Search Results for: employee

November 19, 2013

2020 vision is a useless metaphor for far-sightedness in a number of ways

by Simon Heath • Comment, Facilities management, Furniture, Technology, Workplace design

The year 2020 is a mere seven years away. Yet the designers of the future workplace and those who invite them to talk about it are still referring to it as if it marks the next frontier of human endeavour and as if we weren’t already up to our collective armpits in the 21st century. The idea of 20/20 vision is considered, in ophthalmological circles at least, to represent “normal” visual acuity and is dependent on the sharpness of the retinal focus within the eye and the sensitivity of the interpretative faculty of the brain. In practical terms, this means it’s about seeing and interpreting what is directly in front of us at a distance of around 6 metres. So as a metaphor for farsightedness regarding the future of work or workplaces it’s always been a poor one. And as we get closer to the eponymous year, it becomes worse day by day.

November 18, 2013

Zero hours contracts: Are they really such bad news?

by Adam Hartley • Comment, Flexible working

Zero hours contracts have hardly been out of the news in recent weeks. The overwhelming majority of the media coverage has been negative, suggesting that zero hours contracts are exploitative of workers and should be outlawed. The pressure gauge has risen to such an extent that, in September, the Business Secretary, Vince Cable, announced that there would be a consultation process to tackle any abuse discovered. The Labour Party has also announced it will be conducting its own review. But why all this sudden interest? Zero hours contracts are not a new phenomenon… and, on the face of it, they provide employers with the type of flexibility which the Government has been so keen to introduce, allowing employers to maintain a flexible workforce capable of meeting short-term staffing needs. More →

November 18, 2013

Gallery: first images of interior of Apple’s $5 billion campus in California

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Company news, Facilities management, Workplace design

Following last week’s final sign off of the plans for the new Apple Campus 2 building in northern California, the local council has issued the first interior shots of the new building. The $5 billion Foster and Partners designed campus includes a 2.8 million sq. ft. building and will be home to over 14,000 Apple employees. The late Steve Jobs originally submitted the plans to Cupertino City Council in 2011 claiming they had the potential to be the “best office building in the world”. The building is just 4 storeys high and is designed to have zero net energy consumption thanks to 700,000 sq. ft. of solar panels. As well as the main donut-shaped campus building the site includes extensive parklands, a visitor centre, R&D labs, a corporate auditorium and parking, as shown in the gallery and slideshow below.

November 18, 2013

Interview: Dave Coplin of Microsoft on Big Data, engagement and culture

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

Dave Coplin joined Microsoft in 2005, and is now its Chief Envisioning Officer, helping to envision the full potential that technology offers a modern, digital society. He is a globally recognised expert on technological issues such Cloud computing, privacy, big data, social media, open government, advertising and the consumerisation of technology and is the author of a recent book called “Business Reimagined: Why work isn’t working and what you can do about it”. He is also one of the main speakers at this year’s Worktech conference in London on 19 and 20 November. In this exclusive interview with Insight he offers his thoughts on the lack of engagement between firms and employees, the most common misunderstandings about flexible working and the challenges facing managers in IT, FM and HR.

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November 15, 2013

Quarter of the UK workforce report they’re suffering long-term ill health

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Workplace

Administrative and support activities, which includes facilities management, is one of five UK industries where employees have reported the highest levels of long-term ill health. However across all the sectors a staggering eight million people, or a quarter of the UK’s workforce (27%) say they suffer from a health problem that’s lasted more than a year. According to the new Health at Work Index from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) one in ten workers (12%) – approximately 3.5 million people – said their ability to do their job is limited by poor health. This includes over half of diabetes sufferers (58%) and the same proportion of people suffering from depression, mental illness or panic attacks (58%). More →

November 13, 2013

Working Time Directive – why the CBI calls for a permanent opt-out

by Pam Loch • Comment, Legal news, Workplace

The UK’s opt-out of the maximum 48 hour working week being proposed by the EU is yet again under the microscope. This follows the recent publication by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) of a report which highlights the frustration felt by UK businesses regarding the Working Time Directive. “Our Global Future: The Business Vision for a Reformed EU”; focuses specifically on the continuing concerns for UK businesses around the extensive level of involvement EU legislation has on how they operate their business. It shows that the majority of businesses still favour the opt-out and the flexibility it provides. Interestingly however, many did not see the need to change the current entitlement to paid holidays or rest breaks. More →

November 12, 2013

Leading management bodies launch initiative to help employers value their talent

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

Measuring the value of an organisation’s talent and its people management practices has remained stubbornly elusive. This has prompted a group of leading professional bodies to join forces to help businesses measure the impact of their people on organisational performance and better equip them to improve workforce skills and productivity. The ultimate goal of the ‘Valuing your Talent’ initiative by the CIPD, the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES), the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), Investors in People (IIP) and the Royal Society for the Arts (RSA); is to develop an open framework for the measurement of human capital that will make good people management practices more visible, and encourage businesses to invest more strategically in their workforces.

November 12, 2013

UK leads the world in talent, but it needs the right culture in which to thrive

by Philip Ross • Comment, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

We should never take the UK’s talent base for granted. According to a new report from Deloitte, when it comes to employment levels of people in knowledge based jobs in high skill sectors such as digital media, banking, legal services, software development, telecoms and publishing, London is comfortably the world’s leading city. The study found that London employed 1.5 million people in the 22 sectors surveyed, compared with 1.2 million in New York, 784,000 in Los Angeles, 630,000 in Hong Kong and 425,000 in Boston. The report also predicts that London will enjoy rapid growth in employment levels in these sectors over the next seven years, adding around 100,000 more people and that while a decline in employment is foreseen in financial services, this will be more than offset by strong growth in creative and media businesses.

November 11, 2013

When sorry seems to be the hardest word, it creates a workplace trust gap

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

Harvard Business School recently identified that the advantage of the British habit of continuously apologising makes us seem more trustworthy. When it comes to subordinates, we’re less magnanimous. Just 5 per cent of UK employees receive an apology from their boss whenever they make a mistake, affecting levels of trust in leaders and employee engagement. The Global Leadership Pulse survey by The Forum Corporation warns managers that not taking responsibility for workplace gaffes is having a direct correlation to how much employees trust company leadership. This is because 49 per cent of managers and 24 per cent of employees believe that acknowledging personal mistakes is one of the key things leaders can do to inspire trust; and being able to trust your boss is very important for 93 per cent of the employees surveyed. More →

November 8, 2013

The journey to get more Women on Boards is one worth taking

by Debra Ward • Comment, Facilities management, Workplace

There has been so much written lately about women on boards and what is holding women back from becoming board members. The evidence highlights that gender diverse companies are less volatile, have a higher ROA and a lower employee turnover rate, yet this still seems not to have spurred on employers to take up the board equality issue. My question is why have so few women progressed to board level? Personally, I disagree with quotas, believing that the best candidate should be appointed. Do we really need a quota to swing the pendulum into a more balanced position? Regardless of your view, the evidence is clear; companies with gender mixed leadership outperform those who have little or no senior female representation. Why then would companies choose to not reset their gender balance in senior positions? More →

November 8, 2013

Time to refresh BYOD policies, as Smartglasses get set to improve workplace efficiency

by Sara Bean • News, Technology

Employers may soon need to add wearable computers to the list of BYOD in the office. According to analysts Gardner, over the next five years, corporate adoption of Smartglasses such as Google Glass will rise to ten per cent. Although of particular relevance for companies with offsite workers, such as field service personnel and inspectors, some of the basic functions of smartglasses could help bring added efficiency across the workplace. Their widespread adoption depends heavily on the apps and services being developed, but, the analysts say, apps will emerge that do specific tasks with smartglasses, which may cause organisations to provide them for a wider range of employees, while many other workers will simply wear their personal smartglasses at work. More →