Search Results for: employee experience

July 28, 2015

Millennial ‘job hopping’ is the new normal according to US research

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Following a recent survey claiming that Millennials comprise more than one-in-three US workers, comes new evidence on the impact this could have on recruitment and retention. Over 1,000 US full-time Millennials who were questioned on their careers by RecruitiFi confirmed that ‘job hopping’ had become the norm. During the course of their careers, 53 percent have held three or more jobs. And while many have plans to stay in their current jobs for 3-5 years (33 percent), many respondents plan to leave after 1-2 years (20 percent). 34 percent acknowledged falling levels of employee morale in the office and 22 percent explained that their clients/customers have taken notice. While 83 percent of millennials acknowledge that job hopping on their CV could be negatively perceived by employers, 86 percent say that it would not prevent them from pursuing their professional or personal passions.

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November 29, 2013

The meaningful aspects of what we do give us the greatest rewards

by Annie Gurton • Comment, Workplace

Charles Handy recently explained to attendees at Worktech 13 London why money is not the main motivating factor for employees; while at the same event, Claudia Hamm-Barstow of Jones Lang LaSalle added that the dream workplace is “a place where the company adds value to the employee experience, people feel valued and welcomed, the organisation feels meaningful, the work is rewarding and importantly there are no stupid rules”. According to The Human Givens Institute neither of these statements should be at all surprising. But The Human Givens theory adds that we also need to be respected, to feel in control, to have self-esteem, privacy and community. And, most crucially of all, we need to have purpose and meaning in our lives. (more…)

November 21, 2013

Quality of the place and the pace of work is more important than money

by Sara Bean • Architecture, Events, Flexible working, Workplace design

O+A designed Aol’s new West Coast HQ

In a remarkable session on the future of work at Worktech 13 London this week – Charles Handy declared that organisations need passion, people and profit, in that order. Money isn’t the main motivating factor for individuals either, which is why Handy’s thoughts on the emergence of the portfolio worker should inspire anyone who dreams of quitting their corporate job to do something more interesting instead. Those who don’t have that option would have been cheered to hear the prevailing message at Worktech was that employers are waking up to the fact that the quality of the place and the pace of work (i.e. flexible working) is of equal importance to remuneration in attracting and retaining staff. (more…)

October 12, 2026

AI isn’t replacing meetings, it’s changing their purpose

by Brad Hintze • AI, Comment, Technology, Workplace design

Throughout the years in the workplace technology industry, I’ve heard one common question among organization leaders: How can we have fewer meetings and how can we make the ones we do have more effective? When AI came along, many thought that it would be the solvent to this long-standing challenge. But it turns out, as individuals utilize AI to help them automate routine work, the need to collaborate with team members on the outputs has become more prominent. Rather than focusing on reducing the number of meetings, organizations should ask themselves: Are we designing the workplace with intentionality for meetings that are actually worth having? (more…)

October 12, 2026

How to apply the lessons of World Mental Health Day every day in the office

by Annick Bessawa • Comment, Wellbeing

World Mental Health Day is always an opportunity for organisations to show they genuinely care about their people, but supporting employee wellbeing requires year-round commitment. This year’s theme highlighted the importance of listening to people with lived experiences of mental health conditions, helping to build understanding and reduce stigma in the workplace. By creating an environment where employees feel safe to speak openly and know where to find support, businesses can make a real difference to their wellbeing. St John Ambulance trainer Annick Bessawa shares six practical ways employers can acknowledge what we learn on World Mental Health Day and create a more supportive workplace throughout the year. (more…)

October 9, 2026

Cognitive access is a workplace design issue

by Nat Hawley • Comment, Workplace design

Workplace inclusion is still too often organised around a private conversation between an individual and HR. Someone encounters a barrier, decides whether it is safe to disclose a condition, explains what is happening and waits for an adjustment. That process matters, but it should not carry the whole weight of inclusion. Many barriers described as personal needs are predictable features of work: continuous noise, back-to-back calls, unclear priorities, scattered instructions and unwritten rules. When these conditions are treated as fixed, individuals must negotiate around a design problem.

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October 7, 2026

A sense of control over workplace technology may be linked to wellbeing and productivity

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology

A sense of control over workplace technology may have a significant impact on people’s wellbeing, productivity and attitudes towards technological change, according to new global research from Logitech. The technology company’s inaugural Ctrl Tomorrow Study suggests a growing divide between people who feel confident and in control of the technology they use and those who feel overwhelmed or frustrated by it. More than three-quarters (77 percent) of respondents agreed that people who feel more in control of their technology get more out of life, while around three in five said problems with technology can affect their mood after work and their sense of control over their personal lives. (more…)

October 5, 2026

The next workplace tech upgrade isn’t software. It’s lunch

by Andrew Laughlan • Company news

With more people choosing to split their time between home and the office, the experience of being at work has changed. If people are only in the office twice a week, opportunities to connect with colleagues face-to-face become more important. Even something as simple as sharing a meal gives people a reason to get together. An informal lunch can create conversations that wouldn’t have happened over a Teams call. For new colleagues, more casual conversation can help them settle in and get to know their colleagues better. Moving away from the desk also means a proper break from a screen, which helps everyone to return for the afternoon feeling refreshed and motivated. (more…)

September 29, 2026

AI skills divide risks leaving majority of workers behind, PwC finds

by Neil Franklin • AI, News

A widening divide between workers who are benefiting from artificial intelligence and those being left behind is emerging as AI use accelerates, according to a global study by PwC. The consultancy’s 2026 Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey found that 64 percent of workers had used AI at work during the previous 12 months, up 10 percentage points from last year. Daily use of generative AI increased from 14 percent to 22 percent, while 59 percent expect their use of AI tools to increase over the coming year. (more…)

September 29, 2026

The hidden cost of a poorly planned office relocation

by Freddie Steele • 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…)

September 28, 2026

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

by Neil Franklin • 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. 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…)

September 24, 2026

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

by Neil Franklin • 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…)