it seems. To make it work successfully we need changes in the way people need to be managed, trained and inducted. It changes the needs for communication and social connectivity, goal setting and connection to vision. It requires greater clarity on what is acceptable and what isn’t. Employees must take on […]
December 8, 2023
Inclusive office design is essential if we want offices to be worth the commute
by Guzman de Yarza Blache • Comment, Workplace design
Corporate culture has fundamentally changed since the pandemic and with it, so has the way employees interact with the office. This has put leaders under pressure to create experiences for employees that complement, and in some ways even compete with, the comforts of home. Organisations now understand the immense potential for sustainable, inclusive office design, […]
January 22, 2024
London’s office market is reshaping the city and the way people experience the workplace
by Sam Mardon • Comment, Property
London’s office market continues to adapt to evolving workforce demands. The normalisation of hybrid and flexible working since the pandemic remains the biggest cultural shift that the office sector has witnessed in decades. In addition to the rise in demand for quality-as-a-must in 2023, collaboration, culture, and connectivity will lead the charge for office space […]