Search Results for: flexible working

November 9, 2013

Looking back on a year in which the office sought a clearer sense of identity

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Facilities management, Flexible working, Workplace design

It’s not often that workplace management becomes national business news but that happened at the end of February when the world became very interested for a while in the way we design and manage offices. The reason for this was the decision by Yahoo to ban homeworking for staff at its headquarters. The resultant period of shirt-rending at this challenge to received wisdom told us more about the changing view of the workplace than the actual decision by Yahoo. As the dust settled, we discovered that the Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer had based her decision to change working practices on data from the company’s network that showed people working from home didn’t log on to the company Virtual Private Network as much as those in the office.

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November 4, 2013

We may not always feel it, but technology makes us far more productive

by Philip Ross • News

A new report has been published by O2 which suggests that technology has allowed us to become nearly five time more productive than we were in the 1970s. The Individual Productivity Report is a joint research project from O2 and the Centre for Economic and Business Research and used a metric called gross value added (GVA) per worker per hour to arrive at its results. The report concludes from this data that in terms of ICT the average British worker is now 480 percent more productive than they were in the 1972, that people get more done in less time, freeing them up to spend more time interacting with clients and colleagues, providing better service and driving business growth.

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October 25, 2013

Economic recovery, the changing psychological contract and the future of the office

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Facilities management, Flexible working, Workplace design

There has always been a link of one sort or another between the labour market and office design. So, as the UK’s unemployment statistics continue to fall, they remain moderately high and there continue to be structural changes in the nature of work, typified by this year’s debate about the growing use of zero hours contracts. You have to wonder what impact structural changes, levels of unemployment and redundancy (around 4 million in the UK since 2008) have had on the way we manage and design our workplaces. There is no doubt that the downturn combined with the structural changes in the way we work have had an effect on demand for commercial property, but what will it all mean in the longer term?

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October 21, 2013

Job satisfaction keeps employees motivated more than bonuses

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

The 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…)

October 8, 2013

Nearly two thirds of SMEs now trust employees to work flexibly

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

One of the main arguments against flexible working amongst blue chip organisations – which was well documented following the Yahoo furore earlier this year, is that it is detrimental to fostering a collaborative working culture. Amongst small and medium sized companies, the reasons against are more straightforward, in that it demands a level of trust small business managers can ill afford to bestow unwisely. Now a new survey, carried out among over 200 UK-based SME decision-makers, highlights a growing acceptance of flexible working within these businesses. Well over half (63%) of senior executives say they trust their employees to remain productive when working away from the office, the Citrix-commissioned YouGov survey has shown. (more…)

October 1, 2013

Over half of UK and US workers still go into work when they are sick

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Over half of UK and US workers still go into work when they’re sick, according to separate surveys from either side of the Atlantic. The US study by Kimberly-Clark Professional found that 59 per cent of people go to work even when they feel ill; with three in 10 saying it was because they were too important to the business operation. In the UK, new YouGov research on behalf of Westfield Health found that exactly the same percentage (59%) of workers turned up despite being unwell because of work commitments; 82 per cent of employees had worked over their contractual hours in the last 12 months and 64 per cent admitted to feeling stressed at work. (more…)

September 25, 2013

Google is Generation Y’s choice as world’s most attractive employer

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

Cool offices, generous employee perks and of course being a successful global tech firm may seem the obvious reasons why Google is perceived as the world’s most attractive employer by Generation Y, according to a global poll. However, employer branding company Universum Global’s annual list of the 50 companies business and engineering students would choose as the best to work for, finds the most common characteristics young workers consider most important in a potential employer are pretty much the same applicants of all ages would cite. These are; market success, professional training and development opportunities, supportive leaders and job security. So maybe Millennials aren’t so easily swayed by nap pods after all. (more…)

September 20, 2013

The rehabilitation of the cubicle and other lessons from 100% Design

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Events, Flexible working, Furniture, Products, Workplace design

UniteSE from KI

As we’ve said before, acoustics has become the dominant theme at office design exhibitions over the past three or four years. That’s been true at shows in Milan, Cologne, Chicago and London and was certainly the case at this year’s 100% Design at Earl’s Court. A quick whizz around the office zone at this year’s event – which is a useful way of getting an impression before you stop to talk to people about the detail of what they’re doing – revealed that well over half of the exhibitors were showcasing products that addressed the issue of acoustics. And yet things have also moved on from recent events, not least in the rehabilitation of that most demonised of all office furniture pieces – the cubicle.

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September 19, 2013

National work-life week 2013 aims to promote better work-life balance

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Encouraging a healthy work-life balance is one of the keystones of employee wellness programmes. Yet, while most employers would claim they continually address issues such as stress and overwork, the fact that 40 per cent of workplace absences in this country are stress-related tells a different story. According to a new survey by Adecco, a third (34%) of employers are even prepared to cancel someone’s holiday if there is too much work to do in the office. Such practices are being challenged by a week of events dedicated to the promotion of work-life balance. National Work-Life Week 2013 is organised by the charity Working Families and will include a conference ‘Smart Work, Agile Work, Flexible Work’ on Tuesday 24 September. (more…)