November 27, 2023

Appetite for hybrid working shows no sign of letting up at large firms

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

The ongoing advancements in technology have made remote collaboration more feasible and seamless than ever before. Collaboration tools have become essential in ensuring the coexistence of the digital and physical workplace, both internally with employees and externally with clients. And in 2023, companies have been posting hybrid working related roles in record numbers, according to a new report from GlobalData. More →

November 23, 2023

Half of work related illness is down to stress, depression or anxiety

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing

Nearly two million workers in Great Britain reported suffering from work-related ill health in 2022/23, according the latest annual statistical report from the UK’s Health and Safety Executive. The statistics reveal that 1.8 million workers reported they were suffering from work-related ill health in 2022/23, with approximately half of the cases down to stress, depression or anxiety. In the recent years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of self-reported work-related ill health had been broadly flat, but the current rate is higher than 2018/19. More →

November 20, 2023

Oscillate wildly between the death of the office and the death of hybrid working

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working

It’s March 2020, very early days of lockdowns and the first catastrophising headlines appear. Is this the death of the office? Is this the death of handshakes? Is this the death of the open plan? I dismissed them at the time in this piece from March the 19th, citing Betteridge’s Law which states: “any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered with the word no”. More →

November 16, 2023

Anger is an energy when it comes to getting things done

by Neil Franklin • Business, News

Anger may have the public image of a negative emotion, but it can also be a powerful motivator when it comes to achieving important goals, according to research published by the American Psychological Association. To better understand the role of anger in achieving goals, researchers conducted a series of experiments involving more than 1,000 participants and analysed survey data from more than 1,400 respondents. In each experiment, researchers elicited either an emotional response (such as anger, amusement, desire or sadness) or a neutral emotional state, and then presented participants with a challenging goal. The research was published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. More →

November 12, 2023

Want people to spend more time in the office? Give them a little piece of home

by Yaron Rosenblum • Comment, Workplace design

For many people, a large portion of the day is spent at the workplace. In fact, the average person will spend 90,000 hours at work over a lifetime. The Covid-19 pandemic saw the typical ‘workplace’ setting change for many people, after businesses around the globe were forced to adjust to a ‘work-from-home’ model. Now, three years later, we are starting to see more employees return to the office, with large corporations including JPMorgan, Chase, Apple and Google all announcing plans to bring their workers back to base. More →

November 10, 2023

The challenge for fit-out firms is to deliver best value despite supply chain challenges

by Kevin P'ng • Comment, Facilities management, Property, Workplace design

The past year has been a challenging one for London’s commercial fit-out market. Whilst industry supply and demand dynamics may have found a level of equilibrium since the pandemic, geopolitical tensions, economic disruptions, and an unstable domestic policy environment continue to have an impact. In tandem with this, the commercial fit-out market is adapting to changing needs; from accommodating hybrid working models to growing demands for sustainability and reuse, the workplaces of today are ever changing. More →

November 6, 2023

Many business leaders inadvertently create a culture of fear at work

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

A new poll of workplace leaders suggests there is an environment of unconscious fear in modern-day leadership, leading to toxic culture, stunted growth, performance and productivity, and decision inertia. The global study of 2,500 emerging leaders in corporate businesses by consultant Margot Faraci, claims that around one quarter (23 percent) of UK leaders are unconsciously creating an environment of fear with direct reports. Globally, this figure rises to one in three (30 percent), indicating a growing worldwide phenomenon of fearful leadership. Fearful leadership carries significant implications for team morale, performance, and overall well-being within organisations. It’s often attributed to past experiences, creating an ongoing cycle of leadership driven by fear. More →

November 2, 2023

Third of firms have adopted AI to replace or augment employees’ roles this year

by Neil Franklin • AI, News, Technology

According to Owl Labs’ annual State of Hybrid Work Report, 32 percent of employees believe that AI will help them do their jobs more efficiently, while a further 22 percent think AI will create new jobs allowing their teams to grow. However, uncertainty around AI regulation and safety is causing ‘AI anxiety’ to grow, with nearly 1 in 5 UK workers (17 percent) concerned that AI will steal their jobs. A further 19 percent are worried that AI has the potential to create new ethical issues in the workplace. More →

November 2, 2023

Working parents yearn for more flexibility in their jobs

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

Research commissioned by the Department for Education’s Teach in Further Education campaign claims to set out the top three factors working parents consider when looking for a job. Work life balance came out on top (70 percent), while flexible working hours (43 percent) and a job where they can use their existing skills (26 percent) also ranked highly. More →

October 26, 2023

Working while unwell doesn’t necessarily make it presenteeism, new report argues

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

A new report from wellbeing consultancy Robertson Cooper claims to have debunked the accepted wisdom which classifies all instances of working whilst unwell as ‘presenteeism’. The authors argue that this paves the way for a change in how organisations manage employee ill health and its relationship with productivity and absence. The research, which included consultation of the existing research on presenteeism and analysis of new data collected by the firm, categorises three types of working whilst unwell, only one of which it says should be classed as presenteeism and eradicated from businesses. More →

October 25, 2023

Five reasons why (Framery) office pods help to solve the great workplace debate

by Freddie Steele • Company news

It’s a fact – pods are taking over the office. In 2010, Framery introduced the first pod to the market and now there are over 200 suppliers globally. Framery, the market leader in this space, was a major pioneer of their development and subsequently has supplied 70 percent of Forbes 100 companies with office pods. More →

October 23, 2023

Manufacturers have sustainability strategies in place but progress remains slow and patchy

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News

Two-thirds of board-level executives at UK-based manufacturing companies agree that sustainability is a high priority and a third have decarbonisation plans in place, but according to new research conducted by management consultancy, Vendigital, progress in decarbonising products, processes, and supply chains is patchy at best, and this could cause UK industry to fall behind global competitors in the race to net zero. More →