Search Results for: colleagues

Menopause gift bags and monitoring toilet breaks: why are employers getting menopause support so wrong?

Menopause gift bags and monitoring toilet breaks: why are employers getting menopause support so wrong?

What should employers be doing to provide adequate menopause support and why are so many getting it wrong, asks Natasha LetchfordA recent story involving Avanti West Coast, who provided a gift bag to staff experiencing menopause, is the latest in a series of misjudgements of menopause support by employers. The bag contained items such as a fan “for the hot sweats”, a jelly baby “in case you feel like biting someone’s head off” and a paper clip “to help you keep it all together”. The ASLEF Union suggested that rather than “insulting gimmicks” Avanti should focus their efforts on developing workplace policies and procedures that “value and support perimenopausal and menopausal women”. So what should employers be doing to provide adequate support and why are so many getting it wrong? More →

A third of people say they have experienced a toxic manager

A third of people say they have experienced a toxic manager

A third of employees (33 percent) in the UK have experienced a toxic manager at work in the past five years, and over four in ten (41 percent) have left a job due to their dissatisfactionA third of employees (33 percent) in the UK have experienced a toxic manager at work in the past five years, and over four in ten (41 percent) have left a job due to their dissatisfaction with management. The findings are from Corndel’s Workplace Training Report 2024, based on research conducted with 250 HR decision makers at large organisations and 1,000 UK employees. Toxic manager traits defined by the poll  including micromanagement, inflexibility, intimidation, gaslighting colleagues and a deflecting accountability.  More →

If you want to get ahead, stay humble

If you want to get ahead, stay humble

Amid a year of elections and leadership battles and following the airing of the 18th series of BBC’s The Apprentice, you may be forgiven for thinking that arrogance or self-promotion is a pathway to success in business. But new research shows that the opposite is actually true. A study, led by academics at the University of Sussex Business School, has challenged the conventional narrative of leadership and advises those seeking to reach the top to stay humble. More →

Reinforcing concrete with textiles instead of steel could be game changer for built environment

Reinforcing concrete with textiles instead of steel could be game changer for built environment

Researchers from Chalmers University of Technology, in Sweden, have now developed a method that makes it easier to scale up and facilitate the construction of more environmentally friendly built environmentBy reinforcing concrete with textiles instead of steel, it is possible to use less material and create slender, lightweight structures with a significantly lower environmental impact. The technology to utilise carbon fibre textiles already exists, but it has been challenging to produce a basis for reliable calculations for complex and vaulted structures. Researchers from Chalmers University of Technology, in Sweden, have now developed a method that makes it easier to scale up and facilitate the construction of more environmentally friendly bridges, tunnels and buildings. They say the technology has the potential to transform the built environment. More →

Remote work leads to more people suffering from ‘phone anxiety’

Remote work leads to more people suffering from ‘phone anxiety’

A new poll suggests that four in 10 employees have experienced an increase in feelings of 'phone anxiety' as a result of remote workA new poll conducted by telephone answering provider, Face For Business, suggests that four in 10 employees have experienced an increase in feelings of ‘phone anxiety’ as a result of remote work. The survey also claims that those aged 18-34 bear the brunt of this heightened anxiety. The report claims that the driver of this surge in anxiety is alack of immediate support available to remote workers, which 12 percent of respondents cited as their primary concern when fielding calls from home. The authors suggest that the absence of colleagues just a desk away exacerbates feelings of isolation and uncertainty, leaving employees feeling adrift in the sea of incoming calls. More →

People are simply ignoring bans on AI use at work

People are simply ignoring bans on AI use at work

Employees say they are ignoring AI bans because it makes them more productive and better at their jobsOlder readers may remember a phenomenon called Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) which marked the point at which employers gave up worrying about people using their own phones at work and instead made it look like it was their idea anyway. A similar arc seems to be happening with AI, as people simply ignore their employers’ attempts to manage its use. A new poll from comms firm Definition suggests that over half of employed UK adults (54 percent) use tools like ChatGPT at work, despite 25 percent of businesses banning or significantly limiting its use. We have no other information on the methodology beyond that it was of 1,000 people. More →

Quarter of working mothers think their career stalled because of parental leave

Quarter of working mothers think their career stalled because of parental leave

over a quarter (27 percent) of working mothers believe that their career progression has slowed as a result of taking parental leave – in comparison to 21 percent of working fathersA new poll from Totaljobs in partnership with the Fawcett Society, suggests that over a quarter (27 percent) of working mothers believe that their career progression has slowed as a result of taking parental leave – in comparison to 21 percent of working fathers. Around 18 percent went as far as to say they had been left out of more exciting work projects. The survey of over 3,000 working parents with at least one child up under the age of four found that a third of working mothers (34 percent) lost confidence in their skills and abilities after returning to work from parental leave. Almost half (48 percent) said this was because the balancing act of juggling work and parenting commitments undermined their confidence. More →

‘Fun’, great management and culture are what make a firm a great place to work

‘Fun’, great management and culture are what make a firm a great place to work

Great Place To Work has announced its annual UK’s Best Workplaces list, based on feedback from around 250,000 peopleGreat Place To Work has announced its annual UK’s Best Workplaces list, based on feedback from around 250,000 people. Taking into account culture audits and employees’ perspectives the organisers say they have identified what makes these employers the best. More →

Digital communication tools are a constant source of workplace strife

Digital communication tools are a constant source of workplace strife

A new poll of 4,000 knowledge workers in the UK, US, Germany and Australia suggests that digital communication tools are a constant source of strife in the workplaceA new poll of 4,000 knowledge workers in the UK, US, Germany and Australia suggests that digital communication tools are a constant source of strife in the workplace, especially between different generations of people. The poll from the Adapatavist Group, Mind the generational gap, was co-authored by Dr. Eliza Filby, a Historian of Generational Evolution. With half of companies now employing three or more generations, the report claims to reveal a pressing need for clear digital communication guidelines to support effective collaboration and workplace efficiency among diverse age groups. While highlighting areas of intergenerational friction, it also revealed large areas of mutual understanding and cooperation. More →

Half of neurodiverse people missing work due to lack of workplace support

Half of neurodiverse people missing work due to lack of workplace support

City & Guilds’ annual Neurodiversity Index shines a light on the challenges faced by neurodiverse people in the workplaceCity & Guilds’ annual Neurodiversity Index, published today following a government-backed review of autism employment, and ahead of Neurodiversity Week, shines a light on the challenges faced by neurodiverse people in the workplace, with half of those surveyed having been off work last year due to their condition. The second edition of the annual Neurodiversity Index, published by City & Guilds Foundation in partnership with Do-IT solutions, surveys over 600 individuals and organisations. The findings show that 36 percent of neurodivergent employees do not  receive any guidance or support in their workplace setting, while 20 percent are still waiting for adjustments to be put in place. More →

Industry: the art of working from anywhere

Industry: the art of working from anywhere

Eugenia Anastassiou is stopped in her tracks by a painting of a quintessential  21st century phenomenon – working from anywhere.Walking into Bristol-based artist Gail Reid’s studio, I literally stopped in my tracks! There it was a painting of everything I had been researching and writing about with workplace strategist Chris Kane for our book “Where Is My Office?” both pre-and post-pandemic. Gail, was a Semi-Finalist in this year’s Sky Art’s Portrait Artist Of The Year –  alas she didn’t make the final – although she impressed everyone with her talent and charisma. She also impressed me in managing to convey via the very traditional medium of an oil painting, a quintessential  21st century phenomenon – working from anywhere. More →

If you want to increase productivity, let an algorithm decide the incentives

If you want to increase productivity, let an algorithm decide the incentives

Targeting workers with different incentive schemes based on their individual characteristics leads to greater performance and increased productivity and is much more effective than a one size fits all approachTargeting workers with different incentive schemes based on their individual characteristics leads to greater performance and increased productivity and is much more effective than a one size fits all approach, according to new research from Frankfurt School of Finance & Management and published in the Management Science Journal. To study the impact of targeted incentive schemes on performance, Timo Vogelsang, Professor of Accounting at Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, alongside colleagues from University of Cologne, ran two large-scale experiments with more than 12,000 participants on Amazon MTurk. More →