Search Results for: remote

January 12, 2018

The complex relationship between productivity, technology and working anywhere

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Technology, Wellbeing

A new report produced by Lancaster University’s Work Foundation and commissioned by Citrix, highlights the complex and often strained relationship between productivity, technology, work and the idea of working anywhere. Despite the march of digital transformation, one in four (24 percent) UK managers questioned for this report believe their organisation is not technologically ‘forward thinking’. With Britain’s productivity slowdown the largest of the G7 economies since the recession, over three in five (63 percent) of knowledge workers polled believe they are no more productive today than they were three years ago, with 17 percent even claiming to be less industrious. The paper – Productivity, technology & working anywhere – shows an undeniably positive link between correctly-implemented technology and workplace productivity. However this progress can soon by marred by poor business planning, a lack of innovation, outdated IT and low uptake of flexible working cultures. The research is supported with survey responses from 1,000 knowledge workers and 500 managerial level employees within medium and large organisations across the UK.

January 10, 2018

Firms suffer an average of 633 cyber attacks each day

by Mark Eltringham • News, Technology

UK businesses were subjected to an average of 231,028 internet-borne cyber attacks each during 2017 according to a report from Internet services provider Beaming. On average, each UK firm with an internet connection experienced 633 attempts a day to breach their corporate firewalls last year, with more than two-thirds (70 per cent) of attacks targeting connected devices such as building control systems and networked security cameras. The volume of cyber attacks increased by 24 per cent in the final quarter of the year, with companies – on average – experiencing 68,212 attacks each between October and December. This extra activity at the end of 2017 ensured the number of cyber attacks last year on UK organisations surpassed 2016 levels, when Beaming recorded 228,659 attacks per business.

January 5, 2018

Poor management driving nearly half of UK workforce to seek a new job

by Mark Eltringham • News, Workplace

Nearly half of the UK workforce (47 percent) will be looking for a new job in 2018, with nearly 1 in 5 people already actively searching for opportunities, according to new research produced by Investors in People (IIP) in their annual Job Exodus Survey 2018. These findings highlight an improvement in satisfaction across the UK job market according to IIP, representing a fall of 12 percent on last year’s figure, where 59 percent of respondents stated the intention to seek a new job. However, despite the reduction in the proportion of those considering a job move, there are still nearly 1 in 4 unhappy workers.

December 22, 2017

Most US employees will work and stay in touch with colleagues during the holiday season

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Technology, Wellbeing

Over Christmas and New Year, 43 percent of US workers say they plan to take a holiday, and of that group, roughly half — or 21 percent of all workers — will completely disconnect from work. Meanwhile, 22 percent of workers will be taking a holiday but checking in with work via email or other means. These findings, from a poll of over 500 people from earlier this month claims that the majority of workers will be connected to their jobs over the holidays — either because they are not taking a vacation at all or because they will check in during their vacation days. US workers are more likely to say they plan to take holiday than they were when Gallup last asked the question, at the beginning of the millennium. The 43 percent of US employees who plan to take a break this holiday season is up from about a third of workers (34 percent) in 2000.

December 19, 2017

We need to have an honest conversation about presenteeism

by Steve Brewer • Comment, Flexible working, Workplace design

We have talked before about the risks of over thinking problems. It is not just something that consultants, designers and the workplace intelligentsia are guilty of – everyone does it. It is why we do not switch off when we are ill and still insist on going to work. We over think the consequences of not being in our workplace. Likewise, many traditional line managers simply cannot get their head around their teams working from home. After all, modern management mantras all talk about creating a great atmosphere in which teams all work together – in the same space at the same time? We all tend to over complicate most things and that is one of the main reasons in the UK we struggle with the concept of working from home. A consequence of this is the rise in presenteeism, which is mainly linked to illness, people ignoring how bad they feel and because of a perceived pressure, still turning up for work.

December 12, 2017

A 300 year old idea explains some of the enduring appeal of the open plan

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Facilities management, Workplace design

In the 18th Century the utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham came up with his idea of the Panopticon, a prison building with a central tower encircled by cells so that each person in the cells knew they could be watched at all times. Whether they were observed or not was actually immaterial. Bentham called it ‘a new mode of obtaining power of mind over mind’ and while he focused on its use as a prison, he was also aware of the idea’s usefulness for schools, asylums and hospitals. Bentham got the original idea following a visit to Belarus to see his brother who was managing sites there and had used the idea of a circular building at the centre of an industrial compound to allow a small number of managers to oversee the activities of a large workforce. This is something of a precursor of the scientific management theories of Frederick Taylor that continue to influence the way we work and manage people.

December 7, 2017

Over half of workers say they are more productive working from home than a chilly office

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

Chilly offices mean that over half (57 percent) of office workers say they’d be more productive working from home when the weather gets colder. Their main reason is that too many workplaces (50 percent) do not handle weather complaints effectively. According to Office Genie’s survey of 1,105 British office workers, only 6 percent of employers encourage staff to work remotely in the colder weather. Bosses are also reluctant to let employees work flexibly instead of freeze, with only 16 percent of companies adopting flexible working patterns in the colder months. Even simple provisions such as supplying additional heaters are not in place in 70 percent of offices – failing to comply to the government’s Health and Safety Executive’s advice. Of the 1,105 office workers we surveyed, 50% said complaints about office temperatures aren’t dealt with effectively by management. And while HSE guidelines state workplaces shouldn’t dip below 16°C but when we asked workers their ideal office temperature, 20°C was the resounding answer.

November 28, 2017

Workers would be prepared to take a pay cut for an agile working life

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace

A new survey claims that the ability to accommodate agile working into their life is important, with those who prefer to work agile claiming they would sacrifice an average of 16 percent of their annual salary for the opportunity.In addition to this, 86 percent stated they would even change jobs to accommodate their preference. The report into recruiting for an agile workforce suggests that despite being a relatively new concept, over half surveyed were familiar with it and over 22 percent of those had worked in an agile environment for over two years. However, recruiters claim less than half of the roles they’re working on offer agile, finding it’s most prevalent in the IT sector. The study reveals both recruiters and candidates believe the key attributes for success in agile are being flexible, organised and hardworking. Interestingly, the majority of recruiters believe these are required in advance and cannot be developed on the job. Meanwhile, social qualities (like being introverted or outgoing) or being easy going are less important.

November 15, 2017

The contribution of personality to the performance of agile workers

by John Eary • Features, Flexible working

The introduction of agile working into organisations has typically focussed on the workstyles of different job roles, but has tended to treat the jobholders within these groups in the same way. The successful introduction of new ways of working clearly relies on the willingness of the people occupying the job roles to embrace new ways of working; yet there has been little investigation of the needs of agile workers with different personality types beyond looking at the needs of extroverts and introverts. These studies have tended to focus on the workplace; for example, the Cushman Wakefield Workplace Programme briefing paper examines how organisations can accommodate the needs of extroverts and introverts working together in the workplace. However, using OCEAN personality profiles, Nigel Oseland found that different personality types have different preferences, which in turn are likely to affect their performance at work.

November 13, 2017

Nine out of ten employees believe flexible working is key to boosting productivity

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News

Data published by HSBC claims that flexible and remote working practices are more likely than financial incentives to motivate staff and ultimately increase workplace productivity. A study of British businesses and employees found that nine in ten employees surveyed (89 percent) consider flexible working to be a key motivator to their productivity levels within the workplace – a view shared equally among male and female employees (87 percent and 90 percent respectively) – and more so than financial incentives (77 percent). Alongside this, 81 percent of workers who can work remotely believe this opportunity helps them to improve their productivity, making a clear link between flexible working cultures and increased business productivity levels.

November 6, 2017

Time to address the missed opportunities and wasted resources of the modern workplace

by Chris Moriarty • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Rapidly changing work and workplaces. Productivity languishing below optimum levels. Staff engagement well below where it should be. Ongoing recruitment and retention challenges. All this has been building over the last couple of years; it would appear that organisations have never had it so tough. There have been plenty of tough times before, of course, but we have been witnessing something of a ‘perfect storm’ in recent months, where a whole range of issues and developments, as well as advancements and opportunities, have come together to push these challenges up the management agenda. But there are things we can do to make the workplace a better experience for everybody.

November 3, 2017

Growing need for a flexible workplace creates fresh challenges for employers

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

Many businesses are misaligned with their people, with nearly half of employees not understanding their company’s strategic objectives, according to new research published by The Ludic Group, which claims that the changing nature of workforces and the growing need for a flexible workplace are creating fresh challenges for communication, collaboration and engagement. The research suggests that the impact of technology is causing digital chaos, with businesses struggling to get the communications balance right. With the number of channels and tools increasing almost half of people (44 percent) want to hear more from employers. Perhaps surprisingly, one in five (20 percent) individuals said that their firm has not used any tools or techniques to communicate with them. This lack of communication results in people being disconnected from the business strategy, with only half of individuals (50 percent) reported fully aligned with their company’s objectives and 44 percent not knowing or understanding what these are. Alongside this, people increasingly want to design their own working experience and expect more flexibility from their employers.