Search Results for: employee satisfaction

November 30, 2018

Business leaders are failing to drive disruptive technological change

One in three (34 percent) employees believe a robot would be better at decision making than their boss if it had access to the right business intelligence. This is according to the Advanced Trends Report 2018/19, which also reveals that there is no clear leader driving technology change across UK businesses. Just 35 percent of C-Suite/Managing Directors are said to be driving technology change, while 51 percent believe responsibility falls to IT, followed by finance (19 percent) and marketing (13 percent). It perhaps comes as no surprise, then, that 59 percent of employees think less than half of people in their organisation are ready to adopt new technology to change the way they work.

November 15, 2018

Majority of office workers discontented with workplace environment

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Workplace, Workplace design

The vast majority (97 percent) of office workers in UK feel frustrated by their workplace environments, with many feeling the need to escape office life as a result. A new report from Staples has discovered that one-in-five (22 percent) end up browsing LinkedIn job ads for something better when they’re frustrated. As a result, job-hopping is prolific, with workers now predicted to have 11.7 jobs between the ages of 18 and 48. The expectation that the grass must be greener elsewhere is leaving most thinking about switching jobs. However, when they do end up jumping ship, many just experience a short-term fix. According to the study, a third (37 percent) get frustrated in their new office before the end of their first six months. The majority of office workers say they seek fulfilment (89 percent) at work, and for most (77 percent), the quality of their office workspace is a contributing factor in how fulfilled they feel.

November 6, 2018

Employers struggle to understand what motivates people in new generation of megacities

by Neil Franklin • Cities, News, Workplace

Mercer has published the results of an extensive study that examines the needs of workers in the world’s fastest-growing cities across four key factors – human, health, money and work. The study provides insight into the motivations of workers against the backdrop of fierce competition for their talent. The study, People first: driving growth in emerging megacities (registration required), is based on a survey of 7,200 workers and 577 employers in 15 current and future megacities across seven countries, namely Brazil, China, India, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco and Nigeria. As defined by the United Nations, these 15 cities will have a combined population of 150 million people by 2030 and share strong, projected GDP.

October 26, 2018

We need to move on from the stigma of mental health to finding solutions

by Gary Helm • Comment, Wellbeing

Just as in physical health, everybody has a level of mental health. And while companies have begun to offer corporate gym membership discounts, bowls of fruit around the office, monthly massage and investment in huge amounts of ergonomically supportive furniture to try to assist their colleagues in maintaining a good level of physical health, few seem to be getting to grips with their colleagues’ mental wellbeing, despite the reality that they are dealing with huge numbers of employees who struggle.

October 23, 2018

Lack of motivation at work impacts both performance and mental health

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Over seven in ten UK employees want their employers to do more to motivate them claims a new study from Reward Gateway which suggests that some of the alarming effects that being unmotivated has on employees included a worsening in mood (60 percent); reduction in productivity levels (48 percent); declining mental health (46 percent) and a reduction in quality of work (40 percent). Over a quarter (26 percent) say their relationships with family and friends suffer and 2 in 10 admit to drinking more alcohol when lacking motivation.

October 18, 2018

Fewer than half of UK managers would recommend their workplace to others

by Sara Bean • News, Technology, Workplace

Under half (47 percent) of British managers ‘completely agree’ that they would recommend their workplace to others, lagging behind other countries, such as Austria (66 percent), Finland (53 percent), Switzerland (53 percent), and France (51 percent). This is according to a Cornerstone OnDemand and IDC survey of over 1,900 European HR, IT and line of business managers, Future Culture 2018: Building a Culture of Innovation in the Age of Digital Transformation (registration required). More →

October 10, 2018

The Genesis of ideation and the places we go to have our best ideas ⁰

by Giuseppe Boscherini • Facilities management, Features, Technology, Work&Place, Workplace design

Because collaboration, creativity and innovation are increasingly perceived as key objectives and differentiators of performance, the genesis and mechanisms behind ideation and creativity are an an integral part of both business and personal development. As a consequence, there is growing interest in the way the physical attributes of work settings may influence or even trigger creative behaviour. The cliché of the shower as one of these favourite places comes to mind and yet experience does show that the idea of seeking a setting, a “zone” if you will, for a specific purpose is intuitively right. This needn’t be a retreat or cocoon, as is often assumed, but can also be a crowded, busy, noisy place, which might explain why so often the most animated work conversations move out of the office shop into the coffee shop. Equally, highlight events or special meetings tend to be held in a “venue’, often dressed for the occasion.

October 9, 2018

Employers struggling to attract skills needed for digitalised workplace

by Sara Bean • Automation, News, Technology, Workplace

More than half of CEOs (53 percent) admit they can’t find candidates with the necessary skills to help them navigate an increasingly digitalised business landscape a new survey from Robert Half has claimed. These include data analysis and digital skills, as well as softer skills such as resilience, adaptability to change and critical thinking. This means that nearly five million UK SMEs, the equivalent to four out of every five (82 percent) small and medium-sized companies, are struggling to attract the skills they need. As a result, many are being forced to offer salary packages higher than originally expected to recruit the right talent. More →

October 4, 2018

Third of UK workers claim they are not given the flexibility and support required to do their job

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology

A third of UK workers believe they are not given the flexibility and support they need to do their job properly, according to a YouGov survey commissioned by HR and payroll supplier MHR to coincide with National Work Life Week. The survey of 1174 UK employees, which questioned their thoughts about their employers and company culture, found that 32 percent of employees don’t receive the option to work flexibly. The research claims that a combination of good management and flexible working practices helps to create a positive company culture, inspiring workers and impacting their overall happiness and job satisfaction.

October 3, 2018

Nearly half of UK workers do not have skills that match their job, says CIPD

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

Almost half (49 percent) of UK workers are in jobs they are either under- or over-skilled for, according to new research from the CIPD. Its report ‘Over-skilled and underused: Investigating the untapped potential of UK skills’ surveyed 3,700 UK employees and found that more than a third (37 percent) of workers have the skills to cope with more demanding duties than they currently have. At the opposite end of the scale, one in ten (12 percent) employees said they lacked all the skills needed to carry out their job effectively. This means that as many as half (49 percent) of UK workers could be in the wrong job, based on their skill level. The UK has one of most skilled workforces in the world, with 42 percent of workers qualified to degree level, yet it also has the highest proportion of jobs within the OECD which require no qualifications at all.

October 2, 2018

How to measure the impact of biophilia on individual performance

by Julia Ayuso Sanchez • Features, Wellbeing, Workplace design

The improvement in well-being and performance in the workplace are economic and social critical factors since the loss of productivity for companies means a cost of up to US$ 550,000 million per year. Numerous studies affirm that biophilic design, defined as a response to the inherent need of human beings to be in contact with nature, in the workplace improves productivity and user well-being. As Lord Kelvin said, if you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it, so the challenge that arises is how to objectify and quantify rigorously the features that improve productivity and wellbeing in spaces designed with biophilia in mind. From this, it is necessary to go a step further and objectify the design criteria serving as an operator for performance and wellbeing in design practice.

September 17, 2018

Crown Estate HQ becomes first office in Europe to achieve WELL Platinum Certification

by Mark Eltringham • Environment, Facilities management, News, Property, Public Sector, Wellbeing

The Crown Estate has announced that it has been awarded WELL Certification at the Platinum Level for its head office at No 1 St James’s Market, London by the International WELL Building Institute. The Crown Estate earned the distinction based on seven categories of building performance—air, water, light, nourishment, fitness, comfort and mind—and achieved a Platinum level rating.