November 26, 2021
Employers looking to retain talent during the so-called ‘Great Resignation’ may benefit from investing in more management training for their staff, according to Digits. New research suggests that managers who haven’t received any management training are 36 percent more likely to leave their current jobs in the next year, than managers who receive regular management training (38 percent compared to 28 percent). More →
October 27, 2021
At a recent Women in Office Design event on the subject of hybrid working and workplace change, the founder of WOD Harsha Kotak posed a question which I thought was extremely important but often goes unasked. “Whilst I have a great understanding of how the workplace landscape will change”, she said, “are companies making these changes?” This is a brilliantly relevant question because in my opinion based on my research and experience of the past year and a half, not enough companies are. More →
September 24, 2021
Socio-economic fault lines exposed by COVID-19 are creating an unforgiving marketplace, with companies under scrutiny from governments and the public and little room to avoid disputes and investigations into business practices and behavior, according to a new report from FTI Consulting, Inc. (NYSE: FCN). More →
September 23, 2021
One in five employers (22 percent) have made changes to employees’ terms and conditions of employment between March 2020 and July 2021, according to new research from the CIPD. The most common changes were to location of work (49 percent), followed by hours of work (47 percent) and pay levels (44 percent), redundancy/terms pay (22 percent) and access to enhanced contractual entitlements/incentives (20 percent). More →
September 8, 2021
Disruption, cost, building style, individual goals, responsibility and shared space are cited as the key sustainability challenges for the flexible office sector, according to the latest research report from The Instant Group. But while there is still a lot of work to be done in the sector as the role of the workplace evolves, Instant says that flex operators have an opportunity to lead the way in meeting the challenge of climate change. By creating innovative, low-carbon buildings, curating a clear engagement strategy with occupiers and landlords, and ensuring a low-carbon ambition is understood and adopted by everyone, flex operators can be the first to implement highly sustainable workplaces. More →
September 7, 2021
Following the sobering message from the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report, a coalition led by C40, the Global Alliance for Building and Construction (GlobalABC), The Resilience Shift, World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) announce #BuildingToCOP26 — a partnership to promote radical collaboration for climate change action ahead of the Cities, Regions and Built Environment Day at COP26. More →
August 11, 2021
The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has responded to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report, referring to it as a massive wake-up call. At the end of last year, the organisation set out plans for a roadmap to net zero for the built environment, which contributes around 40 percent of the UK’s entire carbon footprint. The roadmap is dues to be unveiled at the UN’s COP26 conference in Glasgow later this year. More →
July 30, 2021
After more than a year of remote working, the majority of UK workers are well-versed in office-free employment. We’ve had plenty of time to think about how the experience has affected our working habits. Gazprom Marketing & Trading surveyed 1,000 employees across a range of sectors, asking participants about their working hours, mental health, and the challenges they’ve encountered along the way. More →
July 1, 2021
SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) has announced it is investing in scientific forestry research with The Carbon Community to enhance nature-based solutions to climate change, and improve the efficiency of carbon removal from the atmosphere. This research reaffirms SAP’s commitment to helping organisations operate sustainably by ensuring these processes are having the greatest impact on the planet. More →
June 25, 2021
To address the climate change challenge, the UK became the first, major, world economy to pass law committing us to reducing all greenhouse gas emissions to Net Zero by 2050. It was a strong signal to organisations and individuals across the UK that it was now time to stop talking and start acting. And start acting we did. Massive changes are already underway to achieve decarbonisation in all sectors of the UK economy. One only has to look at the transition to EV’s, while the way we generate energy has also witnessed a rapid change as we switch from fossil fuelled to renewable power generation. Progress in the built environment is not so good, and sadly, it’s a case of too little, too slowly, and by too few. More →
May 7, 2021
Increasing pressure from investors, customers and employees are causing CEOs to focus their businesses on purpose, resilience and long-term sustainability, according to a new report from the Reward & Employee Benefits Association (REBA) and Mercer Marsh Benefits (MMB). The report, ‘People risk – why the need for change is urgent‘ claims a shift in business focus away from short term gains in favour of emphasising long term value creation as one way of managing people risk. More →
November 29, 2021
Winds of change are blowing through the office
by Ben Capper • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design