Search Results for: flexible

Government launches challenge to shape future transportation strategies

Government launches challenge to shape future transportation strategies

The UK government has begun work on its Future of Mobility Grand Challenge. First announced in May, the government believes the initiative has the potential to make the UK a world leader in strategies for moving people and goods. The announcement includes two calls for evidence, the first focused on improving first mile/last mile transportation connections, with a focus on electric vehicles and microtransit. The second addresses the more general issue of new technology and trends for urban transport. The government also claims the move will address changes in working cultures including lower levels of commuting and flexible working.

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Flexibility, daylight and a well-designed office are amongst most desirable workplace features

Flexibility, daylight and a well-designed office are amongst most desirable workplace features

Capital One has published the results of its latest survey of US full-time professionals for their thoughts on workplace design and the working environment as it relates to their productivity, innovation and collaboration with colleagues. According to the resulting 2018 Work Environment Survey of 3,500 office based respondents in urban centres across the US, many value flexibility and workplace design, particularly when evaluating whether to stay at their current job or consider a new employment opportunity. Employees also place a great deal of focus on technology, design elements such as lighting and agile workspaces, and personal wellbeing.

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Google should be an example to all when it come to interactive workplace design

Google should be an example to all when it come to interactive workplace design

Google is known to be a wonderland for tech professionals everywhere. It is a sought after and coveted workplace, which is designed to cater to the individual. Comparably has recently named Google as the “tech company with the best corporate culture”, but how does this culture work beyond the realms of the Google institute? The question that many employers are asking is, does the Google culture really work? And is it sustainable for a normal business? Company culture has become a focus for recruiters and hiring managers, but if we break this down what does it actually mean? Company culture is shaped by the employees for the employees and should work in collusion with the services a business is providing. Google’s company culture model is based around flexibility and the freedom to be creative in a fun environment.

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The satisfaction of self-employed people depends on skills development rather than business growth

The satisfaction of self-employed people depends on skills development rather than business growth

Developing skills and knowledge is more important for self-employed people’s sense of career progression than increasing their rate of pay, a new report by IPSE (the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed) and the IPA (the Involvement and Participation Association) claims. The report, Working well for yourself: What makes for good self-employment?, surveyed 800 people across the country about what constituted ‘good work’ for them. First of all, it found that work satisfaction levels are remarkably high among the self-employed. This reinforces the findings of a 2015 CIPD Employee Outlook survey, which showed that general work satisfaction is higher among the self-employed (81 percent) than employees (61 percent).

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Half of CIOs say Artificial Intelligence will lead to more jobs and improve productivity

Half of CIOs say Artificial Intelligence will lead to more jobs and improve productivity

Half of CIOs say Artificial Intelligence will lead to more jobs and improve productivity

Fears that Artificial Intelligence will destroy the job market are not shared by more than half (51 percent) of UK CIOs who see AI as a job creator. This is more than three times the number who say that it will diminish workers’ job prospects (16 percent). For the survey UK CIOs were asked, ‘Artificial intelligence is changing the way that companies operate and people work. Do you think AI will have a positive or negative impact on job creation and recruitment?’ Their largely positive response closely reflects that of a recent PWC report which predicts AI could create as many jobs as it displaces in the UK over the next 20 years. More →

CBI counsels a common-sense approach to managing staff during heatwave

CBI counsels a common-sense approach to managing staff during heatwave

CBI counsels a common-sense approach to managing staff in heatwaveAt the risk of stating the obvious, with the Met Office suggesting temperatures could reach their peak on Friday (27 July) in some areas of the UK, Britain’s largest employer organisation is encouraging companies to consider ‘a range of measures to keep employees comfortable during the heatwave’. Matthew Fell, CBI Chief UK Policy Director, said: “While the current hot spell has provided welcome fillip for consumer-facing sectors, large numbers of employees are feeling the heat as they carry out their day-to-day tasks, especially those working outdoors. Responsible employers take the welfare of their employees very seriously, particularly during this unusual weather. Companies can help keep their employees cool by considering a range of measures, from flexible working to help those with punishing commutes to relaxed dress codes, so staff feel more comfortable in their place of work. Ultimately a common sense approach is needed, as some employees will have less flexibility than others, for example those wearing safety equipment on construction sites. In all cases, staff should have easy access to drinking water as temperatures soar to help keep them healthy and productive.”

New report on the future of work argues we are at an inflection point on the journey

New report on the future of work argues we are at an inflection point on the journey

Whatever you make of the Brexit vote, the idea put forward by Jacob Rees-Mogg in a Channel 4 interview that it will take 50 years before we can judge its benefits is extraordinary. No doubt, people will be making those judgements in half a century, but long term predictions of this kind are invariably foolish. Especially when you consider that nobody seems to know what is happening with Brexit at all on a day by day basis. Predictions about the long term future of work can be equally foolhardy. This is a reason why it’s best to make them about the short term, while you still have a reasonable chance of looking prescient. A lesson for the authors of this piece of nonsense published in Fast Company last week.

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The talents of older people are going to waste because of discrimnation, claims government report

The talents of older people are going to waste because of discrimnation, claims government report

The talents of more than a million people aged over 50 who want to work are being wasted because of discrimination, bias and outdated employment practices, claims a new report from the UK government. The report from The Women and Equalities Committee also concludes that Government and the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) are failing to enforce the law on age discrimination and must be clearer that prejudice, unconscious bias and casual ageism in the workplace are all unlawful under the Equality Act 2010. Although the Committee concludes that the Government’s employer-led approach has its advantages, it does not present a strong enough challenge to discriminatory practices or attitudes.

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New government estates strategy will see thousands of jobs relocate away from London

New government estates strategy will see thousands of jobs relocate away from London

estates strategyThe UK Government has announced it latest plans to save around £3.6bn over the next two decades by dramatically scaling back its property estate and relocating thousands of staff as part of its new 12 year estates strategy. The Cabinet Office has outlined the plans to move thousands of public sector jobs, including senior roles, out of London by 2030, reducing Whitehall buildings from around 65 to 20 over the same period. Around 20 so-called Government hubs will be set up in the regions by the end of this parliament in 2022. In total, the strategy commits to reducing the number of government-owned office buildings from 800 to under 200, with an estimated saving of £3.6bn over 20 years.

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First planning application submitted at Haywards Heath business hub

First planning application submitted at Haywards Heath business hub

The Commercial Park Group, a partnership between developer John Baker and leading building and civil engineering contractor Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd, has submitted a planning application to redevelop 21-23 Perrymount Road in Haywards Heath to provide 65,000 sq ft of new offices. This scheme is the first phase of a wider project to create a new 400,000 sq ft business hub called Haywards Park formed of multiple office redevelopments on Perrymount Road.
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London’s poor connectivity is holding back commercial property occupiers

London’s poor connectivity is holding back commercial property occupiers

Connectivity is more than just broadband speeds and 4G coverage. New research from property consultancy Cluttons claims to reveal the impact it has on everything from the properties we choose to live in, to the places where we can work and our overall happiness both at home and in the office. The research suggests that London is lagging behind other national and global hubs when it comes to good connectivity in both residential and commercial property, failing our needs both as residents and businesses.

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Challenging some of the most commonly held misconceptions about coworking

Challenging some of the most commonly held misconceptions about coworking

There are a number of misconceptions that dominate much of the writing around flexible workspace, despite all the press coverage and discussion around coworking over the last two years. Yet even in this comparatively short space of time, a number of misconceptions about the market have managed to take hold. Some of them are intuitive but wrong to some or other degree. Some are distorted by coverage. Some arise for other reasons. And we know this thanks to the extensive data gathered in Instant’s latest market report. So here in this piece, I am going to try to shatter some of the myths around flex workspace and coworking in particular.

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