February 26, 2020

UK squandering workers’ potential through lack of training

The UK is ignoring the value of millions of workers by overlooking workplace training and opportunities to upskill, a new survey has suggested. According to the Missing Millions report from City & Guilds Group, a third of employees have either not received workplace training in the last five years or have never had any such training – equating to 17.8 million people in the UK with outdated skills. The result, the report claims, is declining productivity and problems remaining competitive. More →

February 12, 2020

Workplace leaders must adapt to a new technological reality

by Brian Kropp • Comment, Technology, Workplace

I speak with senior workplace leaders daily and those conversations, coupled with our research and that of other people, offer us a striking perspective on the trends and changing nature of the workplace and in particular the impact of technology. Some themes are cropping up time and time again in these conversations and research and point to a new technology-led reality that we must all address. More →

February 10, 2020

Aloof bosses should change their job title to chief elusive officer

by Neil Franklin • News

The bosses of many of Britain’s biggest businesses are so disengaged from their workers and the company hierarchy so embedded, that they should start calling themselves Chief Elusive Officers. That is the key finding of a survey of companies across western and northern Europe and North America into what employees think of their chief executives carried out by HR software firm Unit4. More →

January 23, 2020

Half of managers expect staff to suppress emotions

by Jackie Le Poidevin • News, Wellbeing

Six in 10 people feel unable to express their true emotions in the workplace, new research has claimed. In a survey of 2,000 UK workers and 250 line managers by Totaljobs and Dr Terri Simpkin, a Visiting Fellow at Anglia Ruskin University, most workers said they prefer to deal with emotions on their own. This was particularly true of sadness, which 60 percent chose to handle themselves rather than asking for help. More →

December 19, 2019

The truth about all those workplace trends lists

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

You would not believe the number of firms that ask us to publish a list of workplace trends each week. Or maybe you would, given the number that have appeared elsewhere. Each firm perhaps convinced they are saying something original, unique or interesting, or maybe simply convinced they stand out in some way, while pushing the same timid, stale narratives about the workplace. It goes without saying that the commercialised messages often do little to shine a light on complex realities. In the words of the Scottish poet and anthropologist Andrew Lang, they use information ‘like a drunk uses lamp-posts—for support rather than illumination’.

December 5, 2019

The menopause and other female health issues should be addressed in better ways

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing

From menstruation to menopause, the challenges that come with being a woman at work is causing reoccurring career breaks, which are costing UK businesses, according to a new report from Bupa. As many as 11 million women have had to take a long-term leave of absence at some point during their working life, from their late teens to their early seventies. More →

December 4, 2019

Being yourself at work has its downsides for many people

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Being yourself at work has a lot of positive effects. Research supports the hypothesis that authenticity can lead to psychological benefits, including boosting self-esteem, and making people feel happier and more energised at work. But according to new research from academics at Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM) authenticity can also be a recipe for disaster. The study ‘Being your true self at work’ reviews the extant empirical work across 10 different authenticity constructs. and has been published in the Academy of Management Annals. More →

October 28, 2019

Majority of American workers are unhappy in their jobs

by Mark Eltringham • News, Wellbeing

Although more people are in work in the US than at any time in the past 50 years, only 40 percent of American workers say that they work in good jobs, according to a new study (registration) from the Lumina Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Omidyar Network, and Gallup. The report claims that 44 percent of workers surveyed said they had “mediocre” jobs while 16 percent said they were in “bad” jobs. More →

October 22, 2019

Remote workers struggle most to switch off from work

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News

According to a Remote.co survey of 200 full-time remote workers, unplugging after work hours (40 percent) is the biggest challenge remote workers face in their working lives. The survey, conducted in September and October of this year, claims that other challenges for people who work away from their firm’s main office for a significant proportion of their time include dealing with non-work distractions (32 percent), developing strong relationships with co-workers (25 percent), loneliness (23 percent), troubleshooting technology problems (21 percent), and working across different time zones (19 percent). More →

October 21, 2019

Menopause at work addressed in new CIPD manifesto

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing

To help ensure women get the right support when going through the menopause transition, necessary public policy measures need to be put in place and the subject should be discussed openly in organisations, according to the CIPD which has published a manifesto for menopause at work at an event at the Houses of Parliament. More →

October 17, 2019

Competitive sport is a game changer in the workplace

by Neil Franklin • Business, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

A new report by The Institute of Leadership & Management called Leaders at Play claims that participating in competitive sport gives people an advantage in their working lives, which in turn gives men an advantage because many more have competed in sports. The report also claims that people are often aware of the link because three quarters of workers who play competitive sport believe it gives them skills and capabilities that provide them with a workplace advantage. More →

October 1, 2019

Ergonomics regs are still relevant in the age of agile work

by Guy Osmond • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Recently Mark Eltringham of Insight argued that ergonomics regulations have become something of an anachronism in recent years. When I first became involved in the workplace ergonomics industry in late 1992, the new Display Screen Equipment ’computer user’ guidance was about to be given the force of law through the introduction of the DSE Regulations. These regulations were updated again in 2002 but, since then, no changes have been made. More →