October 10, 2019
Work-life balance charity Working Families has announced its annual list of the top family-friendly employers in the UK. Employers large and small from across the public, private, and third sectors compete annually to gain a coveted place on the charity’s list of Top Employers for Working Families. The announcement coincides with Working Families’ National Work Life Week campaign. More →
October 9, 2019
Organisations face a problem that could impact their very survival. Parents want to be supported by their employers during the transition to becoming working parents, but organisations are currently ill-equipped to deal with parental leave, or to keep people engaged throughout it. In a world of relentless change, companies failing to react to and meet the expectations of this part of their workforce risk disaster. More →
October 7, 2019
An email pops up on your screen. It’s a client sharing a project update. A Slack message appears. It’s your boss asking a question. A text alert beeps. A colleague wants to know if you will be attending a meeting. Sound familiar? People are increasingly besieged at work by workplace interruptions through email, messaging apps, social media and in-person encounters. More →
October 2, 2019
London’s 2 Television Centre was celebrated as ‘Best of the Best’ at the British Council for Offices’ (BCO) National Awards in the capital last night, also taking home the ‘Commercial Workplace’ award. The office was joined by six other award winners recognised as leading examples of excellence in office space. More →
October 2, 2019
We are working hard, but not smart. Research released by the TUC in April shows that UK workers are putting in the longest hours in the EU, but this isn’t translating into improved productivity. In fact, the research shows employees in Denmark put in over four hours less than UK workers – whilst productivity in Denmark is 23.5 percent higher than the UK. More →
October 1, 2019
Meeting rooms are a lot like buses. You wait ages for one and then three become available all at once. Sometimes none turn up at all. Research by Kinnarps, which we do as part our Next Office consultancy, has found something that might not come as a great surprise. Employees are deeply frustrated with the lack of meeting room availability, often even in agile workplaces, especially locked-down project rooms. More →
September 30, 2019
As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to infiltrate modern society, the benefits and pitfalls the technology receive almost peerless attention. The emergence of AI is of particular importance to how organisations might recruit, with clear signs that they are becoming more interested in the benefits it brings to their businesses.
September 27, 2019
Organisations that actively leverage the abilities and experience of their older workers will be best positioned for the future of work, according to Mercer’s report Next Stage: Are You Age-Ready? (registration). The importance of being “age-ready” is underscored for both businesses and economies by the impact of the twin forces of a rapidly ageing labour force coupled with an uncertain global economic growth rate, the report argues. More →
September 25, 2019
Global life expectancy is growing at its fastest rate since the 1960s. Today, a 20-year-old has a 50 per cent chance of living to 100. Even if you are 60, you have an evens chance of reaching 90. A long life can be a gift, but of course it also has implications for how we live our lives and in particular how we plan to work and fund those extra years. Clearly there is a role for employers in creating work environments and flexible working cultures that recognise and maximise the potential of the 100-year life. More →
September 25, 2019
As well as using contingent staff to help them become more agile, research from recruitment consultancy Robert Half UK claims that over three quarters (76 percent) of employers are turning to the temporary market to aid their digital transformation efforts. More →
September 11, 2019
Fewer than a third (32 percent) of UK workers are allowed to work remotely whenever they want, according to research from Capita which explores employee attitudes to remote/flexible working and the challenge employers face meeting their expectations of IT to do so. ‘The State of IT – The Employee Verdict’ report (registration) claims that almost three quarters of workers (71 percent) would like the option to work remotely, citing a better work-life balance (60 percent), reducing their transport costs (47 percent), and carbon footprint (35 percent) as their biggest drivers for doing so. More →
October 11, 2019
How the Dutch pioneered agile working, wellbeing and smart buildings
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Workplace design