September 26, 2023

‘Levelling up’ development is new home for 1,400 civil servants

by Neil Franklin • News, Property, Public Sector

The UK government has purchased land for the permanent site of the new Darlington Economic Campus as a key part of its so-called levelling up programme. The Darlington Economic Campus (DEC) was established in August 2021 and currently houses 674 government staff. McLaren Property has now sold its option on a 7,926 square metres site on Brunswick Street in Darlington to the Government Property Agency for a permanent base for the Treasury’s second headquarters and Department for Business and Trade. More →

September 26, 2023

Workplace absenteeism soars to its highest level in over a decade

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

UK employees were absent an average of 7.8 days over the past year according to new survey findings from the CIPD and Simplyhealth. This is the highest level the trade body has reported in over a decade and two whole days more than the pre-pandemic rate of 5.8 days. The report claims the upsurge in workplace absenteeism comes at a time when employers are under increasing pressure with recruitment and retention challenges. As a result, the CIPD and Simplyhealth are calling on organisations to have an open and supportive culture where people can speak to line managers about health issues and access helpful support and adjustments such as flexible working options and health services. More →

September 25, 2023

The workation is taking off – but it needs the right tech to make it effective

by Eamon O'Doherty • Company news, Technology

The trend for semi-nomadic working has grown in the past few months, and with it the ‘workation’, as people have looked for last minute sunny getaways after a somewhat disappointing UK summer. For the unfamiliar, a ‘workation’ is essentially taking advantage of remote working to blend work and a holiday. This could involve taking a summer holiday, and then working from the destination for a further week or two. Some may plan a visit to stay with friends or family, building some days of work into the trip, so they still get the enjoy the evenings with their loved ones. Or they may simply plan a normal working week undertaken remotely from a different location for a change of scene – anywhere from a mountain lodge to city break. More →

September 25, 2023

Women continue to struggle with the return to work after maternity leave

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

A new poll suggests that while 98 percent of women want to return to work after maternity leave, only 13 percent say it’s actually viable for them. The survey of 848 mothers commissioned by Careers After Babies looked at what happened to their careers after having children. The survey looked into four areas – maternity leave, returning to work, career progression and what women actually want. More →

September 25, 2023

Report links economic growth with the idea of ‘good work’

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

In advance of the main party conferences, the CIPD is calling for the next UK Government to develop a long-term workforce strategy to underpin a broader, bolder vision for economic growth. This is a central message in its new ‘Manifesto for Good Work’ which outlines the public policy changes needed to address the UK’s multiple challenges, for all the main UK political parties. These challenges include stagnating productivity, rising skills shortages and our ageing working population. More →

September 20, 2023

Knowledge workers have a particularly unhealthy relationship with work

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Three quarters of UK knowledge workers say they have an unhealthy relationship with work and two thirds of those say that work has had a negative effect on their health and wellbeing. That is one of the headline findings from a new report into the working lives of 15,600 people worldwide from HP. The report also suggests that three quarters of respondents would take a pay cut to be happier at work or to work wherever they want. More →

September 14, 2023

Herman Miller Fuld chair is the perfect solution for the present and future of work

by Freddie Steele • News, Workplace design

We may not always know exactly what the future of work holds, but we can design spaces that are ready for it. The ability to respond to change is one of the most important facets of an effective design in the era of widespread hybrid working, alongside the ability to tailor a solution that meets the diverse needs of individuals for the best possible working environment at any one time. More →

September 8, 2023

Not many people want fully remote work, but nearly everybody wants a better office

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology

Just 7 percent of UK office workers back fully remote work, but eight in ten would like to see significant improvements to their company’s office and more support for flexible working, according to the Sony State of Offices Report 2023 [registration]. The report from Sony Professional Displays and Solutions Europe suggests that over two fifths (41 percent) of UK office workers still prefer to work from a dedicated company office, and across Europe this trend is even more pronounced with over half (53 percent) favouring office-based work. However, eight in ten (79 percent) in the UK call for improvements to offices, and the tech within them, to better suit their new flexible, asynchronous working styles. More →

September 8, 2023

HLW launches brand experience team – brandx

by Freddie Steele • Company news

brandx, a global team shaping the standard for innovative wayfinding strategies, signage systems, and brand experiences, is pleased to announce its official launch as a specialty partner of international architecture and design firm HLW. In a world where individuals are exposed to thousands of visual messages every day, brandx cuts through the clutter by creating intuitive connections that redefine how users safely and efficiently interact with brands, as well as their physical surroundings. More →

September 7, 2023

How to rebuild social connection for high-performance hybrid work: a deep-dive for workplace innovators

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Events

Social connection is often cited as a justification for return-to-office mandates, many of which are not well received by employees. This suggests that merely spending time in the office isn’t enough to spark the connection that gets ideas flowing, ramps up performance and creates a cohesive culture. So, if physical presence alone isn’t enough to rebuild connection, what is? Workplace innovators exploring the issues around hybrid work now have the opportunity to dig deep and find out.

Tune into HubStar’s upcoming webinar on Thursday September 19th at 4 PM BST for an exploration of the approaches, strategies and tools necessary to rebuild social connection in complex hybrid workplaces.

Workplace innovators are facing the greatest opportunity of our generation to positively disrupt the way we work, but as Einstein said, we can’t solve problems with the same kind of thinking we used to create them.

So what kind of thinking is required to ignite the magic of meaningful connection at work? How do we stop hybrid work strategies from stalling? And, which tools and approaches can help us manage the complexity inherent in new ways of working?

In this 30 minute webinar, you’ll discover:

Key trends impacting people, hybrid workplaces and organisational performance in 2023 and beyond
A step-by-step framework for overcoming remote working inertia and rebuilding social connection in the office
Dynamic Workplace Management: a new framework for positive change across 3 dimensions: people, profit and planet

The webinar will include a live Q&A with the speaker, Jane Young and the VP Product at HubStar, Chris L’Hommedieu.

HubStar is a global company with operations in the US, UK, Europe and APAC. The company provides a next-generation dynamic workplace management platform to drive productivity, collaboration and workplace experience while reducing real estate costs. HubStar helps thousands of teams in over 60 countries create dynamic workplaces. For more information visit hubstar.com

September 5, 2023

Working from home won’t last forever… will it?

by Zain Ali • Comment, Flexible working, Technology

Have we all gone a little OTT on RTO? The so-called return to office and pushback on working from home seems to be the must-talk topic on workplace strategy right now; a heated debate ignited by Zoom’s recent call to reduce remote working days for its employees. Many have been surprised at how polarising this decision has become. Who would have thought that a global business asking employees to work from the office two days a week could cause such controversy? Even if that business does specialise in video calls for remote work? More →

August 18, 2023

The challenge for office acoustics is to make people feel at home

by Freddie Steele • Comment, Workplace design

A number of apparent truisms about work and workplaces entered mainstream consciousness in the wake of the pandemic, and the shift to more flexible and hybrid working cultures. One of them is that people are better off carrying out focussed, quiet work at home, and creative and collaborative work in the office. And that this might suggest our approach to office acoustics would shift in particular ways. More →