Search Results for: financial

Chinese banks set to take up to 2m sq. ft of commercial property in London

by • Briefing, News, Property

Bank of China HQ, London

Bank of China HQ, London

According to a new report from commercial property consultancy Savills, the global expansion of Chinese financial institutions may see them take up as much as 2 million sq. ft. in the City of London over the next decade. The report claims that Chinese firms see London as one of the key centres for global finance and will take up the opportunities offered by setting London as a base as part of a $1 trillion investment in the West over the next seven years. With four in ten of the World’s largest banks now Chinese, and the sector expanding rapidly since the 2008 downturn, the investment will not only change the structure of the City but also consolidate its position as a global financial centre.

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It’s not all about BYOD; data security also remains a low-tech issue

by • Legal news, Technology

Oliver Letwin dumps government secretsWhile firms worry about the loss of data through the practice of BYOD, employees continue to find low tech ways of breaching security according to a report from Iron Mountain. While under half (42 percent) of employees describe their organisation’s approach to hard copy as secure, one in ten describe it as chaotic. Nearly half claim to have seen confidential information lying around in the usual places such as on desks or photocopiers. The most common types of information exposed in this way are details of salaries and performance reviews as well as commercial and financial data, although many will remember the scandal that broke two years ago when Government minister Oliver Letwin (above) repeatedly dumped classified information in a park bin including some about Al Qaeda, Libya, Afghanistan, the Dalai Lama and Aung San Suu Kyi.

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EU must develop ambitious plans for retrofitting buildings to hit energy targets

by • Environment, News, Property

EU must develop ambitious plans for retrofitting buildings to hit energy targetsWith just six months remaining until they are required to deliver long-term strategies on renovation, EU Member States are being urged to develop ambitious plans for retrofitting their buildings. Under the Energy Efficiency Directive, EU Member States must establish “a long-term strategy for mobilising investment in the renovation of the national stock of residential and commercial buildings, both public and private” from 30 April 2014. The World Green Building Council’s Europe Regional Network (of which the UK Green Building Council is a member) and the Renovate Europe Campaign are calling on EU nations to seize the opportunity by publishing strategies that will help ensure investment in jobs and growth, and help deliver lower energy bills for struggling European citizens. (more…)

New report identifies the ten key trends set to transform US commercial property

by • News, Property

Navel gazingAccording to a new report from Deloitte, the recent upturn in the US commercial real estate sector is set to continue unabated into next year. Which is great news but according to the property consultancy, the market that emerges from the ashes of the downturn will be very different to the one from which they were formed. Deloitte’s 15th annual Commercial Real Estate Outlook report has identified what it considers the top ten trends that will reshape the emerging market based on a mixture of original research, subjective insights and the firm’s experience with clients. These trends are dominated by structural and financial issues and the only nods towards external socio-economic factors are mentions for the aging workforce within the market (so much for the transformational potential of GenY) and increases in single family households (can’t see the link with commercial property).

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Looking forward to Workplace Week; productivity and the connected organisation

by • Events, News

'High Street' at Network Rail's Milton Keynes base

‘High Street’ at Network Rail’s Milton Keynes base

There’s not much time to go before Workplace Week, which takes place from the 4th to 8th November. The annual workplace conference and fundraiser for Children in Need will include more than a dozen visits to offices in London and around the UK, a one-day convention and events staged by Kinnarps, ASOS, KPMG, Herman Miller and Colebrook Bosson Saunders. Site visits include to the public sector’s new generation of landmark buildings, Network Rail, RBS and Innocent Drinks. The theme of this year’s convention on the 5th November is Driving Productivity Through The Connected Organisation which will take place at PricewaterhouseCoopers’ offices. Speakers includes Keith Saxton, director of financial services at IBM Research; Johnny Dunford, global director of commercial property at RICS; and Liz Nottingham, Regional HR Director for Western Europe at Starcom MediaVest group.

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Job satisfaction keeps employees motivated more than bonuses

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Job satisfaction keeps employees motivated more than bonusesThe reported levels of stress felt by banking employees already suggests that generous bonuses do not necessarily equate loving the job. Now a new study published today by the Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) confirms that across the business sector, the single most effective motivator is job satisfaction (59%), with just 13 per cent saying the prospect of receiving a bonus or other financial incentive motivates them to work harder in their role. The survey of over 1,000 employees found that a competitive salary and a good pension are highly effective motivators (49%) but getting on with colleagues (42%) is nearly as important. The report also highlights how important good managers are to ensuring happy and motivated staff. (more…)

Employers should engage staff as active reputation builders in social media

by • News, Technology, Workplace

Employers should engage staff as active reputation builders in social media

Employers who discourage staff from spending time at work updating their status on Facebook or following twitter feeds would be better served in harnessing their social media habits to promote the organization according to an academic study. Joonas Rokka, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Neoma Business School, has published new research in the Journal of Marketing Management that shows how social media can accentuate the role of employee and corporate reputation management. According to findings drawn from multiple business sectors and different types of companies, the research claims that companies need to focus more on managing employees as active reputation builders and brand ambassadors in social media instead of conceiving them only as possible reputation risks. (more…)

Workplace Week announces details of visits to London Government buildings

by • Events, Facilities management, Flexible working, Public Sector

DfE London HQ

DfE London HQ

For the first time, Workplace Week includes visits to two Government offices, the Department for Education at Sanctuary Buildings in Great Smith Street (pictured) and the Department for International Development on Whitehall. The DfE is just a stone’s throw from the Houses of Parliament and boasts outstanding views of several major landmarks. The building is home to some 2,000 staff who work in a flexible environment with 7 desks for 10 people. The Department for International Development moved to its new London HQ, the oldest purpose-built office in London, at the beginning of the year. The DfID has created a modern, flexible environment which encourages collaborative working, whilst being sympathetic to the historic nature of the building.

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Joint survey investigates where energy use is on the FM agenda

by • Environment, Facilities management, News

Joint survey investigates where energy use is on the FM agendaThe British Institute of Facilities Management (BIFM) and the National Energy Foundation (NEF) have announced a joint survey exploring FM professionals’ experiences and expectations of improving the use of energy in the buildings. Both organisations hope the findings, which will be made available in a report in January 2014, will identify new areas of focus and shed light on how FM professionals are tackling the gap between actual and predicted energy performance in the buildings for which they are responsible. According to Lucy Black, Chair of BIFM’s Sustainability Special Interest Group (SIG), the survey should help identify areas where barriers persist, and FM knowledge is strongest or needs further support. (more…)

Full details of Workplace Week event are announced

by • Events, News

PwC More London Offices

PwC More London Offices

More details have been announced about this year’s Workplace Week, which takes place on 5 November at  PricewaterhouseCoopers More London building. Our support for the event means that Insight readers are offered discounted tickets. The event is organised by Advanced Workplace Associates in aid of Children in Need. The event includes a chance to visit some of the UK’s most innovative workplaces including RBS, Innocent Drinks and KPMG as well as convention and a series of Fringe events. Speakers include Johnny Dunford, global director of commercial property at RICS; Curtis McLean, founder of Innovation Places; Keith Saxton, director of financial services at IBM Research; Jessica Pryce-Jones, founder of the I-Opener Institute in Oxford; and Mark Sherfield, COO of global accountants BDO.

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Third of Europe’s large firms have already lost data through BYOD

by • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Technology

gordian_knotBring Your Own Device remains the Gordian Knot of workplace technology. While firms have tried to label and co-opt the unstoppable propensity of employees to use their own devices for work as a way of cutting the business’s technology costs, they are paying in other ways. As we reported last week many remain unaware of the extent of the practice and of its potential to clash with company policy. Now, the full extent of the inevitable security breach inherent in either sanctioned or unsanctioned use of personal technology is becoming evident. According to a new report from Samsung, around a third of Europe’s largest companies have lost company and confidential data through the practice.

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What’s wrong with adopting a more positive approach to work and workplaces?

by • Comment, Facilities management, Public Sector, Workplace, Workplace design

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Has there ever been a UK government more interested in the workplace than this one? Most of it has been about cutting costs of course, so the majority of announcements emanating from the Cabinet Office have been about procurement, design and environmental performance. David Cameron even at one point announced that he wanted to measure people’s happiness. The questions needed to work out how happy we are proposed by the Office for National Statistics as a result would have had a very familiar feel for anybody who has ever completed a workplace satisfaction survey even if they miss the most blindingly obvious point that when you’re skint and in mortal fear of losing your job, most other things about work lose their lustre.

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