Search Results for: financial

Rise in gender and ethnic diversity to boards in finance sector, despite ‘closed shop’

Rise in gender and ethnic diversity to boards in finance sector, despite ‘closed shop’

by • Legal news, News, Workplace

Rise in gender and ethnic diversity to boards in finance sector but more neededBanking and finance companies within the FTSE 100 have increased gender and ethnic diversity at board level, but there remains a question over whether minorities can break through the glass ceiling, as many of the top roles in banking and finance companies (Chair, CEO & CFO) remain a closed shop for ethnic minority and female leaders. This is according to a new study from Green Park which claims the leadership pipeline, supplying the highest tier of management in FTSE 100 banking and finance companies, now features the highest level of ethnic minority talent in four years, including 15 percent of professionals with a non-white background compared with 5 percent of leadership pipelines for FTSE 100 companies overall and 6.5 percent in 2014. The banking and finance sector has also met the target set by Lord Davies that 25 percent of board members should be female. However, this has been updated by the Hampton-Alexander Review to a target of 33 percent by 2020, which suggests that banking and finance companies will still need to do more to increase the proportion of female leaders in their leadership pipelines.

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Pressurised staff say level of wellbeing in their workplace is insufficient

Pressurised staff say level of wellbeing in their workplace is insufficient

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

A majority (80 percent) of employees perceive the level of wellbeing within their organisation to be moderate or low and a quarter are struggling to manage the pressures of the workplace, a new survey claims. Although 64 percent believe their overall happiness as happy or very happy two thirds of UK workers admit to coasting or struggling at work, with just 18 percent reporting they’re flourishing, finds the survey published by Barnett Waddingham. Why BWell 2017 also found a third of UK workers admit their job has a negative impact on their mental health, with the same number believing their overall wellbeing is not important to their employer. Moreover, 22 percent say negative attitudes from their managers at work hinder their ability to balance work and family commitments. The survey also looked at employee retention alongside employers’ understanding of staff engagement in the company objectives. Overall 25 percent admitted they couldn’t see themselves working for the same company in five years’ time and 36 percent feel they either didn’t understand their company’s overall strategy or didn’t know if they understood it or not.

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Boundary-less workplaces must offer contextual, personalised workspaces

Boundary-less workplaces must offer contextual, personalised workspaces

by • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

'Boundary-less' workplaces must offer contextual, personalised workspacesThe future workplace will replace familiar, rigid hierarchies and departments with small, collaborative networks of teams and the lines between individual organisations and ecosystems will blur as companies increasingly cast their net wider to innovate. This is one of the predictions made in a Fujitsu-commissioned whitepaper ‘Workplace 2025’ which argues that businesses must rethink social and technology strategies to plan for the future workplace – or risk being left behind. To appeal to future employees with the right skills, the whitepaper, which was produced by European research firm Pierre Audoin Consultants (PAC) advises that businesses must ensure they are moving towards an environment that provides contextual, personalised workspaces aligned to the individual needs of users. At the same time, they should plan to encourage enhanced peer collaboration by implementing technologies such as augmented reality. The Workplace 2025 report foresees that today’s organisational structures will become more agile, adapting to constantly-changing economic conditions, competitive landscapes and customer demands.

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Prestige of a London office location continues to drive demand among SMEs

Prestige of a London office location continues to drive demand among SMEs

by • Cities, Facilities management, News, Property

Leo offices in MayfairThe London office market remains a buoyant market despite Brexit uncertainty, as many organisations see it as the most prestigious location for businesses of any size. In research conducted by London Executive Offices (LEO) 60 percent of entrepreneurs and business executives would choose London as their business location for allowing good access to customers; 57 percent say that start-ups have the best chance of success if located in London, and that they could achieve annual growth of 20 percent by being based in the capital. Over half of those surveyed strongly believe that a London office address creates a better perception of their business. LEO’s findings also demonstrate that certain London locations remain traditionally associated with particular sectors. Of those financial companies surveyed, 73 percent would choose established financial services hotspots Bank and Canary Wharf to base their start-up. Office space in the City remains an attractive proposition, evidenced by LEO’s recent launch at 1 King William Street at over 80 percent let.

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Security and skills are the top concerns for companies investing in new technology

Security and skills are the top concerns for companies investing in new technology

by • News, Technology

Over the next five years, the top three technologies that are set to move from the fringes to the business mainstream are Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain and the Internet of Things, according to CBI research. In the CBI’s new report, Disrupting the future, the UK business group highlights how firms and the government must pave the way for adoption of cutting-edge technologies, tackling the barriers that businesses are facing. The CBI is calling on the Government to establish a joint commission in early 2018 involving, business, employee representatives, academics and a Minister, to examine the impact of Artificial Intelligence on people and jobs, setting out plans for action that will raise productivity, spread prosperity and open up new paths to economic growth.

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Wellbeing named as top priority for 2018 by human resources managers

Wellbeing named as top priority for 2018 by human resources managers

by • News, Wellbeing

A vox pop poll carried out by  employee engagement firm Reward Gateway at a recent conference claims that wellbeing, pay and benefits and recognition will be the top employee engagement priorities for HR professionals in 2018. The research, which polled 565 HR professionals at Employee Benefits Live 2017, echoes two studies undertaken by the same firm earlier this year. These studies found that companies are looking to invest in areas which UK employees have said are crucial to them, but don’t feel as though their employers are adequately providing: wellbeing and recognition. As the top agenda point, the importance of wellbeing in the workplace was echoed in a study conducted in September 2017, which claimed that 22 million British workers, or 7 in 10 employees (71 percent), have felt stress or financial strain in the last five years. Despite these numbers, the same research also claims that a third of respondents said that their company currently offers no wellbeing programmes.

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An environmental psychology perspective on workplace design

An environmental psychology perspective on workplace design

by • Facilities management, Features, News, Wellbeing, Workplace design

I recently had the pleasure of travelling to Cape Town to present a keynote address at the Dare to Lead conference organised by Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA). I had just 20 minutes to speak on a psychologist’s view of health, wellbeing and performance; that’s a huge subject area and pretty much my whole career condensed down to the typical time it takes to boil a pan of potatoes. So, I focused on just three psychological theories: motivation, personality and evolutionary psychology.

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Freelancers to make up a majority of US workforce within a decade

Freelancers to make up a majority of US workforce within a decade

by • Flexible working, News

Freelance website Upwork and the Freelancers Union have published the results of a report called Freelancing in America: 2017, which the sponsors claim is the most comprehensive measure of the US independent workforce, (but given their vested interests probably needs you to add a pinch of salt and always worth reading Trustpilot reviews). The fourth annual study estimates that 57.3 million Americans are freelancing (36 percent of the US workforce) and contribute approximately $1.4 trillion annually to the economy, an increase of almost 30 percent since last year.

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Calls for commercial property sector to have a greater focus on customer experience

Calls for commercial property sector to have a greater focus on customer experience

by • News, Property, Workplace design

The UK commercial property industry is undergoing a fundamental shift towards a more customer centric approach, with an increasingly greater emphasis being placed on delivering outstanding customer service to occupiers. This is the key finding of a new report from The British Council for Offices (BCO) entitled ‘Office Service Standards and Customer Experience: a best practice guide’. While for those who hold a very traditional landlord occupier relationship this change in thinking, attitude and operation may feel revolutionary, the report argues we are already seeing the industry evolve across the board. It claims that this is accelerated by new ‘property sector disruptors’, who are driving a shift in the relationship between property owners and corporate occupiers. To ensure they are keeping pace with their changing requirements and aspirations, property owners and managers are increasingly realising the need to invest in building strong relationships with their occupiers

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Report warns of growing cybersecurity threat to organisations by their own staff

Report warns of growing cybersecurity threat to organisations by their own staff

by • Facilities management, News, Technology, Workplace

An overwhelming majority of employees are deliberately seeking out information they are not permitted to access, exposing a major cybersecurity problem among today’s workforce, claims new research published by One Identity. The survey, conducted by Dimensional Research, polled more than 900 IT security professionals on trends and challenges related to managing employee access to corporate data. Among key findings, a remarkable 92 percent of respondents report that employees at their organisations try to access information that is not necessary for their day-to-day work – with nearly one in four (23 percent) admitting this behaviour happens frequently. Most alarmingly, the report indicates that IT security professionals themselves are among the worst offenders of corporate data snooping. One in three respondents admit to having accessed sensitive information that is not necessary for their day-to-day work.

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Third of employees complain employers do not offer any wellbeing programmes

Third of employees complain employers do not offer any wellbeing programmes

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Over half of employees would choose a company that cared about their wellbeing, over one that pays 10 percent more, a new survey claims. According to the research by Reward Gateway, over 22 million British workers, or seven in 10 employees (71 percent), have felt stress or financial strain in the last five years, however, a third of workers said their company currently offered no programmes and just 29 percent of respondents said that their company currently offers a physical programme. The findings also suggest a disparity of opinion between employee and employer. While over half (51 percent) of employers agree that their company shows they care about employees mental, physical and financial wellbeing, only 14 percent of employees say that their company couldn’t do more to show they care. But employers too would benefit from taking a more proactive approach to wellbeing, as more than half (52 percent) of UK employees agree that they would choose a company that cared about their wellbeing over one that pays more.

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UK improves opportunities for young workers, but faces longer term challenges from automation

UK improves opportunities for young workers, but faces longer term challenges from automation

by • News, Workplace

The UK could boost GDP by £43 billion if it reduces the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) to match Germany, the best performing EU country. This is equivalent to a GDP increase of around £7,500 per 18-24 year old, according to estimates in PwC’s latest Young Workers Index. This year, the UK reached its highest position since the Index began in 2006, climbing to 18th out of 35 OECD countries from 20th last year. The UK’s improvement reflects lower youth unemployment and NEET rates as the economic recovery from the financial crisis has continued, but it still lags behind many other OECD countries, with Switzerland, Iceland and Germany leading the pack.

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