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The binary choices and multiple outcomes of flexible working

The binary choices and multiple outcomes of flexible working

A year of unnecessarily binary conversation about work leads inevitably to this. A stupid question. Is Big Tech going off work from home? Betteridge’s Law takes care of that, just as it did another question from 12 months ago. Even though the article is slightly better than the headline, the insistence that the only two choices we have are home or office remains. (more…)

UK civil service signs up to hybrid working deal

UK civil service signs up to hybrid working deal

The UK civil service is set to pioneer a widespread hybrid working strategy with the announcement of a new deal with serviced office provider IWG. The details of the deal, reported first in The Telegraph newspaper (paywall), will include the creation of a nationwide network of ten coworking spaces for the use of civil servants when they are not in London. The report suggests that up to 430,000 employees could now have a better chance of adopting a hybrid working culture.  (more…)

Finding a new sense of purpose in the way we all do business

Finding a new sense of purpose in the way we all do business

Mental health and purposeIt is now a truism that society expects more of business than merely maximising shareholder value. Milton Friedman’s conviction that unswerving commitment to this single goal would ensure that business and society would prosper has come to be seen as blinkered, unfit for the twenty-first century and enabling of corporate greed. Instead of shareholder value maximisation, an idea that The Economist called ‘the biggest idea in business’ in 2016, businesses are now encouraged to recognise their responsibilities to an array of ‘stakeholders’, from employees, suppliers and customers, to the planet itself and other communities (real or imagined). So, it has never been more important for businesses to do good, have a clear sense of purpose and be seen as doing so. (more…)

Employers report increased productivity benefits from homeworking

Employers report increased productivity benefits from homeworking

productivityThe productivity benefits of homeworking appear to have increased during the pandemic, with employers now more likely to say that the shift to homeworking has boosted productivity (33 percent) than they were in June 2020 (28 percent). This is according to new research by the CIPD, based on a survey of 2,000 employers and in-depth interviews with seven organisations in different sectors. (more…)

Business leaders share lessons in resilience from the Covid crisis

Business leaders share lessons in resilience from the Covid crisis

resilienceMost businesses were ill-prepared to deal with the pandemic and muddled though the challenges stemming from it, according to new report ‘Resilience reimagined: a practical guide for organisations’, produced by Cranfield University, in partnership with the National Preparedness Commission (NPC) and Deloitte. (more…)

Mental health transparency at the top is the key to workplace wellbeing

Mental health transparency at the top is the key to workplace wellbeing

wellbeingAs the world emerges from the grip of the pandemic, the mental health crisis continues to worsen. One thing is for certain as we look to rebuild – the business community must put the mental health of all employees as top priority.  But is there something that’s missing in the current conversation around workplace mental health and wellbeing? One thought is around leaders themselves, and that intrinsic connection to their own mental health and wellbeing. What many leaders have been carrying throughout the pandemic is exceptional, including the added weight of responsibility for the wellbeing and mental health of employees and to create mentally healthy workplaces, yet we rarely hear how leaders themselves are coping. (more…)

Remote working one year on: three-quarters of employees feel worse

Remote working one year on: three-quarters of employees feel worse

remote workingRemote workers are still struggling with distracting working environments, stress and an ‘always-on’ culture after a year of working from home. Egress’ Remote working: one year on report claims that three-quarters of remote workers reported feeling worse as a result of long-term working from home, with almost over one-third (39 percent) feeling more stressed. (more…)

Do business leaders trust employees when they work outside the office?

Do business leaders trust employees when they work outside the office?

businessRemote work, rapidly accelerated by the pandemic, is now essential to business success and worker productivity. However, as parts of the world open up and hybrid work becomes a reality, research claims that companies must invest in establishing flexible work policies and programs, and address a sizeable disconnect in trust between decision makers and employees, according to a Forrester study commissioned by LogMeIn, Inc. (more…)

Business won’t be what we are used to, claims Microsoft trends report

Business won’t be what we are used to, claims Microsoft trends report

remote workMicrosoft. has announced its first-annual Work Trend Index. Titled “The Next Great Disruption Is Hybrid Work — Are We Ready?” the report claims to set out seven hybrid work trends every business leader must know as we enter a new era of remote work. The report suggests that business leaders should resist the urge to see hybrid work as business as usual. It will require the rethinking of long-held assumptions. (more…)

How On Earth launches The Human Organisation report, reshaping our thinking of the workplace

How On Earth launches The Human Organisation report, reshaping our thinking of the workplace

As lockdown restrictions are eased and employees head back to the office a new report is calling for businesses to reinvent the world of work. The Human Organisation report highlights how the current workplace model is based on bureaucracy and hierarchy, which stifles employee empowerment and creativity. (more…)

Fifth of managers consider quitting as COVID burnout strikes

Fifth of managers consider quitting as COVID burnout strikes

burnoutMore than six in ten UK managers have experienced burnout at work because of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a fifth considering quitting their job as a result, according to new research from Benenden Health. (more…)

Wellbeing strategies could add £61bn to English economy

Wellbeing strategies could add £61bn to English economy

wellbeing strategiesCorporate wellbeing could add £61bn to the English economy by 2025 through added productivity, if UK companies can create new wellbeing strategies and improve underperforming ones, according to a new study by Westfield Health. (more…)