Search Results for: economic

February 29, 2016

Report sets out challenges for rapidly changing Australian workplace ⁰

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

When it comes to innovation in workplace design and management, there are few countries in the world quite so forward thinking as Australia right now. Even so, Australia’s workers, firms and legislators remain under-prepared for the rapidly changing world of work, according to a new report from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), a Government funded research agency. Many of the trends outlined in the report will be familiar to readers of Insight. Over the next twenty years, it claims that around half (44 percent) of all jobs will be subject to computerisation and automation. Over the same period, it suggests that the majority of people will become active in the gig economy, many of them based in shared coworking spaces. The report also suggests that while Generation Z will be faced with the highest degree of change, an ageing population presents its own challenges.

February 25, 2016

Over half of UK employers will implement flexible working by next year ⁰

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

The UK is on the verge of a flexible working ‘tipping point’ with more than half of employers offering staff more choice of where to work. Working anywhere: A winning formula for good work? produced by Lancaster University’s Work Foundation, and commissioned by Citrix, reveals that 2017 will be the time when over half of organisations in the UK are likely to have adopted flexible working. It also predicts that over 70 percent of organisations will have followed suit by 2020. The Work Foundation, which hosted interviews with academics, business leaders and the public sector to glean insights around the theme of flexible working, supported by research with 500 managerial level employees within medium to large businesses, warns that there is still much to be done to address attitudes towards flexible working, from ensuring people don’t end up working longer hours to dealing with feelings of ‘disconnect’.

February 23, 2016

Belief in a corporate wellness narrative is more important than action ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Legal news, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

The complexities of wellness at work are laid bare in a new report from the US based pressure group Global Wellness Institute. The most eye-catching conclusion from The Future of Wellness at Work study is that it’s not actual wellness programmes that do most to boost worker health and productivity, but whether employees identify that company as ‘caring’. The report claims that ‘unwellness’ now costs the US around $2.2 trillion each year, equivalent to 12 percent of GDP. The report is published alongside a white paper which lays out the findings from a survey of American employees. Unlocking the Power of Company Caring gauges how employees feel about their work culture and wellness programmes. The main finding of the two reports is that to understand what has the most powerful impact on employee wellness ‘you must look well beyond the wellness programme’ itself. Instead, the pivotal factor is whether an employee identifies their company as caring about their health and wellness.

February 23, 2016

High demand in Dubai office market continues to sustain rents ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Property

Office rents in Dubai’s main markets have remained strong as a result of continued high demand from both international and domestic occupiers, reports Cluttons, but despite a sustained demand, occupiers remain cost conscious and budget driven in the face of a softening global economic backdrop. Landlords, by contrast appear to be slow to react to a cooling market, with many reluctant to move on asking prices and others demonstrating a lack of flexibility for lease terms at renewal. The emerging gulf between market reality and landlords’ expectations is a concern, says Faisal Durrani, Cluttons’ head of research, “particularly for a market that is now starting to show signs of maturity.” The analysis of the performance of 22 submarkets across the city in the first quarter of the year reveals that 13 submarkets witnessed no change in starting rents in 2015, seven experienced notable increases and the remaining two lower limit rents decreased over the 12 months of 2015.

February 19, 2016

RIBA consults on the future use of its landmark Art Deco HQ building ⁰

by Sara Bean • Architecture, News, Workplace design

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has launched an open consultation on the future use of its landmark Art Deco HQ building in central London. The first part of the consultation strategy is an online survey, to be followed by focus group sessions to gather more detail. RIBA Client Advisor, Sarah Williams said: “This survey is the start of a detailed process which will include defining the role that 66 Portland Place plays in the RIBA’s long term vision and values. Our detailed consultation will gather views and ideas from our members, staff and other users of the building including visitors, neighbours, meeting room clients, cultural partners, sponsors and patrons.I encourage everyone to participate to help us shape the use of this important building for the next 80 years.” Click here to participate in the survey and learn more about the consultation for 66 Portland Place.

February 10, 2016

Moderate growth for global commercial real estate predicted in 2016 ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Property

US and European office markets will tighten further in 2016 as demand for space outpaces a limited number of new developments, according to CBRE Group’s 2016 Global Real Estate Market Outlook. However, the extent of tightening in individual cities will depend strongly on local job growth in major office-using industries. Global prime rents across the three major property types—office, industrial and retail—are expected to grow 2.2 percent on an annual basis, according to estimates from CBRE’s Global Rent Index. The Americas, thanks to the strength of the US property sector, is expected to see commercial real estate rents rise 3.4 percent in 2016, as consumption growth and rising employment, combined with comparatively limited new supply levels, simulates demand. Rents in EMEA are forecast to rise by 3.2 percent thanks to a combination of increased consumer spending, pent-up demand for commercial space and anticipated further monetary easing by the European Central Bank.

February 5, 2016

Embracing the inevitable rise of the robots in the workplace ⁰

by Gary Chandler • Comment, Flexible working, Technology, Workplace design

We often have reason these days to speculate on the truth of an idea known as Amara’s Law. First coined by the researcher Roy Amara it states that “we tend to overestimate the effect of a technology in the short run and underestimate the effect in the long run”. But defining what we mean by short and long term can be very difficult when technology is changing so quickly. Nothing better illustrates this than the issue of how automation will transform society and workplaces. For the past few years, the effects have mainly been the subject of academic and scientific research alongside some lurid headlines in the mainstream media. So, a fairly typical 2013 paper from researchers at Oxford University assessed the risk faced by over 700 professions and discovered that nearly half of all jobs in the US could be categorised as at high risk of automation. Less academic studies such as a report published last year by Deloitte draw similar conclusions.

February 2, 2016

Record investment in UK commercial property in 2015, but trouble ahead ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Property

A near record £67.5 billion was invested in UK commercial property in 2015, making it the second strongest year on record and 46 per cent above the 10-year average, according to research from commercial property analysts CoStar Group. Momentum slowed sharply in the second half of the year, with investment down 19 per cent from the previous year. According to CoStar, this reflects the fact that investment activity has been especially strong over the previous 18 months and good opportunities are harder to find, but also that global economic and political uncertainty are impacting investment decisions. Nevertheless, 2015 was a strong year for the UK’s Big Six regional cities. Office investment increased 16 per cent to £3.2 billion, which is the highest level since the recession and more than double the eight-year average. Foreign investors seeking standing assets and development opportunities underpinned much of this investment.

February 1, 2016

M25 office market returns to pre-recessionary levels as demand increases ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Property

The ‘M25’ office market returned to pre-recessionary levels in 2015 as take-up reached 4.25 million sq ft, which is the highest recorded figure since 2007. Given the higher levels of demand in the regional commercial property market, take-up is predicted to reach 4.5 million sq ft for 2016. The research by Savills claims that the ‘Western Sector’ was the strongest performer in the market within the M25 during 2015, where 1.91 million sq ft was transacted, which accounted for 44 percent of total take-up. Improving economic conditions combined with a reduction in grade B and C office space, due to permitted development rights, meant that 62 percent of space transacted was for grade A space. Total supply currently stands at 18.34 million sq ft, which is a 7 percent decrease from 2014, not helped by the fact that approximately one million sq ft of office space has been converted to residential uses since 2014.

January 28, 2016

UK’s CEOs rate cyber security as greatest challenge for their company ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Technology

Almost three-quarters (74 percent) of chief executive officers in the UK rate cyber security as the third biggest risk to their company; over regulation and geopolitical uncertainty. Yet commenting on the firm’s 19th Annual Global CEO Survey, released at the World Economic Forum in Davos, PwC cyber security partner Richard Horne has warned that UK companies and institutions remain vulnerable to cyber-attacks, and more needed to be done by boards to protect company data and systems. He said there appeared to be a disconnect between concerns at the top of business and the speed and consistency with which these security measures can be implemented within organisations. This vulnerability to attacks becomes more stark with the speed of technological change and the way organisations’ new digital initiatives present greater potential for attackers, arming them with both new tools and a wider range of targets.

January 22, 2016

Digital media is having ‘largely positive’ effects on professional lives ⁰

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

The digitization of content and data, along with new digital communication technologies, has fundamentally changed the way work gets done, and affected the nature of the employment relationship. While it has a largely positive impact on peoples’ lives, including individuals’ ability to find work, learn and develop skills, and balance work and life, it can, in some cases, lower worker productivity and increase inequality. These are among the key findings from Shaping the Future Implications of Digital Media for Society – a report by the World Economic Forum conducted in collaboration with Willis Towers Watson and presented at the WEF 2016 annual meeting in Davos. In the study, which included a survey of more than 5,000 digital users from five of the world’s most important markets; Brazil, China, Germany, South Africa and the US, over half (56 percent) reported digital media has transformed the way they work, and two-thirds said digital media has improved their ability to do work.

January 20, 2016

Number of smart cities worldwide jumps 40 percent in past two years ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Cities, Facilities management, News, Property, Technology

According to a new report from Navigant Research, the total number of identified smart city projects worldwide has grown from 170 in the third quarter of 2013 to 235 today. The report examines the current state of global smart city development, covering the related aspects of the smart energy, smart water, smart transportation, smart buildings, and smart governments sectors, segmented by region. The authors of the report claim that, as the benefits of smart cities become clearer, the number of projects and partnerships supporting the cause is rapidly increasing. In the last few years, city leaders, central government ministries, and technology and service suppliers have announced a range of new smart city initiatives, incentives, and product and service offerings, while more cities are moving from one specific technology interest to a broader range of solutions that have multiple applications.