Columnists
June 25, 2018
Leading with purpose is the signature strength of a great leader
by Ben Renshaw • Comment, Workplace
David was a reluctant leader. We were introduced through his HR Director; however, he was not happy to see me. He didn’t believe in personal development and he didn’t want to spend time with a coach. He also didn’t have a lot of choice as he’d recently attended an assessment centre to inform his future […]
June 22, 2018
Organisations are easily distracted from the task of creating a great workplace strategy
by Chris Hood • Comment, Facilities management, Property, Workplace design
Earlier this month The Once Alternative Workplace Strategies 2018 workplace study was published. This study is the only known longitudinal workplace study and it was recently resurfaced by a group of volunteers to maintain a comparative thread of data on the evolution of workplace thought and practice now going back many years. Unfortunately, the results […]
June 21, 2018
The hype surrounding wellbeing concepts can blind us to their true value
by Georgia Elliott-Smith • Comment, Wellbeing
Digital detox. Does the phrase make you roll your eyes or grab your attention? Lately, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the idea of switching off from technology, particularly your smart phone (if people still call them that as they are so ubiquitous) has become a media fad. A litmus test for this might be […]
June 20, 2018
Successful EFMC event in Sofia sets its sights next on Dublin
by Beatriz Jiménez • Comment, Events, Facilities management
The Sofia Event Center in Sofia (Bulgaria), hosted from 5 to 8 June the 26th Edition of EFMC, the European Congress of Facility Management. The event, held for the first time in the Bulgarian capital, has brought together world experts of the sector and has served as a platform for communication between Facility Managers, suppliers, […]
June 17, 2018
Fathers Day offers a chance to ponder the disadvantages faced by many working dads
by Julia Waltham • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing
Father’s Day – a day when fathers up and down the UK are supposed to feel valued – whether it’s hand print cards from their 2-year old, a pair of socks from their teenager or BBQ accessories from their fully-grown son or daughter. Fathers looking to the government for an offering will be disappointed. Its […]
June 13, 2018
US companies are waking up to the benefits of caring for employee mental health
by Colleen O'Day • Comment, Wellbeing
In 2015, the American Psychological Association chose American Express as the inaugural winner of the Organizational Excellence Award, recognizing successful efforts to integrate psychology and prioritize behavioral health and emotional well-being in the workplace. American Express had an employee assistance program (EAP) for workers dealing with depression and other mental health challenges. The EAP was […]
June 12, 2018
Keeping people at the heart of the modern workplace
by Ryan Anderson • Comment, Technology, Workplace design
The modern workplace is undergoing significant change, and it’s no surprise that many of these changes are driven by the adoption of new technologies. However, unlike previous eras of technological change, most of the technologies being adopted by organizations today have the potential to offer more autonomy, choice and flexibility to their employees. This can […]
June 11, 2018
Coworking is breaking away from its cultural and geographical stereotypes
by Gary Chandler • Comment, Property, Technology, Workplace design
There is a persistent image of a coworking space as a sort of glorified serviced office for tech and creative startups who can’t afford the eye-watering rents in the areas they need to be. This is usually in the technology hothouses of the world’s major cities where they can work alongside the corporate giants and […]
June 4, 2018
Your happiness at work is not just down to your employer
by Cary Cooper and Ivan Robertson • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design
When Google promoted a software engineer named Chade-Meng Tan to the role of “Jolly Good Fellow”, his career – and the entire culture of Silicon Valley – took a sharp turn. Meng, a cheerful employee valued for his motivational qualities, went from developing mobile search tools to spreading happiness across the organisation. Happiness became his […]
June 1, 2018
How our noisy world was foreseen by the 20th Century’s great minds
by Charles Marks • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design
Over the past few years we’ve become more aware of the problems associated with the pace and clatter of modern life and not least among them its noise. Authors like Susan Cain have highlighted not only how distracting noise can be for everybody but how it affects different personality types in different ways. She is […]
May 30, 2018
Australia is leading the world in the adoption of activity based working
by Max Luff • Comment, Flexible working, Workplace design
Over half of those employed in the banking sector in Australia now find themselves in agile and dynamic activity based workplaces. The banks have set the pace. The overall growth of the phenomenon has been exponential in the last 5 years, with sources suggesting two thirds of Australian organisations will have adopted Activity Based Working […]
June 28, 2018
Ten demonstrable truths about the workplace you may not know
by Kerstin Sailer • Comment, Facilities management, Features, Workplace design
The science of the workplace has gained a lot of interest over the last few years, highlighting recurring patterns of human behaviour as well as how organisational behaviour relates to office design. In theory, knowledge from this growing body of research could be used to inform design. In practice, this is rarely the case. A […]