Search Results for: opportunities

July 29, 2016

The gig economy must be harnessed to address skill shortages and uncertainty ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Workplace

The legal status of people working in the gig economy must be clarified so that businesses and individuals can thrive, according to a new report from the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC). Gig economy – The Uberisation of Work (registration needed) explores the impact of digital work platforms such as Upwork, Task Rabbit and Freelancer.com, which act as ‘marketplaces matching freelancers with a wide range of project-based work’. The report suggests that almost a third of all UK employers will use these kinds of digital work platforms by 2021. The REC has called on policy-makers to ensure that the gig economy is fair to self-employed workers and businesses, and to secure benefits for the UK wider economy. The report claims that this will become increasingly important as the gig economy becomes more mainstream, adding £45 billion to the UK economy and creating work for 766,000 people.

July 29, 2016

Still inequalities, despite more over 50s in work than ever before ⁰

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

Employers that focus only on keeping a generation of younger workers happy are ignoring the fact that an increasing proportion of the UK working population is getting older. The latest Government figures reveal that there are now more people aged 50 to 74 in work than ever before. According to Labour Force Survey statistics there are now 9.4 million people in work aged 50 to 74, with 3.7 million more in this age bracket than there were 20 years ago. The figures also show the unemployment rate for people aged over 50 has dropped to 3.3 percent, the lowest level since 2009, and there are over 1.1 million people working beyond age 65. Legislation to end the retirement age and allow more flexible contracts, have, argues the Government contributed to a more positive attitude towards older workers. However, according to the Centre for Ageing Better, many over 50s are still being forced out of work or offered fewer working hours than they’d requested.

July 27, 2016

A third of people have experienced mental health issues while working ⁰

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

According to new research from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the number of people saying that they have experienced mental health issues while in employment has climbed from a quarter to a third over the last five years. Despite this, the majority of employees still don’t feel that people experiencing mental health issues are supported well enough at work. In response, the CIPD is calling on organisations to take a more preventative approach to employees’ mental wellbeing, encouraging a culture of openness in their workplace, whilst at the same time, training line managers to provide and signpost support for employees, in order to create healthier, more engaged and more productive workplaces. The new research from the CIPD claims that in 2016, almost a third (31 percent) of the over 2,000 employees surveyed said they have experienced a mental health problem at some point during their working life, compared with a quarter (26 percent) in 2011.

July 22, 2016

Employees in high performing organisations four times more engaged ⁰

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

Whether or not you raise an eyebrow every time you hear about the need for employee engagement, there is a growing body of research which links engagement to performance. A new report claims that 80 percent of UK employees who say they work for high performing organisations are engaged compared to only 20 percent of those working for low performing organisations. And 80 percent of employees who think their organisation is customer-centric are engaged. This is five times more than employees who don’t think their organisation is customer-centric (17 percent). The highest performing employees are twice as engaged as the lowest, the survey by ORC International suggests. The survey found that overall employee engagement in the UK remained steady at 58 percent his year but the trends show that personal and organisational performance make a difference to engagement.

July 21, 2016

Young people entering the workforce are not prepared for office politics ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, Wellbeing, Workplace

Office politics is the one thing many young people are least prepared for when starting their first job, according to a new study by the Co-op. The study comes as many them are about to enter the workforce for the first time. With more young people opting for the world of work in the form of apprenticeships and on the job training rather than higher education, the members of ‘Generation Y’ often find they are unprepared for these softer skills needed to get on in the office according to the poll of 1,100 16-25 year olds. Over half of young people (54 percent) said that they were not prepared or informed about office politics. The study is part of the Co-op’s campaign to champion young people in the workplace by taking a closer look at what motivates 16-25 year olds. The research suggests that young people could find it harder to express opinion and ideas in the workplace, which in turn could lead them to feel isolated and unsupported.

July 19, 2016

Millennials will stay engaged in the workplace if they feel they are valued ⁰

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

The “ability to make an impact on the business” matters notably more to millennial employees than their salary and other benefits. According to a new survey from recruitment firm Korn Ferry, income comes in last on their list. The Second Annual Korn Ferry Futurestep Millennial Survey highlights the younger generation’s workplace preferences, including a need for feedback and a willingness to work long hours. In the survey, which asks what will make a millennial choose one job over another, 38 percent said “visibility and buy-in to the mission and vision of the organisation.” The survey also found that consistent feedback is key to managing millennials, with three quarters of respondents saying this generation needs more feedback than other generations. However, only 13 percent of respondents said they offered more feedback sessions to this group, and less than half offered mentorship opportunities.

July 12, 2016

Major European telecoms firms to drive roll out of 5G across continent ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Cities, Legal news, News, Technology

A coalition of twenty major European telecommunications firms has come together to drive the rapid creation of a continent wide 5G network and warn national Governments and the EU of the dangers of over-regulation. The seven page document entitled the 5G Manifesto for timely deployment of 5G in Europe, is backed by firms such as Vodafone, Telenor, Orange, Nokia, BT, Ericsson, Telefonica, Deutsche Telekom, and Hutchison. Its core aim is to showcase the technology on a large scale by 2018 and launch a commercial network capability in at least one city in every EU nation by 2020. The document outlines the features and benefits of the technology but also sets out the potential risks posed by over-regulation, including the possible threat to net neutrality, the principle that Internet service providers should enable access to all content and applications regardless of the source, and without favouring or blocking particular products or websites

July 11, 2016

Many firms lag behind their customers in use of latest tech innovations ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Technology

Just one in three IT decision makers believe advances such as cloud-based solutions, big data and wearable tech will be available in their industry within the next 12 months, according to a new study from Capita. Although the report – Trends vs Technologies – has yet to be published, the firm has released some of its findings. Based on a survey of IT professionals in the insurance, finance, legal services and manufacturing sectors, the study analyses nine key organisational trends and the implementation of related technology. The report claims that while many decision makers describe a tech trend as being relevant to their industry, several barriers to implementation mean solutions are not yet ready and in many cases might be lagging behind consumer take-up of the new technology. The trends named in the report are Big Data, Digital Workplace, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Wearable Tech, Robotics, Cloud Based Solutions, 3D Printers and Virtual Reality.

July 1, 2016

Increase in workplace technology spend will help make offices ‘more human’ ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace design

Spending on workplace technology has doubled in the past five years as artificial intelligence is used to redefine how we connect in the workplace. That is the central claim of a new report from design firm Unispace based on interviews with CEOs and Heads of Real Estate at some 100 blue chip firms worldwide including KPMG, Cisco, Adidas, GE, Accenture, Boston Consulting Group, Regus, Deloitte, UBS, Chevron, CitiGroup, and Ashurst, Respondents were asked to assess how they expect to use office space in 2020. According to the report, respondents indicated that they will continue increasing technology spend, irrevocably changing the traditional office space as we know it. Over the last five years, the average company spent 10 percent of its workplace budgets on technology with 30 percent going on services, partitioning and furniture. The trend has now reversed with technology spend outstripping other spend as companies strive to improve efficiency, collaboration, creativity, engagement and recruitment.

June 29, 2016

Brexit; a round-up of latest thoughts from the property and workplace sectors ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Cities, News, Property

Whatever your opinions on Brexit, there’s no doubt that it has created a range of frequently turbulent knock on effects in the workplace, commercial property, design and architecture sectors. We’ve shared some of the latest views on the next page to go with the initial reactions delivered by a still shell-shocked world that we published last Friday. One thing seems pretty clear is that for most firms, including those in the commercial property sector, there is no rush to judgement and most are prepared to continue business as usual while so much remains undecided. For the same reasons, the FT is reporting that some developers are putting projects on ice until they have more certainty and a report from researchers Green Street suggests that the eventual decision to leave the EU will result in a substantial fall in real estate values. Meanwhile, CIBSE is the latest organisation to calm fears about the impact of the UK leaving the EU.

June 28, 2016

Countries aware of but not harnessing full potential of older workers ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, Knowledge, News, Workplace

The idea of a fixed retirement age looks increasingly distant in countries around the world and perhaps none more so than the US. According to a study from the Pew Research Center, based on data from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, more US over 65s are working than at any time covered in the analysis, and they are working longer hours. As of May, nearly a fifth (18.8 percent) of over 65s worked full or part time, up from 12.8 percent in 2000. Intriguingly, the study also shows that this represents a significant greying of the workplace as in the overall population, 59.9 percent of Americans are currently in jobs, down from 64.4 percent in 2000. The same pattern is evident even in workers significantly older than 65. Even the over 75s are working at higher rates than they did before the 2008 recession, the only age groups about which that can be said, according to Pew, emphasising the fact that the workplace is getting older rather than younger as is commonly assumed.

June 24, 2016

Property and workplace experts have their say on the Brexit outcome ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Comment, Facilities management, Property, Workplace, Workplace design

Well, the results are in and the UK’s electorate has voted by a narrow margin for the country to leave the EU. There are likely to be other developments but whatever you make of the UK’s decision to vote to leave the EU – and I think it’s fair to say most independent people think it’s inexplicable – there’s no doubt that it will have a profound impact on the UK’s economy, relationship with the world, culture, working conditions and markets. What it will mean in practice won’t be apparent for months or years, of course, but that hasn’t stopped experts who work in the property, workplace, design, legal, HR and architecture sectors having their say on its potential implications. We’ll look at these specific issues in more detail going forward but for now, here’s a round-up of those we have so far, which we’ll keep updated throughout the day as the dust settles on what will prove to be a momentous decision for the UK, Europe and rest of the world.