October 24, 2022

Offices remain largely unchanged in wake of pandemic

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace design

Most businesses are failing to invest in collaborative offices that could encourage people to spend more time in them and take advantage of new work cultures, a report claims. More than four in five UK workers (83 percent) surveyed by YouGov on behalf of Microsoft Surface find themselves still in the same office environment as before the pandemic. The majority of those surveyed believe that office work is better suited to both socialising with colleagues (57 percent) and strengthening relationships with colleagues (65 percent) compared to remote work. More →

October 10, 2022

Leading UK employers call for flexible working recruitment by default

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

A joint letter from 21 leading employers – including several in the FTSE 100 – is calling on employers across the UK to advertise all vacant roles with flexible options by default. The full text is: More →

August 31, 2022

Mindspace opens new Berlin flex office in renovated department store

by Freddie Steele • Company news

Mindspace is set to open its sixth Berlin flex office, by renovating a former department store in the heart of the city into a new space. Located at Münzstraße 12 / Max-Beer-Straße 2-4 in Berlin, near Alexanderplatz, the global flex office provider’s newest location Mindspace Münzstraße is being built across 4,100 m² and will cover over 700 workstations spanning five floors. Scheduled to open in spring 2023, the building has been part of the WertInvest Group portfolio since 2014 and combines the best inner-city location with an architecture steeped in history. More →

August 4, 2022

ESG: only a third of people think their workplace has a positive impact on society and the environment

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News, Wellbeing

According to a poll from YuLife and YouGov, just over a third (39 percent) of people think their place of work has some sort of positive impact on society and the planet. This is in spite of the many announcements from organisations about how ESG (environmental, social, and corporate governance) can boost employee engagement and help them stand out from their competitors. With many businesses having upped their ESG investment in recent years, the new YuLife-YouGov report claims to shed light on what UK working adults want and expect from their workplaces, equipping businesses with vital insights into how to focus their ESG programmes most effectively. More →

June 29, 2022

Hard up workers look to second jobs, side hustles and help from current employers

by Jayne Smith • News, Workplace

Nine in ten UK employees have, or would be interested in a second job, as the COVID-19 pandemic and cost of living crisis sees hard up workers keen to increase incomes and turn hobbies into enterprises according to a poll in Benenden Health’s ‘Workforce of the Future’ report. It claims that almost one in three employees in the UK currently have a second occupation (29 percent), with half of these taking up their additional role during the pandemic. Meanwhile, another survey, from Culture Amp claims that six out of ten employees in the UK believe that their employers should help with the rising cost of living. More →

February 11, 2022

Wellbeing strategies often fail to align with business objectives

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Employers feel far more responsibility for employee health and wellbeing than ever, yet formalised strategic action often remains unchanged, claims Aon’s UK Benefits and Trends Survey 2022. The report suggests there has been a significant increase over the last year in the number of employers that strongly agree they have a responsibility for the health and wellbeing of their employees, rising from 20 percent in 2021 to just over half of all respondents (51 percent) in 2022. Forty-four percent agree they have a responsibility, and just 5 percent disagree or have no view. More →

February 8, 2022

New business climate demands agility from managers, report claims

by Jayne Smith • Business, News

A new report, The Big Reset Playbook: Change Agility (registration) from work trends analyst The Josh Bersin Company, claims that traditional approaches to change management have often fallen short of expectations, and that new workplace practices based on agility are now needed to manage change in a new business climate. According to the report ‘businesses are looking to tackle the challenge of managing change in a new reality that includes the shift to hybrid working, globalization and The Great Resignation’. The research claims that in companies that successfully manage change, leaders and high performers reinforce the company’s mission and purpose, explain how their reinvented business models work, create cross-functional teams to design and implement change, and maintain forward momentum. More →

January 18, 2022

Firms need to do more to engage, attract and retain staff

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Over 40 percent of employers are finding it more difficult to retain and recruit staff, according to Aon’s Benefits and Trends Survey 2022 (registration). The report claims that many employers have adjusted their benefits strategies to address an intense labour market, in which employee work motivations have shifted in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Forty-one percent of employers said they have found it more difficult to retain staff in the last year, while 44 percent have found it more difficult to recruit new staff. Many employers anecdotally expressed in the survey that they need to pay higher salaries or sign-on bonuses to entice new recruits. More →

January 5, 2022

‘Great Resignation’ offers a one off opportunity to rethink our relationship with work

by Pip White • Comment, Flexible working, Technology, Wellbeing

After nearly two turbulent years, which for many knowledge workers have been dominated by a ground-hog day like existence, people are looking for change. This is only natural as workers around the world are re-evaluating their priorities, reigniting their passions, or simply looking for something new. This has led to a mini-exodus from businesses, which is now being dubbed the ‘Great Resignation’. More →

December 14, 2021

Drawing on internal skills can help firms cope with Great Resignation

by Mike Baker • Comment, Workplace

The UK’s workforce is undergoing rapid transformation as employees’ expectations and motivations radically change. The impact of Brexit, COVID-19 and long periods of furlough have created a tidal wave of resignations across every industry. Workers are re-thinking career paths, work conditions and long-term goals after a turbulent 18 months; with one study finding that 38 percent of people are looking to change roles in the new year. More →

November 22, 2021

Staff wellbeing programmes help social relationships and reduce bullying

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing, Working lives

Programmes aimed at supporting employees’ health and wellbeing can also benefit their social relationships and reduce bullying, according to a new study by researchers from the University of East Anglia (UEA), working in collaboration with Vitality. More →

November 16, 2021

Powell Software launches Together to allow SMEs to connect and collaborate with ease

by Freddie Steele • Company news

As SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) grapple with a myriad of challenges to keep their companies running successfully, Powell Software introduces Together, the small business intranet accessible from Microsoft Teams that helps meet their productivity, communication and collaboration needs. More →