Search Results for: risk

June 25, 2018

Younger employees are main source of workplace security breaches

More than a third of senior executives believe that younger employees are the “main culprits” for workplace security breaches according to a new study into attitudes to security of the workforce, commissioned by Centrify. The study also claims that these same decision makers are doing very little to allay their own fears with over a third of 18-24 year olds able to access any files on their company network and only one in five having to request permission to access specific files. Less than half (43 percent) have access only to the files that are relevant to their work. The study, conducted by Censuswide, sought the views of 1,000 younger workers (18-24 year olds) and 500 decision makers in UK organisations to discover how security, privacy and online behaviour at work impacts the lives of younger employees and the companies that they work for.

June 19, 2018

Improving employment of older people could boost UK GDP by £180bn

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

GDP could be boosted by around £180 billion a year if the UK could match New Zealand’s employment rates for the over-55s. While employment of older workers has improved in the UK in recent years, it still ranks only 21st out of 35 OECD countries according to new analysis from PwC. The consultancy’s Golden Age Index is a weighted average of indicators – including employment, earnings and training – that reflect the labour market impact of workers aged over 55. Iceland tops the rankings followed by New Zealand and Israel. For the OECD as a whole, there is a potential $3.5 trillion economic prize from matching New Zealand’s employment rates for the over-55s.

June 15, 2018

Four key points to consider when creating a digital workplace

by Jonas Andrén et al • Features, Technology

As the use of digital technologies and data to create new value propositions and operating models becomes more commonplace, workplaces across the world are being affected across sectors, from manufacturing to local government. Almost all areas have been touched by the megatrend, whether from own initiatives or to keep up with competitors. However, Arthur D. Little’s Digital Transformation Study reports that almost 80 percent of companies surveyed were only “digitally adaptive”, with digital efforts limited to products and services at best, and no comprehensive approach to adapting their mind-sets. To help traditional organizations adapt sufficiently to compete with digitally minded start-ups, we have identified four key questions to consider when developing digitalization strategies and the creation of a fully digital workplace.

June 13, 2018

US companies are waking up to the benefits of caring for employee mental health

by Colleen O'Day • Comment, Wellbeing

In 2015, the American Psychological Association chose American Express as the inaugural winner of the Organizational Excellence Award, recognizing successful efforts to integrate psychology and prioritize behavioral health and emotional well-being in the workplace. American Express had an employee assistance program (EAP) for workers dealing with depression and other mental health challenges. The EAP was a telephone-consultation system and only about 4 percent of employees utilized it. After the firm added on-site counselors to meet with employees for free—and rebranded the EAP as part of its “Healthy Living” —the usage rate more than doubled.

June 13, 2018

The CIPD says adoption of people analytics in the UK by HR is still too low

by Sara Bean • News, Technology, Workplace

Organisations with a strong people analytics culture are much more likely to report strong business performance claims new global research from the CIPD in association with Workday. However, the survey also highlights that the wide scale adoption of people analytics practice is still low and that more needs to be done to improve skills and confidence in the HR function, particularly in the UK which is lagging behind other markets in both capability and confidence. The research also highlights the importance of access to data. It found that access to people data improves outcomes but only 71 percent of HR professionals have access to this data, and just 42 percent of finance professionals do. For those with access to people data, just 22 percent use it daily in their decision-making and almost a quarter (23 percent) use it in decision-making just once a month or less. The research, People Analytics: driving business performance with people data, surveyed 3,852 business professionals globally – including HR and finance professionals – to understand attitudes towards people analytics and how it is being used in organisations.

June 12, 2018

Lack of emotional intelligence greater impediment to staff engagement than AI

by Sara Bean • AI, News, Technology, Workplace

A new Gallup report reveals the growth of AI is not seen as a disadvantage for employees. The real problem is lack of emotional intelligence in management, with managers failing to move beyond the role of “task manager” and adopt the coaching perspective they need in order to future proof the workforce. The Real Future of Work study interviewed 4,000 working adults in the UK, France, Germany and Spain to understand how employees are being managed and the subsequent impact this might have on the future. Worryingly, one in four UK employees say they only receive performance feedback from their manager once a year or less, a further 20 percent claim it’s only a “few times a year”. Almost one in five (19 percent) UK workers predict technology will increase the risk of losing their job – the highest in the European countries surveyed and more than double those concerned in Spain. When asked how technological changes will influence work in the next three years, seven out of ten workers in the UK felt it will increase their productivity followed by France (66 percent), Spain (51 percent) and Germany (37 percent).

June 12, 2018

BCO to provide definitive guidance on enabling wellbeing in the office

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace design

A major research study “Wellness Matters: Health and Wellbeing in offices and what to do about it” by The British Council for Offices (BCO) is being launched today. The study critiques existing Health and Wellbeing measurement and certification, identifies the most recent and relevant medical evidence justifying a proactive approach to Health and Wellbeing in the built environment, and articulates the business case for investment in this space beyond simply improving productivity. More →

June 12, 2018

Pay rates for senior management reflect longer working hours argues CMI

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, Legal news, News, Workplace

Business Secretary Greg Clark proposed new laws in Parliament yesterday (June 11^th) that new large firms will have to justify their chief executives’ salaries and reveal the gap to their average UK worker. It means that for the first time, UK listed companies with more than 250 UK employees will have to disclose and explain this difference – known as ‘pay ratios’ – every year. However, according to data published today by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) and XpertHR, basic salaries for senior managers have fallen in real terms, with inflation overtaking pay increases for the first time in five years. At a time when government are shining a light on executive pay, and linking it via a ratio to workforce pay, separate CMI research has found managers worked an extra 44 days a year last year over and above their contracted hours – up from 40 days extra in 2015. The same research found 59 percent of managers are ‘always on’, frequently checking their emails outside of work and one in 10 had been forced to take sick leave because of stress.

June 11, 2018

Women and younger people are transforming the UK’s freelance economy

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

The workforce is changing as more people swap the security of a 9-to-5 job for the flexibility of freelancing, with key demographics and industries leading the self-employed sector, according to a new study from Instant Offices. ‘Millennials’ and UK workers facing significant lifestyle changes, such as motherhood, or nearing retirement, and are looking for more flexible ways to work. According to the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE), the self-employed sector now includes approximately 4.8 million people, with freelancers comprising 42 percent of that population and 6 percent of the UK workforce as a whole. The IPSE reports that in 2016, freelancers contributed £119 billion to the national economy. This was up from £109 billion in 2015 and experts are predicting that this number will only continue to grow in the years to come.

June 5, 2018

Employees who work in digitally advanced workplaces are more productive and motivated

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace

Companies that are less technologically advanced are at risk of falling behind the competition and not attracting top talent, claims a new global study from Aruba. By contrast, employees who work in digital workplaces are not only more productive but also more motivated, have higher job satisfaction, and report an overall better sense of well-being. The study, Digital Revolutionaries Unlock the Potential of the Digital Workplace, outlines both the business and human benefits of more digitally-driven workplaces, and how. Almost all respondents (97 percent) thought their workplace would be improved through greater use of technology, while 64 percent said their company will fall behind the competition if new technology isn’t implemented. The same portion (64 percent) believe the traditional office will become obsolete due to advances in technology. However, the survey also warns that companies must be vigilant as more digital-savvy employees are taking greater risks with data and information security.

May 31, 2018

Fewer than half of Australians now work in a traditional job

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Fewer than half of employed Australians now hold a standard, traditional job, according to a new report into the growth of insecure employment published by the Centre for Future Work. The report, The Dimensions of Insecure Work: A Factbook, reviews eleven statistical indicators of the growth in employment insecurity over the last five years: including part-time work, short hours, underemployment, casual jobs, marginal self-employment, and jobs paid minimum wages under modern awards. It defines a standard job as permanent full-time paid work with leave entitlements. According to the authors, all the indicators of job stability have declined since 2012, thanks to a combination of weak labour market conditions, aggressive profit strategies by employers, and passivity by labour regulators.

May 31, 2018

Majority of global workforce now work somewhere other than the office every week

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Workplace

Technological change, globalisation and changes in employee expectations mean that over two-thirds of global employees now work remotely every week, and over half do so for at least half of the week. Though it must be said this is according to a new study from IWG, which is the parent group of workspace companies including Regus and Spaces, the study found that every week 70 percent of employees are working at least one day a week somewhere other than the office. More than half (53 percent) work remotely for half of the week or more, whilst more than one in 10 (11 percent) people work outside of their company’s main office location five times a week. The survey adds also that flexible working and the use of shared workspaces are no longer the preserve of start-ups. The world’s most successful businesses – including varied companies such as Etihad Airways, Diesel, GSK, Mastercard, Microsoft, Oracle and Uber – are already adopting a flexible workspace approach.