January 17, 2024

Many employers don’t think GenZ are well prepared for the workplace

A new poll from WorkL claims that half of employers believe that Generation Z is not entering the workplace well-equipped with the skills and knowledge needed for their roles. The annual WorkL Global Workforce Report 2024 suggests that mentoring initiatives are being implemented by employers to support Gen Z, with four in ten employers taking the step. Having been significantly impacted by the global pandemic and the shift in traditional working practices, WorkL has seen a falling engagement score for the youngest demographic over the last 12 months; decreasing from 71 percent in 2021 down to just 67 percent in 2023, a concerning four percentage point decrease and the lowest score out of all age groups. More →

January 11, 2024

Workspace Design Show reveals all-encompassing speaker programme

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Events

The speaker programme at Workspace Design Show (27-28 February 2024, Business Design Centre, London) has been an integral part since the event’s inception in 2021 and this year is no exception with over 120 speakers featuring across four key elements of discourse. The Workspace Design Talks programme, which will take place in a dedicated space, the Design Talks Lounge (bottom), designed by global design and architecture firm Gensler, will feature inspiring sessions from leading industry professionals over the event’s two days. More →

January 11, 2024

Third of employees resent return to office mandates

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News

A new poll from Scalable Software of 2,000 UK knowledge workers claims more than a third (35 percent) resent being told they have to go into the office for a set number of days. Half (50 percent) of respondents say their employer has “productivity paranoia” over employees working away from the office, with 62 percent reporting their organisation has implemented a return to office policy within the last two years. More →

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 hours per day on the social video app. More →

January 5, 2024

Employers can be advocates for workplace eye wellness: four winning strategies

by Freddie Steele • Company news

Proper management of employee health and wellness is an important facet to consider when striving for success in the workplace. Properly supporting employee health helps them perform better, encourages productivity, prevents losses from absences, enhances job satisfaction, and improves overall morale. Employers can promote employee wellness in different ways, but one area you should consider prioritising is eye care in the workplace. More →

January 5, 2024

Amazon employee claims he was told you’ve still got a job, but not a role

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

Last year Amazon made headlines for making 27,000 people redundant as part of a long-term cost-cutting exercise. One of the consequences was a fall in the firm’s share price. Now an employee has claimed in a blog post that the firm is handling its downsizing in more creative ways. Justin Garrison claims in the post that has been told he no longer has a role with Amazon Web Services, but that he will still be paid while he makes the finding of a new job his number one priority. More →

December 20, 2023

Time is up for fluorescent lighting, so what happens after the tube strike?

by Helen Parton • Environment, Features, Lighting, Workplace design

As we rapidly advance through the latter half of 2023, the office landscape is undergoing a significant shift, with the imminent fluorescent lamp ban. Just like the Rolodex, the fax machine and smoking in the office, fluorescent lighting is becoming a thing of the past in the workplace. Both the UK and the EU are taking bold steps by phasing out all forms of fluorescent lamps with some types, such as T5 and T8 fluorescent tubes, banned from sale as early as September 2023. If they haven’t done so already, business owners will need to explore alternative lighting solutions to stay compliant with new regulations, set to take full effect by February 2024. More →

December 20, 2023

Understanding how to project financials for a startup business

by Freddie Steele • Company news

Launching a startup can be an exciting endeavor that requires thorough planning and preparation. One of the most essential and challenging aspects of planning a startup is projecting the financials. To make credible financial forecasts, it is crucial to have a solid understanding of the fundamental aspects of projecting financials. In this article, we delve into the art of projecting financials for a startup business. More →

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 rights. Employers must take heed of recent ICO guidance to ensure they do not fall foul of the law in pursuit of the hoped for benefits of workplace monitoring, such as boosting productivity and profit. More →

December 18, 2023

For all its flaws, COP28 still gives us a route to a greener future

by Anna King • Company news, Environment

As COP28 drew to a close, it gave those attending or observing from around the world the chance to reflect on the global commitments towards building a greener future. The UAE played host to two weeks of debate over climate change as COP28 recently rolled into town. While some questioned this region’s suitability – it being a centre of the fossil fuel industry – perhaps there is an argument to be made that this is exactly where you should hold it – to bring the issues into sharp relief. More →

December 18, 2023

A bit of alien thinking on coffee and some other BS

by Mark Eltringham • Facilities management, Features, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

I’ve sometimes highlighted how our perceptions of the workplace are subject to an apex fallacy. The daily consumption of narratives about campuses, tech palaces and ‘cool’ design can obscure the fact that most people don’t experience this stuff in their daily lives. They work in adequate or possibly nice offices. Some in shabby offices or horrible offices. Many travel into work at the same time each day and sit with roughly the same people and do roughly the same things. They may work from home more frequently now, but they have a routine there too. Most will work in a mundane or nice home that mirrors the mundane office that awaits at the other end of the commute. More →

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 new grown-up obligations and organisations are required to ‘trust’ and employees to be ‘trustworthy’. More →