June 13, 2019

AI is the biggest business disruptor on world stage

AI and its transformational effect on the global business landscape was the dominant theme on day one of the UK Asia Tech Powerhouse Conference. Transforming urban mobility thanks to rapidly growing cities, and how Asian cities are leading the march towards a digital future also featured in the first of the two-day event, with influencers from across trade, investment and technology, including Singaporean entrepreneur Annabelle Kwok and Mark Purdy, Accenture’s Group Chief Economist and Managing Director at Accenture Research. (more…)

June 12, 2019

People can hit career dead end in their fifties

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

With a rising retirement age and the prediction that by 2020, a third of UK workers will be aged 50 or over, new research from job board Totaljobs and recruitment firm Robert Walters found that many workers in their 50s find their career options and development opportunities are extremely limited.

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June 11, 2019

The lack of female role models in STEM

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

A new study claims there is a serious lack of female role models within STEM (science, tech, engineering, maths), leaving a generation of girls without inspiration and identifiable routes to pursue careers in science and tech. In fact, the research from jobs board CWJobs claims that UK workers in STEM are at a loss when it comes to naming key role models in their industry. Despite working in a STEM field, these professionals are more likely to recognise the Big Bang Theory’s Dr Sheldon Cooper over celebrated real-life scientists and mathematicians. (more…)

June 10, 2019

Coworking disrupts office design ⁰

by Paul Goodchild • Comment, Coworking, Facilities management, Flexible working, Workplace design

In his book How Buildings Learn, the author Stewart Brand outlines the process whereby buildings evolve over time to meet the changing needs of their occupants. He describes each building as consisting of six layers, each of which functions on a different timescale. These range from the site itself which has a life cycle measured in centuries, through to the building (decades), interior fit out (years), technology (months), to stuff (days). The effectiveness of a design will depend on how well it resolves the tensions that exist between these layers of the building, and this is one of the benefits of coworking that isn’t discussed enough.

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June 6, 2019

In defence of open plan office design

by Elizabeth Mixson • Features, Workplace design

Noisy, distracting, toxic and disastrous. These are just a few words that have been used to describe open plan office layouts. Though the open office layout model was originally conceived to promote collaboration, innovation and stronger workplace relationship, if recent press is to be believed, it’s had the opposite effect at many companies. (more…)

June 4, 2019

Failure to understand employees creates culture of mistrust

by Marie Hillen • News, Workplace

Employees trust their CEOs less than they did seven years ago, although trust in line managers remains the same, new research claims. It also suggests that one of the reasons for mistrust is that CEOs seem unable to understand the role of their employees and the contributions they make to working culture. According to Trust in Leaders, by The Institute of Leadership & Management, workers trust their CEOs considerably less than they did in 2011, as compared to then, the results show trust in CEOs has fallen by 8 percent.

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May 30, 2019

Relationships with coworkers matter most for wellbeing

by George Eltringham • News, Wellbeing

A third of your life is spent at work, but what determines your workplace well-being? That’s the question that Dr. Martin Boult, Senior Director Professional Services & International Training, The Myers-Briggs Company, asked before starting a three-year international study on workplace wellbeing. His new report, titled “Wellbeing in the Workplace” from The Myers-Briggs Company explores the most effective activities for enhancing well-being and its benefits for both people and organisations. (more…)

May 30, 2019

Appeal of London as capital of HQs diminishing

by Mark Eltringham • Cities, News

London faces the loss of its status as a global magnet for corporate headquarters unless it addresses a range of factors that are diminishing its attractiveness, according to a new report from the Centre for London. Brexit, dated transport infrastructure and worries about its pool of talent are all risks to the capital’s ability to attract and retain the HQs of multinationals claims the report. (more…)

May 27, 2019

BCO announces winners of North of England property awards

by Neil Franklin • News, Property, Workplace design

Manchester-based businesses dominated the BCO Northern Awards with Hanover, PwC Manchester and No. 1 Spinningfields all being recognised as some of the best workplaces in the North of England at the annual British Council for Offices (BCO) regional property sector awards held at The Principal Hotel in Manchester. In addition to the three winning buildings, 35 Dale Street in the city’s Northern Quarter also received Highly Commended in the Best Refurbished/ Recycled Workplace category. Janet Nash House, Durham and Live Works, Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the North East were recognised as two of the best workplaces in the North. (more…)

May 27, 2019

Milan named as best city in world for wellbeing

by Neil Franklin • Cities, News, Wellbeing

Milan has been named the 2019 Wellbeing City as part of the Wellbeing City Award, which claims to be the first global award recognising city-led action. Five Award Laureate Cities have been announced as part of the Award and will be honoured at The Wellbeing Cities Forum in Montréal on June 19, 2019. The annual Award has been developed by NewCities in partnership with the Novartis Foundation, the Novartis US Foundation, and in collaboration with the City of Montréal, Toyota Mobility Foundation, Transdev, and the US Green Building Council. (more…)

May 21, 2019

Overconfidence can be misinterpreted as competence, claims study

by Mark Eltringham • News, Workplace

The higher a person rates their social class, the more likely they are to overestimate their talents and the more likely they are to be promoted to a level beyond their competence, a new study from researchers at Stanford and the University of Virginia claims. According to the study published by the American Psychological Association in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, people who see themselves as being in a higher social class tend to have an exaggerated belief that they are more adept than their equally capable lower-class counterparts, and that overconfidence can often be misinterpreted by others as greater competence in important situations, such as job interviews.

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May 21, 2019

Calls for urgent reform of skills policy development and implementation

by George Eltringham • Legal news, News

City & Guilds Group is calling on Government to urgently rethink how skills and education policy in the UK is designed and delivered, in light of a new report launched by the Group today. Sense and Instability 2019 finds that important lessons from the implementation of skills policy over several decades have not been learned, meaning badly-needed training and education programmes are not fit for purpose or delivering the right results for people, businesses and the economy.
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