Columnists
June 13, 2022
Is hybrid working the final cure for workplace woes or the beginning of something better?
by Jo Sutherland • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design
This year’s World Workplace Europe saw 2022 hailed as the year of the worker. A worthwhile focus considering negative emotions are on the rise, with more depression, anxiety and loneliness plaguing society despite the claimed benefits of hybrid working. The pandemic robbed us of many things. It restricted our freedom for two years and forced […]
June 9, 2022
How I learned to stop worrying and embrace uncertainty
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working, Technology
One of the ways I have found to inoculate myself against the hyperbolic certitude of the world’s futurologists is to watch YouTube clips of an old TV show called Rab C Nesbitt and observe the automated captioning as it struggles to cope with Glaswegians. And sometimes gives it up as a bad job. Works with […]
June 8, 2022
Burnout doesn’t have to be the inevitable outcome of proving your value at work
by Dr Sahar Yousef • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace
Research from Asana shows that three quarters (75 percent) of UK knowledge workers experienced burnout in 2021. Perhaps even more concerning is that over a third (36 percent) of workers believe burnout is inevitable to career success. This worrying and unsustainable trend shows that for many employees, constantly checking email, working weekends, and burning out […]
June 1, 2022
Not busy-ness as usual: how boredom may be one of the keys to creativity
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Technology
The modern world seems geared to help us avoid boredom. But there’s a problem. Artists have long recognised that boredom can drive creativity. The great Italian writer-philosopher Giacomo Leopardi described boredom as “the most sublime of all human emotions because it expresses the fact that the human spirit, in a certain sense, is greater than […]
May 26, 2022
Extraverts don’t always make the best leaders
by Blaine Landis • Comment, Workplace
The ‘extraverted leadership advantage’ is a well-recognised phrase among researchers which describes how the characteristics of an extraverted personality create an advantage in the workplace when it comes to leadership roles. Extraverts are typically outgoing, loud, assertive, and high energy, so if you’re in a meeting with them they tend to speak up often. They […]
May 23, 2022
The future of work isn’t what it used to be
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Technology, Workplace design
At the 1983 International Design Conference in Aspen, Steve Jobs delivered a speech addressing the theme of the conference; The Future Isn’t What It Used to Be. In it he set out his thoughts on new technology, intuitive design, personal computing as well as the need for a constantly evolving idea of what the future […]
May 12, 2022
ESG ambitions should top organisational agendas
by Siobhan Byrnes • Comment, Environment, Wellbeing
When the idea of ESG (environmental, social and governance credentials) first surfaced nearly two decades ago in a 2005 United Nations report, it was just an acronym businesses were trying to understand and get to grips with. But in the last few years, ESG strategies have gathered steam – it has become integral to C-Suite […]
May 12, 2022
From commuting to computers, finding balance in the hybrid workplace
by Anni Hallila • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing
A recent survey from AT&T and Dubber found that 81 percent of respondents believe hybrid work will be the foremost working model by 2024, with 56 percent of work done off site. A striking 100 percent of respondents believe a hybrid work model will help attract young talent. While there are numerous benefits to being […]
May 11, 2022
Facilities managers: you never noticed us because we did such a great job
by Simon Heath • Comment, Facilities management, Workplace design
Getting all hot under the collar about brushed chrome door furniture is an understandable but classic displacement activity when much of your work is messy, unglamorous and even occasionally dangerous. You work alongside designers and architects and look longingly at their apparent casual trendiness and clean lines, marvelling at the quality of the beech from […]
June 14, 2022
Loneliness might hold back hybrid working productivity gains
by Gosia Bowling • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing
Loneliness is defined as the difficult emotion we experience when our need for meaningful social contact and relationships is not met, and it’s something we’ve all had experience of. Nearly half of the UK population have reported feeling lonely at times, with other research showing that 39 percent say their wellbeing was negatively impacted because […]