November 30, 2022

Always connected in the age of disconnection

by Mark Eltringham • Features, Flexible working, Wellbeing

All of humanity’s problems,” the French scientist and philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote in 1654, “stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” He may have been right, but then again, sitting in a room alone isn’t necessarily a great state of permanent being either. There was a time we used to talk with dismay about the Japanese phenomenon of intense social distancing known as hikikomori. We would consider with horror the isolation, lack of engagement with society, poor mental health and loneliness of the people who had almost completely withdrawn to their rooms. Those poor bastards locked up in enclosed spaces linked to the outside world only by screens. More →

November 30, 2022

Cost of living will become biggest challenge for HR over the next year

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

A new poll from employment law and HR consultancy firm, WorkNest, claims that 70 percent of HR professionals believe that the cost of living will be their most significant challenge for 2023. This was closely followed by retention (69 percent) and recruitment (55 percent). A third of those questioned also see skills shortages (34 percent) as a significant HR challenge next year, and employee engagement (24 percent). More →

November 29, 2022

The roots of modern ergonomic seating go back to the late 19th Century

by Freddie Steele • Furniture, News, Wellbeing

Although the invention of the swivel chair – and by extension ergonomic seating – is largely credited to Thomas Jefferson, the roots of its industrialisation and our modern approach to ergonomics lie in Europe. It was here nearly one hundred years ago that Albert Stoll first introduced the world to the Federdreh, the legendary chair that is the common ancestor of every task chair that has followed. More →

November 28, 2022

KI Postura+ chair reaches first milestone on journey towards 100 percent recycled content

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Works Magazine

KI has confirmed that Postura+ will begin its transition to a product for the circular economy, with all one-piece chairs manufactured from December 2022 set to contain at least 30 percent recycled polypropylene. Following over 3 years of trials and testing, this achievement sets an important milestone on KI’s journey towards taking a leading position in the circular economy. Over the coming years, KI will work towards increasing this percentage to future milestones 50, 80 and ultimately 100 percent, bringing all standard colours into line with the increasingly popular Jet Black chairs which are already made with 100 percent recycled content. More →

November 28, 2022

Lease cycle means West End office market will ‘reset’ by 2025

by Jayne Smith • News, Property

A BNP Paribas Real Estate analysis claims that London’s West End office market is on course to ‘reset’ by 2025 following a major leasing event cycle commencing in 2023, which will see a flurry of renewals, expiries and break clauses executed by both landlord and tenant, which will alter the market as we know it by the milestone year. According to the firm’s own West End data, 40 percent of the market will have a lease event in 2023 and 2024, with equally large volumes to follow in the two subsequent years. This freedom of tenant movement coupled with a restricted supply line, could drive rents on prime buildings from their current 2022 position of £140 sq ft to £200 sq ft in 2023 and £250 sq ft in 2024, and further into 2025 where the initial cycle ends. More →

November 24, 2022

EU approves major funding increase for new circular economy and clean energy projects

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News

The European Commission has approved more than €380 million of funding for 168 new projects across Europe as part of its LIFE Programme for the environment and climate action. As part of the European Green Deal, it believes that the projects funded can help the EU become climate-neutral by 2050 and reach climate, energy and environmental goals. They aim to support biodiversity, nature restoration and a circular economy while contributing to the clean energy transition across the continent. More →

November 23, 2022

Firms should focus on people in the drive for long term growth

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

A new report by Economist Impact, sponsored by Kyocera Document Solutions, claims that human-centric strategies are needed for businesses to drive sustainable business growth, focusing on three pillars: productivity and infrastructure, employee engagement and culture. The Magnetic Workplace Barometer claims to gauge confidence both today and in five years’ time across what the report terms the three main pillars of productivity and infrastructure; employee engagement; and culture. The barometer scores are scaled from 1 to 7, 7 being the most confident. More →

November 22, 2022

Inconsistent flexible working strategies drive people away from businesses

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

A new poll of 3,450 people in a dozen countries from Unit4 claims that around two in five organisations have lost employees over the last year because they believed they would enjoy better flexible working options elsewhere. While most firms now have a formalised approach to flexible working, the report claims that policies vary enormously, exacerbating the challenge of recruiting and retaining people for those firms with an inconsistent approach. More →

November 22, 2022

Half of small business owners have no fixed working hours at all

by Jayne Smith • Business, News, Wellbeing

A new report from Samsung suggests that the stereotype of the typical small business owners as a person who work around the clock is outdated. Around half of full-time business owners in the UK say they have no fixed work hours at all, preferring a fluid workday set up. One-third (31 percent) of business owners also said they commit to fewer than 7 hours as a typical core working day, preferring to work when optimal to their businesses. More →

November 20, 2022

Is carbon counting really the answer for the office furniture industry?

by Joanna Knight • Comment, Environment, JK

There is an increasing awareness that carbon is contained within all the products we buy. As an example, a leading sports trainer manufacturer is now displaying carbon content labelling, rather like food retailers quote calories. Within the workplace sector, the environmental impact of the built environment and products such as office furniture and flooring are seemingly well known. This must include consideration regarding how refurbishments and changes to embrace new working practices are managed responsibly. More →

November 15, 2022

The four day week and a case of less is more

by Sara Bean • Features, Flexible working, Premium Content

When a pilot programme for a four day week was announced in the UK early in the New Year, #4dayweek trended for days on twitter, with jokey comments on how employees taking part in the trial should do everything not to ‘f*** it up for the rest of us.’ But behind the humour there’s a real issue with productivity in the UK. Recent Office for National Statistics reveals that while productivity grew across all G7 countries during the pandemic, the UK experienced the largest falls in GDP growth and an increase in the number of hours worked. More →

November 15, 2022

Two thirds of young professionals now have a ‘side hustle’ to make ends meet

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

Two thirds of professionals under the age of 24 claim to have a ‘side hustle’ – with 74 percent stating it is ‘too risky’ to focus on just having one job as they may have done pre-pandemic. In a poll – of 6,000 white-collar professionals – undertaken by recruitment consultancy Robert Walters; 54 percent of young professionals expressed a desire for a ‘portfolio career’ – the concept of monetising your skills in several ways and having multiple income sources, rather than a single job at one company. More →