February 4, 2022

Want people to return to the office? Then create the best office in the world

by Mike Hills • Features, Wellbeing, Workplace design

More obituaries have been written for the office in the past two years than at any time in history. It has often seemed like even the best office in the world couldn’t preserve the idea of the office. And it’s not like the obituaries were all that rare even before the pandemic forced us to reappraise our relationship with work and the times and places we do it. While all these death notices were being served, one particularly well-informed organisation was making some more interesting observations about it all. In particular, it constantly raised the most fundamental question of all. More →

February 4, 2022

Poor workplace culture means people are more likely to pull a sickie

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

A new report from O.C. Tanner calls into question the validity of ‘National Sickie Day’ (7 February 2022), instead pointing to poor workplace culture as the root cause of over a quarter of absences. The 2022 Global Culture Report claims that 28 per cent of UK workers have taken more days off lately to avoid work with over a quarter (26 per cent) admitting that they dread going into work. The study of over 38,000 employees, leaders, HR practitioners and executives from 21 countries around the world, including over 2,500 from the U.K suggests that the pandemic has caused social connections to break down, and this has led to more mental health challenges with lonely and disengaged workers looking for ways to avoid work. More →

January 27, 2022

Flexible working models best for mental health of parents, research claims

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

Employees who are able to split their working time between home and a formal workplace are 40 percent less likely to experience mental health difficulties, new research has shown. Wellbeing charity stem4 surveyed 1038 working parents and carers across the UK to mark Parent Mental Health Day (27th January). It suggests that four in ten overall (39 percent) were experiencing problems – most commonly stress (62 percent), depression (54 percent) and anxiety (50 percent). More →

January 21, 2022

Half of companies still not ready to meet the demand for flexible working

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Property

Companies are unprepared for the structural shift to flexible working and must do more to create responsible, personalised and experiential workplaces, a new report from JLL suggests. Intensive experimentation and piloting are needed to achieve flexible working models that will deliver a unique workplace experience for all. The JLL research claims that globally organisations are looking to continue flexibility for where and when people work with 82 percent expecting employees to work remotely into the future at least part of the time – spending on average two days every week away from the office. Yet 48 percent of organisations in Europe Middle East and Africa (EMEA) still have not developed a future of work programme to meet the rising demands and expectations of their staff for greater work flexibility, exceptional and sustainable workplaces and increased wellbeing. More →

January 18, 2022

Firms need to do more to engage, attract and retain staff

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Over 40 percent of employers are finding it more difficult to retain and recruit staff, according to Aon’s Benefits and Trends Survey 2022 (registration). The report claims that many employers have adjusted their benefits strategies to address an intense labour market, in which employee work motivations have shifted in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Forty-one percent of employers said they have found it more difficult to retain staff in the last year, while 44 percent have found it more difficult to recruit new staff. Many employers anecdotally expressed in the survey that they need to pay higher salaries or sign-on bonuses to entice new recruits. More →

January 18, 2022

Four day week trial launched in UK

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

A six-month trial of the recently much talked about four day week has been launched across the United Kingdom. Around thirty companies are expected to take part, who have also committed to retaining current pay and conditions for the employees involved. The pilot has been launched by the think tank Autonomy, 4 Day Week Global, the 4 Day Week UK Campaign and researchers at Cambridge University, Oxford University and Boston College. More →

January 18, 2022

Cities need to open themselves up to Nature, report claims

by Jayne Smith • Cities, Environment, News

Cities contribute 80 percent to global GDP – but they also account for 75 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Integrating nature-positive solutions can help protect cities from growing risks associated with extreme weather while driving sustainable economic growth, according to a new study from the World Economic Forum. In collaboration with the Alexander von Humboldt Institute and Government of Colombia, WEF’s BiodiverCities by 2030 Initiative published a report addressing the urgency of cities’ untenable relationship with nature. The Initiative’s goal is to reverse this existential global threat and move forward with a plan that will result in cities and nature co-existing in harmony by the end of the decade. More →

January 18, 2022

How to provide a great place to work for remote workers

by Richard Guy • Company news, Flexible working

Remote working swiftly evolved from a stopgap lockdown solution into a globally successful workstyle – and it’s set to stay. According to research quoted by CityAM, “84 per cent of UK businesses plan on having a hybrid, flexible or remote workforce following the pandemic”. Some companies, like Deloitte, have placed all bets on remote in closing their offices and basing employees from home, enjoying a vast reduction in operational costs. This flexibility has offered immediate benefits for remote workers, ranging from lifestyle and financial to positive influences on wellbeing. Workers in particular social groups have experienced life-changing situations, securing work in previously inaccessible geographic locations. More →

January 17, 2022

Is your office worth the journey it takes to get to it?

by Despina Katsikakis • Comment, Flexible working, Property

A couple of years ago, in the wake of a surge in self-care start-ups and viral diet fads, Forbes declared 2019 as the year of the “wellness revolution”. Three years and a global pandemic later, the revolution appears to have swept our offices. Why? Quite simply, we have woken up to the fact that we could be productive remotely, while also realising the risks of not accommodating employee wellbeing in the office. More →

January 13, 2022

Flexible workspace users express confidence in future

by Neil Franklin • Company news, Flexible working, Property

Members of flexible workspace provider LABS have expressed confidence over their businesses’ prospects heading into 2022, with 92 percent of respondents to a survey, conducted by LABS, expecting their companies to grow over the next three years. More →

January 11, 2022

Great Resignation offers firms a chance to create the Great Retention

by Erin Eatough • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing, Working culture

The last 18 months have seen unprecedented change. Covid-19 has forced people to re-evaluate every aspect of their lives, including their career. As a result, we’ve seen a surge in workers taking charge of their careers and leaving their jobs as part of the so-called Great Resignation. Recent data from the ONS shows that there were nearly 1.2 million job vacancies in the UK this quarter, with 15 of 18 sectors reporting record numbers. More →

January 11, 2022

Colour, comfort, and circularity are the top interiors trends for 2022

by Freddie Steele • Company news

Bisley’s new Creative Director Jeanine Goddard identifies forthcoming interiors trends elating to the three Cs of colour, comfort, and circularity. More →