September 8, 2020

Frontline and front of mind; communicating with employees away from HQ

by Julien Lesaicherre • Comment, Flexible working, Technology

It has been a rough year for business. Many organisations have had to evolve their operating models overnight, go to great lengths to keep their people safe and build entirely new ways of working to ensure they can stay afloat. A lot have had to fast forward five years into the future in a few months – and that’s no mean feat. (more…)

September 8, 2020

Artificial Intelligence is critical to organisations, but many unprepared

by Jayne Smith • News, Technology

A new report from information technology company Wipro Limited claims that enterprises of the future will be built on a foundation of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Analytics, Machine Learning, Deep Learning and Automation. According to the ‘State of Intelligent Enterprises’ report, these technologies are central to solving business problems and driving innovation. Most businesses consider AI to be critical to improve operational efficiency, reduce employee time on manual tasks, and enhance the employee and customer experience. (more…)

September 3, 2020

No, flexible working won`t mean the death of the office and the city

by Jane Parry • Features, Flexible working

When coronavirus lockdowns were introduced, the shift to flexible working and remote work was sudden and sweeping. Now the British government is hoping the return to the office will be just as swift – to help the economy “get back to normal”. But pushing everyone back to the office full time fails to recognise the many benefits that working from home has brought. It also fails to capitalise on this moment of change. (more…)

September 3, 2020

Long hours main reason workers take their employer to tribunal

by Jayne Smith • Legal news, News, Workplace

UK workers are most likely to log a claim against their employer for making them work excessively long hours, claims new data by health and safety training provider DeltaNet International. The data, which looks at the number of employment tribunal cases over the last five years, suggests there have been 160,299 jurisdictions (complaints) in relation to employers breaking the Working Time Directive, which outlines the maximum weekly working hours. Under the directive, a UK employee cannot work more than 48 hours a week on average – normally averaged over 17 weeks – unless there is an exception. (more…)

September 2, 2020

Remote work and the coming race to the bottom

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Wellbeing, Working lives

One of the most significant consequences of the 2008 economic crash was a remarkable shift in the nature of employment. The recession led to a surge in the number of people categorised as self-employed. The numbers have been increasing ever since, albeit at a more stable rate. By the end of 2019, the number of self-employed people in the UK exceeded five million people for the first time. That’s fifteen percent of the workforce. (more…)

September 2, 2020

New strategy tackles the post-COVID climate emergency

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News

Supported by its Green Building Councils and their members, the WorldGBC (World Green Building Council) network has launched Sustainable Buildings for Everyone, Everywhere — a new strategy to accelerate and mainstream the transformation of built environments around the world. Based on climate science and the Global Goals of Sustainable Development (SDGs), the strategy tackles global warming, health and wellbeing and resource impacts to deliver quality infrastructure — a critical need for our planet, communities and economies in the context of the COVID pandemic.
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September 2, 2020

Video call fatigue amounts to millions of unproductive businesses hours

by Jayne Smith • News, Technology, Wellbeing

A recent study, which was commissioned by Bayfields Opticians & Audiologists and questioned 2000 people, claims people spent an average of three hours and 12 minutes each week on video calls – an increase of 120 percent compared to before lockdown. Connected Brits admit to spending hours getting ready for work-related video calls during lockdown and struggling to get back into the zone once the call is over, leading to millions of hours of ‘wasted’ work time since lockdown.

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August 28, 2020

A new social contract can improve the everyday experience of work

by Mark Spratt • Comment, Workplace

It’s not happening quickly enough for some and too slowly for others, but most companies are in the midst of managing a return to work and grappling with a very different post COVID-19 world and what it means for employees. HR professionals are paying close attention to how well employees are faring and are looking to build new forms of employee care into company cultures and values. But maybe there is something more they can do to foster employee trust and safety? (more…)

August 26, 2020

There is more to lighting a space than meets the eye

by Carolina Florian • Environment, Features, Wellbeing, Workplace design

The best lighting design is the one you don’t notice. Coco Chanel once said: “dress shabbily and they remember the dress; dress impeccably and they remember the woman.” It’s the same with lighting. If you notice the light sources, and you can feel annoyed by them, then the design just doesn’t work. Essentially, there’s more to lighting than first meets the eye. (more…)

August 25, 2020

Fifth of firms don’t offer support to employees with drug and alcohol issues

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Around one in five (21 percent) employers are failing to offer proactive support to workers to help prevent and provide support on issues of drugs and alcohol misuse, according to newly published research from the CIPD, the professional body for HR and people development. (more…)

August 20, 2020

Commuting, not Covid, main reason employees are avoiding offices

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Employees worried about returning to the office post-lockdown are most concerned about work-life balance and the daily commute, rather than their health, according to research from absence intelligence company e-days. Whereas only a quarter of employees are most worried about potential health implications, results of a snapshot poll of 100 workers show that 7 out of 10 of us are more concerned with impact to work-life balance (37 percent) or the office commute (34 percent). The research follows the change in government advice on 1 August 2020 meaning employers can make their own decisions about staff returning safely to work. (more…)

August 18, 2020

The challenge for the office is to stay relevant

by Ben Capper • Comment, Workplace design

The world is going through some painful changes at breakneck speed. As a result, the word unprecedented has reached number one spot on our ‘words to avoid’ list. What’s the big deal with unprecedented anyway? Our obsession with all things unprecedented taps into our fear of the unknown. But life itself is an unknown: Life is beta. Nothing is permanent. Every single day things happen that are unprecedented. Damn, said it again. (more…)