Search Results for: pandemic

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

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

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 →

Financial uncertainty, wellbeing and supply chain disruption revealed as top risk factors 

Financial uncertainty, wellbeing and supply chain disruption revealed as top risk factors 

Companies across the UK are most concerned about the risk of financial uncertainty (34 percent), employee health and wellbeing (31 percent) and supply chain disruption (23 percent) on their businesses over the next 12 monthsAccording to new research by Marsh, an insurance broker and risk advisor, companies across the UK are most concerned about the impact of financial uncertainty (34 percent), employee health and wellbeing (31 percent) and supply chain disruption (23 percent) on their businesses over the next 12 months. The findings come from Marsh’s UK Business Risk Report 2023 [registration], which features data obtained in May and June 2023 from over 2,100 UK businesses with turnover of between £100,000 and £500 million + per year. Now in its third year, the report explores how circumstances over the last 12 months have impacted the business risk appetite and approach to risk management among UK companies, and identifies their priorities for the year ahead.  More →

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

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

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 on the office fit-out marketThe 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 →

Squirrel! Distraction costing the UK economy nearly £20 billion a year

Squirrel! Distraction costing the UK economy nearly £20 billion a year

Scrolling on social media, checking messages, daydreaming and other forms of distraction are costing the UK economy £19.9 billion each yearScrolling on social media, checking messages, daydreaming and other forms of distraction are costing the UK economy £19.9 billion each year, new research from The QEII Centre claims. The report The Distracted Economy: We are losing focus – how to hold attention and keep delegates engaged during business meetings and events was commissioned by the London conference and events venue. It suggests that 83 percent of people admit to being distracted during in-person meetings while the number rises to 85 percent during online meetings. More →

Angry, stressed and worried. The utter state of the UK workforce in 2023

Angry, stressed and worried. The utter state of the UK workforce in 2023

Gallup has published its 2023 Gallup Global Emotions report [registration]  – a study of employee sentiment in the UK workforceGallup has published its 2023 Gallup Global Emotions report [registration]  – a study of employee sentiment in the UK workforce. According to the report’s Negative Experience Index, which tracks how many people experience daily sadness, anger, stress, worry, and physical pain, full-time UK employees are experiencing historically high levels of daily negative experiences. This latest Gallup data claims that full-time UK employees scored a 32 on Gallup’s Negative Experience Index. This is up substantially from 23 in 2020. Full-time employees in the UK are now some of the most emotionally distressed in Europe, second only to employees in Malta. More →

People who work full time from an office now outnumber hybrid workers

People who work full time from an office now outnumber hybrid workers

British workers who come into the office every day to work now outnumber those who spend part of the week working from homeBritish workers who come into the office every day to work now outnumber those who spend part of the week working from home, for the first time since the end of pandemic restrictions, according to a new survey from recruitment firm Hays. Of nearly 15,000 white-collar staff and employers who took part in the poll last month, around 43 per cent said they were now working entirely from the office, up from 36 per cent a year earlier. Meanwhile the proportion of people who said they spend some time working from home, fell to 39 per cent from 43 per cent in 2022. Fewer than one in five now work entirely remotely. More →

Are the days of landmark corporate headquarters over?

Are the days of landmark corporate headquarters over?

There’s something in the idea that the creation of a bespoke, landmark corporate headquarters is a sign that something has gone wrong - or is about to - for the firm behind it.There’s something in the idea that the creation of a bespoke, landmark corporate headquarters is a sign that something has gone wrong – or is about to – for the firm behind it. I’d first developed or come across this idea when visiting British Airway’s Waterside building in the late 1990s. At the time it was arguably the most talked about office building in the world, lauded for its inbuilt urban landscape, mix of settings and humane, biophilic design features. More →

An uncertain world, but CEOs remain broadly bullish about the future

An uncertain world, but CEOs remain broadly bullish about the future

Geopolitics and broader political uncertainty are now the greatest risk to business growth, according to a survey of more than 1,300 CEOs of the world’s largest businessesGeopolitics and broader political uncertainty are now the greatest risk to business growth, according to a survey of more than 1,300 CEOs of the world’s largest businesses. The KPMG 2023 CEO Outlook claims that geopolitics and political uncertainty have become the leading perceived risk this year for senior executives – concerns that didn’t even make the top five in the 2022 survey. More →

BCO Awards dominated by South East offices yet again but Glasgow office takes top spot

BCO Awards dominated by South East offices yet again but Glasgow office takes top spot

Barclays’ Glasgow campus was celebrated as the Best of the Best at the British Council for Offices BCO AwardsBarclays’ Glasgow campus (pictured) was celebrated as the Best of the Best at the British Council for Offices (BCO) National Awards last night, also taking home the prize for Corporate Workplace. Seven further winners of BCO Awards were recognised as leading examples of excellence in workplace design in the UK. There were no winners in any category in the Midlands or North of England, Northern Ireland or Wales, although two offices in Manchester and Widnes were commended and the President’s Award went to HMRC for its ongoing national estate management programme. More →

CIBSE publishes revised maintenance guide

CIBSE publishes revised maintenance guide

A new fully revised edition of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) Guide M: Maintenance, Engineering and Management sets out the latest technological and legislative developments that will impact facilities managers, designers, building owners and operatorsA new fully revised edition of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) Guide M: Maintenance, Engineering and Management sets out the latest technological and legislative developments that will impact facilities managers, designers, building owners and operators, otherwise known as the ‘maintenance bible’. Containing all the information needed for the successful operation of a buildings’ services, while ensuring buildings are safe and optimised for energy performance, this revision has been published to provide guidance on the many areas of change since Guide M was last amended in 2014, including publication of the Building Safety Act and amendments to the Building Regulations. More →

Sustainability and skills at heart of RICS’ new manifesto for the built environment

Sustainability and skills at heart of RICS’ new manifesto for the built environment

The built environment needs to reflect the change in workforce behaviour and its approach to sustainabilityThe Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is launching its manifesto for the built environment in the lead-up to the next UK General Election, titled Empowering a Sustainable Future. The UK’s built and natural environments face large-scale challenges ranging from climate change to a cost-of-living crisis. According to the manifesto, endemic skills shortages undermine development in the industry while the workplace has become more fluid post-pandemic, with the built environment needing to reflect the change in workforce behaviour and its approach to sustainability. More →

Half of landlords now planning a flexible working offer

Half of landlords now planning a flexible working offer

Over half of UK landlords are planning to independently develop an offering for the growing flexible working market across their portfoliosOver half of UK landlords are planning to independently develop an offering for the growing flexible working market across their portfolios, according to the annual report on the flexible workspace sector by The Instant Group. The 2023 UK State of the Flex Market report [registration] polled more than 200 flex operators and landlords for insights into the sector. Findings also suggest that two-thirds (61 percent) of flex operators intend to increase their footprint in the next two years, while market imbalances in regional hubs, enduring occupancy rates, and surging demand for sustainable buildings all featured prominently in the report. More →