Columnists
October 9, 2019
Organisations must meet needs of young parents or risk failure
by Chris Parke • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing
Organisations face a problem that could impact their very survival. Parents want to be supported by their employers during the transition to becoming working parents, but organisations are currently ill-equipped to deal with parental leave, or to keep people engaged throughout it. In a world of relentless change, companies failing to react to and meet […]
October 8, 2019
Working hours and the truth about the demands we meet
by Kristoff DuBose • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design
As reported recently, Labour’s John McDonnell says that his party would introduce a 32-hour working week. Very French. What’s more, he states that this should not impact on people’s wages because ‘People should work to live, not live to work’. Don’t disagree there. However, for a vast number of workers this isn’t viable; especially in […]
October 3, 2019
The art of arranging the world so we do not have to experience it
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working, Technology, Workplace
If you’re a man, each morning as you leave the house you probably perform the bleary-eyed pocket patting ritual that, after a shower, shave and a cup of tea is your sole reassurance that you are in any way prepared for the day ahead. The thinking is that if you’re clean, caffeinated, your flies are […]
October 2, 2019
Breaking free of the linearity of modern work
by Howard Lewis • Comment, Technology, Workplace design
We are working hard, but not smart. Research released by the TUC in April shows that UK workers are putting in the longest hours in the EU, but this isn’t translating into improved productivity. In fact, the research shows employees in Denmark put in over four hours less than UK workers – whilst productivity in Denmark […]
October 1, 2019
Agile workplaces need to strike the right balance
by Sarah Booth • Comment, Workplace design
Meeting rooms are a lot like buses. You wait ages for one and then three become available all at once. Sometimes none turn up at all. Research by Kinnarps, which we do as part our Next Office consultancy, has found something that might not come as a great surprise. Employees are deeply frustrated with the […]
October 1, 2019
Ergonomics regs are still relevant in the age of agile work
by Guy Osmond • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design
Recently Mark Eltringham of Insight argued that ergonomics regulations have become something of an anachronism in recent years. When I first became involved in the workplace ergonomics industry in late 1992, the new Display Screen Equipment ’computer user’ guidance was about to be given the force of law through the introduction of the DSE Regulations. […]
September 26, 2019
The office of the future should be circular
by Phil Oram • Comment, Environment, Workplace design
Minimising the impact of business on the wider environment is no longer a ‘nice to have’ but a business imperative. Pressure is coming from all stakeholders including employees, investors, customers and clients, government and the media. According to the Leadership in Corporate Sustainability – European Report 2018, three quarters of European business leaders believe that […]
September 26, 2019
Striking the balance between the office and remote work
by Arran Stewart • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing
Once upon a time the concept of ‘remote working’ beyond outsourced contractors was almost unheard of. Employers viewed remote work as an opportunity for workers to be less productive, out of contact and generally more inefficient. As an employer myself, I would have agreed with these misconceptions early on in my career. However, after many […]
September 25, 2019
Flexible working in the age of longevity
by Richard Morris • Comment, Property, Wellbeing, Working lives
September 23, 2019
Having data about people and their behaviour does not create a science
by John Rapley • Comment, Technology, Workplace
Two questions: is it good or bad that professional athletes earn 400 times what nurses do, and is string theory a dead end? Each question goes to the heart of its discipline. Yet while you probably answered the first, you’d hold an opinion on the prospects of string theory only if you’ve studied physics.
September 23, 2019
Office design alone cannot motivate us or make us happy at work
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Knowledge, Workplace, Workplace design
There’s a good reason why we find it hard to establish the causal links between our working lives, office design and our personal happiness. It’s because it’s all very complicated. So complicated in fact that you can sidetrack any discussion on the subject by asking elementary questions such as: ‘what do you mean by happy?’ […]
October 9, 2019
Workplace trust is hard earned but essential
by Alexandra Anders • Comment, Working culture
Trust is a tough trait to control and manage. Often, people are reluctant to put their full trust in someone simply because they like to be in control of their actions. Other times, people spend months and years building up a rapport with someone only to find themselves exploited at the last minute, which completely […]