March 16, 2021

HR technology that doesn’t help employees may just disappear

by Jayne Smith • News, Technology, Workplace

Human resources research and advisory firm Josh Bersin Research, claims that the biggest change in the HR technology market is the spread of HR applications into areas beyond payroll and employee administration to support a broad set of work activities. Other evolutions in the HR tech market include rising corporate determination to improve overall employee experience (EX) and the growth of HR tools designed for employees, not managers. More →

March 15, 2021

Serfs up for the self-employed and gig economy workers (and the middle class)

by Mark Eltringham • Features, Flexible working, Working culture

One of the most significant consequences of the 2008 economic crash was a remarkable shift in the nature of employment. The recession led to a surge in the number of people categorised as self-employed. The numbers have been increasing ever since, albeit at a lower rate. By the end of 2019, the number of self-employed people in the UK exceeded five million people for the first time. Fifteen percent of the workforce. More →

March 10, 2021

Siemens commits to making Smart Infrastructure HQ carbon neutral by 2023

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News, Workplace design

Siemens Smart Infrastructure plans to transform its global headquarters in Zug, Switzerland, into a carbon neutral location by 2023. To achieve this, a comprehensive renovation of an existing building on Theilerstrasse 1c will commence in May 2021 for a period of two years. Siemens has earmarked around EUR 63 million (CHF 70 million) for the refurbishment works. More →

March 10, 2021

Surging UK tech investment fails to deliver due to ineffective training

by Jayne Smith • News, Technology, Working culture

New research by CWJobs, claims three quarters of UK businesses (72 percent) increased their overall investment in tech tools, talent and training by an average of £1.48 million in 2020, as digital capabilities enabled them to maintain business continuity throughout the pandemic. More →

March 8, 2021

International investors are dominating the London office market

by Jayne Smith • Business, Cities, News, Property

The latest London Office Market 2021 report by property consultants Bidwells, claims that investor interest in London based offices are starting to peak, with the market having a strong rebound from 2020. More →

March 6, 2021

Well, at least nobody is whinging about open plan offices anymore

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working, Technology, Workplace design

Years of pathologising offices should have prepared us for the patholigisation of virtual spaces. It seems like months since anybody has come out with that tired old rant about open plan. Certain vociferous and obsessive authors on the subject have had to find some other outlet for whatever their real problem is. Still, it’s not hard right now to find similar stuff about the toxicity of virtual meetings and especially those hosted by poor old Zoom, who get the blame for everything.

March 5, 2021

Half of employers don’t have a financial wellbeing policy

by Jayne Smith • Business, News, Wellbeing

Despite the financial hardship wrought by COVID-19, half of employers (49 percent) don’t have a financial wellbeing policy. This is according to the latest Reward Management Survey from the CIPD (which 420 employers responded to). More →

March 5, 2021

London crowned the most desirable city in the world to work

by Jayne Smith • Business, Cities, News, Working culture

A new study on recruitment and workforce trends has crowned London as the world’s most desirable city to work in, with the UK capital holding onto the top spot, despite uncertainty around Brexit and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. More →

March 4, 2021

Highly educated entrepreneurs rarely want to grow their firms

by Jayne Smith • Business, News, Working culture

Highly educated solo-entrepreneurs value the autonomy of their work above everything else and as a result do not want to employ people, according to new research from Trinity Business School. The researchers used a survey to interview solo entrepreneurs as they started their business to investigate their hiring plans. They claim that only one third of solo entrepreneurs intend to hire employees later on. More →

March 4, 2021

Work is the silver lining to the pandemic for employees

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought anxiety to many, but people are positive about their work, claims a new survey from The Myers-Briggs Company, which looks at how people’s personality type influences their feelings about the pandemic. More →

March 2, 2021

Progress for women in work back at 2017 levels due to COVID-19

by Jayne Smith • News, Working culture

Progress for women in work could be back at 2017 levels by the end of this year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to analysis conducted for PwC’s annual Women in Work Index, which measures female economic empowerment across 33 OECD countries. More →

February 26, 2021

UK workers put in £24 billion worth of unpaid overtime during the pandemic

by Jayne Smith • News, Working lives

UK employers claimed £24 billion of free labour last year because of workers doing unpaid overtime, according to new analysis published by the TUC. More than three million people did unpaid overtime in 2020, putting in an average of 7.7 unpaid hours a week. On average, that’s equivalent to £7,300 a year of wages going unpaid for work done. More →