Search Results for: future of work

October 2, 2013

Open source talent could rewrite the meaning of the term workforce

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

The digital revolution has changed the definition of the “workplace”, from a physical building where employees go to perform the tasks for which they get paid – to a more flexible model that allows staff to perform and deliver work from a variety of locations. But the employers’ role, i.e. managing the talent wherever they are based, has remained the same. Not for much longer – suggest analysts from Deloitte in a new paper, The Open Talent Economy, which describes the evolving workforce as a mixture of full-time employees, contractors and freelancers and – increasingly – people with no formal ties to a business at all. What’s more, in the future this “open source talent” will ultimately rewrite what the term “workforce” actually means. More →

September 30, 2013

United States and Europe; closing the gap on flexible working law

by Debbie Kovak • Comment, Flexible working, Legal news

Vermont became the first U.S. state to enact a law requiring employers to consider workers’ requests for a flexible schedule without fear of retaliation. The law, signed by the governor in May, includes a statutory process which requires “good faith” discussions relative to the employee’s needs and the company’s business operations. Despite Vermont’s efforts to make the workplace more accommodating, the United States still lags behind Europe when it comes to flexible work schedules and accommodating family life issues. For example, Vermont is already a decade behind the United Kingdom which passed similar legislation in 2003. The reasons for this are not cut-and-dried either.

September 4, 2013

EU Governments urged to maximise the potential of older workers

by Sara Bean • Legal news, News, Workplace

The rise in the number of older workers in the UK has been well documented, and the reason is clear, they are a much needed resource. Over the next ten years there are 13.5 million job vacancies which need to be filled, but only seven million young people predicted to join the job market in that time. And the UK is not alone; the EU faces significant skills gaps due to demographic change. But according to a new International Longevity Centre –UK (ILC-UK) report, Working Longer: An EU perspective, supported by Prudential, EU countries urgently need to skill up the older workforce, support more older women in work and address the particular health issues associated with employing older workers. More →

September 4, 2013

BIFM publishes renewed guidance on creating an inclusive workplace

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Legal news, News

The recent revelation that there are 2 million more over-50s in jobs than there were 15 years ago means that creating an inclusive workplace is more critical than ever. Access and inclusive design impacts on every aspect of facilities management, from strategic procurement and design of space, to appropriate selection of lighting, finishes and fittings, which is why the British Institute of Facilities Management (BIFM) has now updated its Good Practice Guide (GPG) providing practical guidance for facilities management professionals on the issue. Inclusive Access, Disability and the Equality Act gives a summary of all the relevant legislative and regulatory changes and gives practical tips on achieving reasonable access for all. More →

August 19, 2013

New report urges UK’s large organisations to adopt more flexible working

by Mark Eltringham • Facilities management, Flexible working, Knowledge, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

The UK’s large organisations are missing out on some of the opportunities presented to them by mobile working methodologies according to a new survey from Deloitte and (what else?) telecoms provider EE. The Upwardly Mobile report questioned more than 1,000 employees of firms with more than 1,000 staff including Kier, Royal Mail, Oxfam and BP and found that this situation would change as Generation Y employees assumed the power needed to introduce a more flexible working culture. The report goes on to predict that by 2016, at least one FTSE 350 company will have a Gen Y CEO at the helm.

August 13, 2013

Unilever extends BT partnership to further more sustainable ways of working

by Sara Bean • Company news, Environment, Flexible working, Technology

Unilever, one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies, which includes Wall’s Ice Cream, Dove beauty products, Lipton and Knorr brands has announced a three year extension to its IT outsourcing contract with BT. It’s part of the firm’s Sustainable Living Plan to grow its business, while reducing its environmental footprint and increasing its social impact. BT, which first won its first contract with the Anglo-Dutch company in November 2002, delivers a fully integrated network providing voice, data, video and mobility services to the company’s 173,000 employees across nearly 100 countries. This includes the delivery of collaborative services such as audio-conferencing and video-conferencing, which is helping Unilever introduce more sustainable ways of working. More →

August 7, 2013

Costs of tenders deterring Scottish builders from bidding for public sector work

by Mark Eltringham • Knowledge, News, Property, Public Sector

Construction firms in Scotland are increasingly reluctant to bid for public sector building work because of the spiralling costs of tendering for work, according to a new survey from the Scottish Building Federation. The SBF claims that the cost of tendering for public sector contracts has sky-rocketed in the past five years – and is now equivalent to £94 million each year as firms vie for a share of the £2 billion worth of public sector construction contracts awarded annually in Scotland. The survey claims that the annual cost to construction firms of participating in public procurement is now 4.4 percent of the total value of contracts, with builders reporting an increase of between 20 percent to 50 percent on most projects over the last five years.

August 1, 2013

Predicting the future of the office means looking at what is happening now

by Charles Marks • Comment, Facilities management, Furniture, Workplace, Workplace design

Futurology is notoriously a mug’s game. Especially when it comes to making predictions about technology. Just ask Ken Olson, the founder of DEC who in 1977 pronounced that ‘there is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home’. Or Bill Gates himself who once claimed that Microsoft ‘will never make a 32 bit operating system’. Most recently Steve Ballmer, a billionaire executive said in 2007 ‘there’s no chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share.’ But mone of these retrosepctively viewed dodgy predictions should make us blind to those that we know will certainly come true, especially those based on what we know is happening in the present.

July 26, 2013

Report: How will the future affect us or can we effect the future?

by Sara Bean • Furniture, Knowledge, News

Workplace furniture specialist Kinnarps has published its Trend Report 2013, which is the culmination of detailed research across European markets and thought leaders, conducted in partnership with Stockholm based futurologists Kairos Future. The study distilled a broad overview of emerging and established trends, across Kinnarps’ European markets, to focus on eight key themes that will influence the workplace of the future. According to the report, big changes are already apparent in our society, but these will come to have an altogether greater impact on the way we evaluate our working environment. More →

July 19, 2013

Keep up! new “megatrends” could have dramatic impacts on the world of work

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Workplace

We are all aware to some extent or other of the ways in which work has changed significantly over the past few decades, but are employers sufficiently aware of, or prepared for, the future trends that will shape the way we work and the performance of our organisations and economies into the future? This is the question posed by HR body the CIPD in a major new discussion document Megatrends: The trends shaping work and working lives” as it launches a debate on the “megatrends” that are likely to shape the world of work, the workforce and the culture and organisation of workplaces over the next decade.

July 4, 2013

UK workers mistrust more contented home-based colleagues

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

The debate which ensued following the Yahoo ban on home working earlier this year was as much as about the level of trust felt towards home workers as it was about the importance of collaboration within the workplace. The fact is that for the majority of home workers, day to day life is easier. No commuting, work where you please, no irritating colleagues and the freedom to nip out to the dentist, doctors or parents meeting without having to book a half day off. As a result, while home workers enjoy the best mental health and wellbeing of four groups in a survey of contact centre workers, office workers, home workers and mobile professional workers, their distance from the office-based working population breeds suspicion between them and everybody else. More →

June 10, 2013

Daylight exposure has ‘remarkable’ effect on office workers’ health

by Sara Bean • Architecture, Facilities management, Lighting, News, Workplace, Workplace design

The architectural design of office environments should take into consideration how natural daylight exposure contributes to employee wellness say the authors of a new study which observes a strong relationship between workplace daylight exposure and office workers’ health. Compared to workers in offices without windows, those with windows in the workplace received 173 per cent more white light exposure during work hours and slept an average of 46 minutes more per night. Workers without windows reported poorer scores than their counterparts on quality of life measures related to physical problems and vitality, as well as poorer outcomes on measures of overall sleep quality, sleep efficiency, sleep disturbances and daytime dysfunction. More →