Search Results for: investment

UK leads the world in talent, but it needs the right culture in which to thrive

by • Comment, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

London at nightWe should never take the UK’s talent base for granted. According to a new report from Deloitte, when it comes to employment levels of people in knowledge based jobs in high skill sectors such as digital media, banking, legal services, software development, telecoms and publishing, London is comfortably the world’s leading city. The study found that London employed 1.5 million people in the 22 sectors surveyed, compared with 1.2 million in New York, 784,000 in Los Angeles, 630,000 in Hong Kong and 425,000 in Boston. The report also predicts that London will enjoy rapid growth in employment levels in these sectors over the next seven years, adding around 100,000 more people and that while a decline in employment is foreseen in financial services, this will be more than offset by strong growth in creative and media businesses.

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UK commercial property lease lengths shorten to ten year low, claims report

by • News, Property

let-signLease lengths for commercial property fell to an historic low in the year to June 2013, while income, lost due to tenants going bust, hit an all time high, according to a new report from IPD. The IPD Lease Events Review measures over 93,000 leases, and 3,500 lease events across the UK. The 2013 edition found that over 80 percent of UK leases signed in the year to June 2013 were under five years in length, the highest level since measurement began and up from 55 percent over the last ten years. The average length of commercial property leases is now 5.8 years, down from 7.8 years in 2003, lower even than the 6.0 years in 2009 at the lowest point of the recession. Landlords have struggled to maintain cash flow and lost over 6 percent of their income due to a record numbers of defaults and insolvencies last year.

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Chinese banks set to take up to 2m sq. ft of commercial property in London

by • Briefing, News, Property

Bank of China HQ, London

Bank of China HQ, London

According to a new report from commercial property consultancy Savills, the global expansion of Chinese financial institutions may see them take up as much as 2 million sq. ft. in the City of London over the next decade. The report claims that Chinese firms see London as one of the key centres for global finance and will take up the opportunities offered by setting London as a base as part of a $1 trillion investment in the West over the next seven years. With four in ten of the World’s largest banks now Chinese, and the sector expanding rapidly since the 2008 downturn, the investment will not only change the structure of the City but also consolidate its position as a global financial centre.

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EU must develop ambitious plans for retrofitting buildings to hit energy targets

by • Environment, News, Property

EU must develop ambitious plans for retrofitting buildings to hit energy targetsWith just six months remaining until they are required to deliver long-term strategies on renovation, EU Member States are being urged to develop ambitious plans for retrofitting their buildings. Under the Energy Efficiency Directive, EU Member States must establish “a long-term strategy for mobilising investment in the renovation of the national stock of residential and commercial buildings, both public and private” from 30 April 2014. The World Green Building Council’s Europe Regional Network (of which the UK Green Building Council is a member) and the Renovate Europe Campaign are calling on EU nations to seize the opportunity by publishing strategies that will help ensure investment in jobs and growth, and help deliver lower energy bills for struggling European citizens. More →

New report identifies the ten key trends set to transform US commercial property

by • News, Property

Navel gazingAccording to a new report from Deloitte, the recent upturn in the US commercial real estate sector is set to continue unabated into next year. Which is great news but according to the property consultancy, the market that emerges from the ashes of the downturn will be very different to the one from which they were formed. Deloitte’s 15th annual Commercial Real Estate Outlook report has identified what it considers the top ten trends that will reshape the emerging market based on a mixture of original research, subjective insights and the firm’s experience with clients. These trends are dominated by structural and financial issues and the only nods towards external socio-economic factors are mentions for the aging workforce within the market (so much for the transformational potential of GenY) and increases in single family households (can’t see the link with commercial property).

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‘Beleaguered’ UK workforce is poorly motivated and unproductive

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

UK workers are lacking motivation and job satisfaction, with over half either feeling neutral or unhappy about going to work most days, only one in four very satisfied with their jobs and 20 per cent who dread going to work. According to a new report, ‘The Forgotten Workforce’ a series of blows to UK workers, including cuts to their working hours, increasingly inconsistent working patterns, pay freezes, and introduction of zero hours – coupled with little or no investment in technology to support employees – has led to a UK workforce lacking morale and disengaged from the business. An efficient business needs an efficient workforce. If this cycle continues, businesses will face increasingly poor productivity and the UK economic recovery will suffer warns the report. More →

Yahoo and HP “seeing success” by taking a stand against flexible working

by • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Property

Yahoo! Sunnyvale headquarters. October 28, 2001 (Y! Photo / Brian McGuiness)

Yahoo has had some successes since curtailing its work from home policies, global corporate real estate leaders were told at this week’s CoreNet Global Summit in Las Vegas. Continuing the industry conversation around balancing an organisation’s need to foster work and collaboration in person (aka: presenteeism) against the needs of employees to work off site, the discussion centred on how employees can “be present” in an increasingly virtual world, and where should leaders in corporate real estate place their focus? Julie Ford-Tempesta, Senior Director, Real Estate & Workplace at Yahoo said despite predictions of “epic policy failure” following the announcement that all employees must work in the office; employee engagement is up, product launches have increased significantly, and teams are thriving. More →

Mixed use scheme’s sustainable power supply gets vice-presidential seal of approval

by • Company news, Environment, Property

Quadrant 3 at Regent Street boasts space technology The Quadrant 3 redevelopment of offices, retail, residential, restaurant and hotel space in the Regent Street Quadrant in London has become the first in the UK to install an efficient and sustainable fuel cell that draws its power from the same technology used to provide energy to space shuttles during flights. It’s so impressed former US Vice President Al Gore he’s headquartered his sustainable investment firm, Generation Investment Management at Quadrant 3. The building’s sustainable design was an important factor in the firm’s decision to move to the scheme with Mr Gore commenting that the developer, The Crown Estate demonstrated a “sophisticated commitment to sustainability”. More →

Employers should engage staff as active reputation builders in social media

by • News, Technology, Workplace

Employers should engage staff as active reputation builders in social media

Employers who discourage staff from spending time at work updating their status on Facebook or following twitter feeds would be better served in harnessing their social media habits to promote the organization according to an academic study. Joonas Rokka, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Neoma Business School, has published new research in the Journal of Marketing Management that shows how social media can accentuate the role of employee and corporate reputation management. According to findings drawn from multiple business sectors and different types of companies, the research claims that companies need to focus more on managing employees as active reputation builders and brand ambassadors in social media instead of conceiving them only as possible reputation risks. More →

Why the serviced office sector needs to put more effort into its customer service

by • Comment, Facilities management, Flexible working

Serviced offices at Cheapside

Serviced offices at Cheapside

It’s National Customer Service Week, a week-long initiative set up to inspire businesses to take a step back, look at their customer relations and promote excellence in customer service amongst their teams. Across every business in every sector, excellent customer service is key to gaining and retaining custom, and this is particularly the case when it comes to the serviced office industry. Average customer retention rates are just eight months in the officing sector, so addressing this through improved customer service can have a huge impact on the bottom line. I believe the serviced office industry can do more. There is a danger that low retention rates cause companies to place a greater emphasis on winning new businesses, with existing clients’ needs coming second place. More →

Record breaking quarter for Central London commercial property markets

by • News, Property

West EndAccording to a new report from property consultancy Colliers International, the West End of London has enjoyed a record £2.8bn of investment in the third quarter of 2013. Office occupancy increased by over 1m sq ft. in a market driven by activity in the tech and media sectors which accounted for 40 percent of the market. Also prominent are several major deals including the purchase of Paddington Central by British Land. Occupation of grade A office space reached more than 1.1m sq ft across central London. The figures mark the highest level of activity since the start of the downturn and 2013 activity is now only 1 percent lower than that for the whole of 2012.

Balfour Beatty appointed main contractor for St James’s Market scheme

by • Company news, News, Property

St James scheme appoints Balfour Beatty as main contractorThe Crown Estate and Oxford Properties have announced the completion of a joint venture agreement to finance the £320 million St James’s Market scheme around London’s Regent Street area. Balfour Beatty has been appointed as the main contractor, with work due to start on site in the next month. The St James’s Market scheme is set to deliver 210,000 ft2 of office and 50,000 ft2 of retail and restaurant space. Bob Clark, Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s Major Projects division said: “As a global infrastructure group we will be bringing our experience in delivering high end commercial properties to the scheme and utilising our investment in 4D information modelling technology and modular construction capability to ensure perfect delivery.”

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