Search Results for: office

October 27, 2016

One in six public sector jobs to be lost to automation, claims report ⁰

by Neil Franklin • News, Public Sector, Technology

Up to 861,000 public sector jobs in the UK – around 16 percent of the overall workforce – could be automated by 2030 according to research by Deloitte. The research builds on Deloitte’s work with Oxford University on job automation and is included in the firm’s The State of the State report for 2016-17 – its annual analysis of the state of public finances and the challenges facing public services. Deloitte’s previous work has shown that all sectors of the UK economy will be affected by automation in the next two decades, with 74 percent of jobs in transportation and storage, 59 percent of jobs in wholesale and retail and 56 percent of jobs in manufacturing having a high chance of being automated. The public sector includes higher numbers of roles in areas such as education and caring, as well as jobs requiring public interaction, all of which are at lower risk of automation. However, Deloitte calculates that automation could still lead to a reduction of up to £17 billion in public sector wage costs by 2030.

October 25, 2016

Millennials have just the same needs for peace and quiet as everybody else ⁰

by Steven Lambert • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Asked for the dream millennial workplace, most people would probably envision a brightly coloured open environment with pool tables, bean bag chairs and maybe a small basketball court. But it turns out that young people in the workplace have the same psychological requirements as the old crowd, and may even be more sensitive to distractions. A recent study by Oxford Economics suggests that distractions in the workplace are seriously hindering people’s ability to concentrate and perform, with little recognition from above. The transition to open offices since the end of the 20th century and the environmental factors they bring into play may be affecting people’s mental health, reducing employee happiness and thereby the bottom line of business performance.

October 24, 2016

Corporate real estate sector continues to make progress in energy consumption, carbon emissions and water use ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Environment, News, Property

The world’s leading corporate real estate owners and managers are making significant progress in reducing energy consumption, carbon emissions and water usage in their buildings, according to a new report from the Urban Land Institute’s (ULI) Greenprint Center for Building Performance. The Greenprint Performance Report, which measures and tracks the performance of more than 5,400 properties owned by Greenprint’s members, demonstrates a 3.4 percent reduction in energy consumption, a 3.9 percent reduction in carbon emissions and a 4.8 percent reduction in water use between 2014 and 2015. According to the study, since Greenprint started recording building performance in 2009, the energy consumed by members’ properties tracked by Greenprint has dropped 13.7 percent. Carbon emissions from those properties have decreased 16.5 percent; and water usage has dropped by 10.6 percent. The reductions occurred even as building occupancy rose, suggesting that greater space usage does not necessarily cause a decline in building performance.

October 24, 2016

How and why employee fitness became part of the corporate agenda ⁰

by Michael Page • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

As the national obesity crisis worsens and a regular flow of statistics inform us that we’re a nation in trouble, with no demographic escaping the threat, we seem to have become obsessed with how fit or unfit we are. This is reflected in our growing interest in how many calories we consume and how much exercise we manage – right down to how many steps we take a day. No surprise then that this interest has started to manifest itself in the workplace where employee fitness appears to be an issue addressed in the boardroom. Last year, research carried out by The Workforce Institute at Kronos revealed that almost 75 per cent of workers (a total of 9,000 were questioned) believe that wearable technology, designed to capture vast amounts of biometric data and manage health risks, could lead to increased efficiency and productivity in the workplace. Measuring levels of physical activity is but a small part of the obsession with health and well-being which has infiltrated the workplace overall. There is also physical evidence, from the desks that we sit at to issues of bicycle storage and showering facilities, that we are mindful of our health.

October 20, 2016

Herman Miller launches new Aeron Chair ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Company news, Workplace design

Office furniture giant Herman Miller has today unveiled a new Aeron chair. The Aeron is now the world’s bestselling chair of all time, but when it was first launched in 1994, it was unlike any chair the world had ever seen. Instead of a padded seat and back, designers Bill Stumpf and Don Chadwick did away with foam and fabric to create a ‘machine for sitting’. Although Herman Miller later confessed that they had misgivings that the chair’s radical design would lead to its rejection in the market, instead Aeron quickly became the most recognisable performance chair in history, with over 7 million sold in 134 countries and a staple in popular culture. Herman Miller’s new Aeron retains the distinctive silhouette of the iconic chair, but every component of the design has been updated to raise the bar for performance seating, according to the firm. With the input of original co-designer Don Chadwick, and a team of scientists, engineers, materials specialists, and researchers who worked on the project for over two years, Herman Miller claims to have enhanced the chair by combining the latest insights in anthropometrics and ergonomics with two decades of advancement in materials, manufacturing, and technology.

October 19, 2016

Where are zero hours contracts and the gig economy taking us? ⁰

by Mike James • Comment, Flexible working

Zero-hours contracts have had a bad time in the press. Mike Ashley, founder of Sports Direct, has taken a pounding after uproar over workers conditions, and after vehemently defending his position, he is remarkably making a U-turn, ditching the controversial zero-hours employment arrangements. A large number of companies new also turning their backs on zero hours, including Cineworld, Greene King and Wetherspoons. Casual work isn’t a new phenomenon. In fact, the secure, jobs-for-life of post-war Britain lasted merely a few decades. Prior to the 1940s casual work was the longstanding nemesis of the working class. The welfare state and the much-cherished political mantra of full employment emerged in a post-war, golden age. In the 1980s capitalism found its sway. Margaret Thatcher redefined worker’s rights, and it paved the way for employers to benefit again from a more flexible workforce and ultimately what we now refer to as the gig economy.

October 19, 2016

Staff engagement boosted by learning opportunities over benefits ⁰

by Sara Bean • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

It is often assumed that salary, bonuses and office perks are essential to staff engagement as the most important criteria valued by employees, but a new survey suggests otherwise. Instead, the survey by totaljobs found that across all age groups and industries what people value far more than anything else is learning on the job, selected by almost all (97 percent) of 6,829 people questioned. Loyalty and variety in a role, valued by 93 percent of respondents, also came out strong, emphasising that for most people work is about a lot more than a pay check. The need to feel they are progressing, learning new things and the company appreciates their contribution were all important factors in how much people enjoy their jobs. The other things valued most by employees were variety in a role (93 percent); working autonomously (68 percent); perks and benefits (67 percent) and structured teams (64 percent).

October 18, 2016

New CoreNet Global / HOK report explores impact of coworking on corporate real estate ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Coworking, Flexible working, News

The UK Chapter of CoreNet Global, in partnership with HOK’s WorkPlace practice, has released a new report that studies the impact of coworking from a corporate real estate (CRE) perspective. With coworking now one of the fastest-growing sectors of the commercial real estate market, the new report, Coworking: A Corporate Real Estate Perspective, examines the drivers of coworking from the demand and supply side, the industry risks and implications for corporate real estate, as well as information about the owners, coworkers and centres. The CoreNet Global / HOK Coworking report highlights the ideas that changing business priorities and the need to attract talented people, reduce real estate costs, improve speed to innovation and increase productivity are driving corporations to consider different workplace models, including on- and off-site coworking.

October 18, 2016

The global uberification of commercial property and the workplace ⁰

by Anthony Brown • Facilities management, Features, Property, Technology, Workplace design

Technology doesn’t just transform the world, it reshapes our language. So, we all need to get used to the word uberification as well as the idea of it. Based on the success of the on demand taxi service Uber, the word refers to the way a product or service becomes available to customers on demand via the Internet. Customers book a service only at the point of consumption. This represents an entirely new commercial model and is the defining characteristic of the new 21st Century economy. Uber may have provided the tipping point, going from start up to market valuation of $66 billion in just 7 years, but its success has given us a name for a process that is reshaping businesses and customer experiences across the entire economy, including in the commercial property sector.

October 18, 2016

UK marketers suffering from tech-induced anxiety, survey claims ⁰

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology

More than half (55 percent) of marketers in the UK are struggling to cope with the accelerated pace of digital transformation – up 7 percent since 2015, Adobe’s annual Digital Roadblock study claims. The report – which surveyed 450 marketers in the UK– found that Brits suffer from more tech-induced anxiety than their peers across the region: an average of 44 percent of marketers in Europe worry about their technology-based skill sets, 11 percent lower than the UK. Of the marketers surveyed, three-quarters (74 percent) feel that they need to implement new technologies within their marketing strategies in order to succeed, but just over half (54 percent) feel that they actually have the skills to do so. When it comes to technology skills, there’s an obvious gap between demand and reality: while 41 percent of respondents cited being a ‘tech-savvy’ early adopter of new technologies as the top attribute of being a marketer, only 15 percent actually identify as ‘tech-savvy’ themselves. In fact, more UK marketers identify as ‘tech challenged’ (20 percent) than ‘tech savvy’, and the number of ‘tech-savvy’ marketers has dropped since last year, when nearly one in five (19 percent) identified as so.

October 15, 2016

Insight weekly: Obsession with data + People subvert design + Engaged workplace ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

In this week’s Newsletter; Jess Brook says beware of the latest data dressed up as pseudo-science; Serena Borghero on ways workplace design can boost engagement levels; and Mark Eltringham says how workplaces are utilised are subject to the vagaries of human behaviour. Staff allegedly spend just 38 percent of their time performing their primary job duties; collaborative spaces are replacing the traditional office boardroom; and 30 percent of corporate real estate portfolios will incorporate flexible workspaces by 2030. Research suggests office design makes the most significant difference to employee happiness levels; over a quarter (28 percent) of employees are reluctant to ask for flexible work; digital tech within many workplaces is not up to spec; and extension announced of the One Public Sector Estate scheme. Download our new Briefing, produced in partnership with Boss Design on the link between culture and workplace strategy and design; visit our new events page, follow us on Twitter and join our LinkedIn Group to discuss these and other stories.

October 13, 2016

Design is the top factor when it comes to workplace happiness, claims study ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News

New research from Office Genie claims that office design makes the most significant difference to employee happiness levels. According to the survey of 2,000 British workers, when someone felt comfortable with the design of their workplace, it boosted their happiness by 33 percent compared to those who felt uncomfortable. Workplace design was found to have a larger impact than office temperature levels, light levels, noise levels, and social interaction levels: temperature made an average difference of (5 percent), light (6 percent), noise (8 percent), and social interaction (8 percent). It also came in ahead of the ability to work flexibly, specifically the ability to work from home which made a 12 percent difference to happiness levels. This is particularly remarkable when flexible working is often cited as one of the biggest factors affecting employee happiness, according to the study.