Search Results for: business

Business spending to grow for two years, forecast Ernst & Young

by • News, Property

Business spending will grow tentatively over the next two years, according to a new report from the ITEM Club, an economic research group established by Ernst & Young. It predicts that overall spending by businesses will grow by just over three per cent this year and a further 8.1 per cent in 2014. This is good news following a number of recent economic forecasts but means that spending will remains some way short of its pre-downturn peak. The ITEM Club also called on the UK Government to do more to stimulate growth. (more…)

UK businesses lag behind US counterparts in adoption of Cloud tech

by • Facilities management, Knowledge, Technology, Workplace

Businesses in the UK are significantly lagging behind their US counterparts when it comes to adopting Cloud technology according to new research from Redwood Software. The study found that 58 percent of US businesses were already using the cloud for private data storage, compared to just 35 percent in the UK. Meanwhile twice as many organisations in the US are using Cloud technology for supply chain integration and capacity management than their Brit contemporaries. (more…)

Go ahead granted for Manchester Airport business district

by • News, Property

The application to build a new business district within the government-designated Airport City enterprise zone in Manchester has been granted outline planning permission by Manchester City Council. The UK coalition government made the area one of its first four “vanguard” enterprise zones in March 2011 to provide fastrack planning and tax breaks to encourage rapid development. The application involves the creation of  113,400 sq. m. of office space, 49,000 sq. m. of industrial units, and 5,800 sq. m. of retail and leisure facilities on the outskirts of Manchester. The £650 million scheme is anticipated to create over 11,000 jobs over the next 15 years.

Greenest commercial building in the world opens for business

by • Architecture, Environment, News, Workplace design

The Bullitt Center, proclaimed as the greenest, most energy efficient commercial building in the world, is opening in Seattle. The goal of the Bullitt Center is to change the way buildings are designed, built and operated to improve long-term environmental performance and promote broader implementation of energy efficiency, renewable energy and other green building technologies. Tenant are now moving into the six-storey, 50,000 square-foot building located at the intersection of Capitol Hill and the Central District in Seattle, Washington. (more…)

Cloud computing set to transform business models

by • Comment, Technology, Workplace

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As an issue explored in our own briefing on the technologies that will do most to transform the workplace during 2013, we know the Cloud is set to be adopted (and understood) by more and more organisations and individuals in the coming year. Doubtless it will follow the usual process of technological adoption as people begin to understand its unintended consequences as well as its uses but it pays to know what some of its implications will be for office designers and managers as shown by this programme from Deloitte.

University of Bath launches new Centre for Earth System Governance

University of Bath launches new Centre for Earth System Governance

by • Environment, News

The University of Bath has launched a new research centre focused on tackling some of the world’s most pressing sustainability challenges, after welcoming hundreds of international researchers and practitioners to the city for the 2026 Conference on Earth System Governance. The new Bath Centre for Earth System Governance (BCESG) was announced during the conference, which brought together 456 delegates from 51 countries and featured 96 sessions exploring how governments, institutions, businesses, civil society, and communities can respond to climate change, biodiversity loss and other interconnected environmental challenges. The event reaffirmed the Earth System Governance Project‘s position as the world’s largest international research community of its kind and provided a fitting backdrop for the launch of the new centre. (more…)

Four in five people say a lack of flexible working could be a deal breaker when going for a job

Four in five people say a lack of flexible working could be a deal breaker when going for a job

by • Flexible working, News

Nearly eight in ten employees say flexible working is important when considering a job, according to new research from workplace advisory body Acas.The vast majority of employees say flexible working is important when considering a job, according to new research from workplace advisory body Acas. The YouGov survey found that 78 percent of employees considered flexible working important, compared with 20 percent who said it was not. The findings come ahead of changes to flexible working rules under the Employment Rights Act 2025. Under the new provisions, employers considering turning down a flexible working request will be required to consult the employee before reaching a decision, and will only be able to reject the request where it is reasonable to do so. (more…)

The hidden cost of a poorly planned office relocation

The hidden cost of a poorly planned office relocation

by • Company news

Ask anyone who has managed a poorly executed office move and they will describe it in similar terms: it took longer than expected, disrupted more than it should have, and the final cost bore little resemblance to the original estimate. What tends to be harder to quantify — but is often the most significant expense — is the productivity lost during and after the move. Office relocations are among the most disruptive events in the working life of an organisation. When they go well, barely anyone notices. When they go badly, the effects ripple through the business for weeks. (more…)

Men face greater career penalty for working from home, study finds

Men face greater career penalty for working from home, study finds

by • Flexible working, News

Men working from home for most of the week may face a greater career penalty than women when being considered for jobs and promotions, according to new research into attitudes towards remote workers in the UK and Germany.Men working from home for most of the week may face a greater career penalty than women when being considered for jobs and promotions, according to new research into attitudes towards remote workers in the UK and Germany. The study found that people described as working from home were rated less favourably than otherwise comparable office-based workers, with the penalty increasing significantly for those working remotely three or four days a week rather than one or two. Fathers and workers without children generally experienced larger declines in their ratings than mothers. However, the researchers cautioned that this should not be interpreted as an advantage for mothers. In the UK, mothers already received relatively low ratings when candidates were described as working entirely in the office. The research, led by King’s Business School at King’s College London, analysed almost 13,000 assessments made by around 5,300 employed people in the UK and Germany. (more…)

Rethinking office space: can phone booths cut costs and free up meeting rooms?

Rethinking office space: can phone booths cut costs and free up meeting rooms?

by • Company news

Acoustic office phone booths like those designed by MEAVO, give every type of conversation a home of its own, creating calm, private spaces exactly where people need them.The hybrid office has found its rhythm. Teams come together on their anchor days to collaborate, share ideas and meet clients, then spend the rest of the week wherever they work best. It is a model that suits people well, and it is encouraging organisations to take a fresh look at how every part of their office is used. Meeting rooms are a natural place to start. On busy days they are in high demand, often for activities that need far less space: a solo video call, a quick one-to-one, an hour of focused work away from the buzz of the open floor. The good news is that there is a simple, flexible way to create more of the right kind of space. Acoustic office pods like those designed by MEAVO, give every type of conversation a home of its own, creating calm, private spaces exactly where people need them. (more…)

Hybrid working could deliver productivity gains from staff retention alone, report claims

Hybrid working could deliver productivity gains from staff retention alone, report claims

by • Flexible working, News

Hybrid working could deliver significant productivity gains by helping organisations retain employees, recruit from a wider talent pool and preserve institutional knowledge, according to new economic modelling from International Workplace Group (IWG) and Arup. The analysis estimates that improved employee retention associated with more flexible working practices could be worth $204.7 billion to the US economy and £10.8 billion to the UK over five years. Retention represents the largest potential source of productivity gains identified by the modelling. (more…)

Health insurance renewal: why you should review before you renew

Health insurance renewal: why you should review before you renew

by • Company news

The renewal notice for your business health insurance arrives. The premium is up, as it usually is. You approve it, the policy rolls over, and you move on to the next thing on the list. For most businesses, that is the entire renewal process. And in most cases, it is leaving money on the table. The business health insurance market is not static. Insurers reprice their books every year. New products come to market. Competitors adjust their terms to win business. The gap between what a business is paying on an auto-renewed policy and what it could be paying on a properly reviewed one is often significant, and it widens every year the review does not happen. This guide covers what a proper renewal review involves, what to look at, what questions to ask your broker or insurer, and why it is worth treating renewal as an active decision rather than an annual formality. (more…)

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