Search Results for: future of work

March 5, 2014

Innovate or die? Why facilities management must embrace change to survive

by Demitri Maldonado • Comment, Facilities management

According to recent reports on workplace, facilities management and corporate real estate, the support services sector needs to change. Some even say it needs to innovate or die. That might be a little harsh, but the current model that the majority of FM service providers work to and that their clients take for granted is tired and has not kept pace with the evolving business environment. Zurich Insurance’s report of late 2012 into CRE & FM said the sector was at a cross roads; in 2013 Jones Lang LaSalle said something similar and picked out five global trends to which CRE and FM had to respond. IFMA & CBRE have taken a similar line, but are more specific – namely FM had to embrace its softer side, focus on people skills and develop them to ensure success. More →

March 3, 2014

World Green Building Council to quantify productivity benefits of sustainability

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Environment, Facilities management, Property

In an attempt to broaden the business case for sustainable building, the World Green Building Council has launched a new initiative to define the productivity and wellbeing benefits associated with low carbon and sustainable property. The initiative, launched ahead of this week’s Ecobuild conference in London, will be steered by a group of experts who will produce a final report later in the year. The premise of the study is to show that, as well as cutting costs and improving environmental performance, green buildings have a beneficial effect on the health, wellness and productivity of occupants. According to the announcement, around 85 per cent of an average organisation’s costs are associated with salaries and other costs of employment so a modest improvement in productivity can have a huge impact.

February 27, 2014

UK Government urged to push ahead with zero carbon commercial buildings

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Environment, Facilities management, Legal news, News, Property

The UK’s Green Building Council has fired off its latest salvo in an ongoing battle with the Government over the implementation of environmental legislation for commercial buildings. A new report from the organisation’s Task Group urges the Government to push ahead with plans to ensure that by 2019 all new non domestic buildings will be built to zero carbon standards. The report claims that the implementation of appropriate regulations is hampered by a lack of clarity, including confusion over what zero carbon actually means as well as the government’s own stop-start approach to the environment. The current 2019 commitment to zero carbon buildings falls a year ahead of the deadline specified in European Law, but a recent focus from the coalition on reducing relevant legislation has added to confusion about the overall approach.

February 24, 2014

CIPD calls for a budget to address decline in UK productivity

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

The CIPD has urged the Chancellor to focus on delivering a “Budget for Productivity” when he delivers his 2014 Budget on 19 March. The employment body has today put forward a package of proposals which call for labour market inclusion and the development of more productive, inclusive, and engaging workplaces. It is calling for a fundamental review of UK skills policy, together with a new focus on the workplace, the nature of jobs for the future, and how skills are being utilised. This, the CIPD argues, is critical if the necessary leap in productivity is to be delivered to boost real wages. A recent CIPD report found that already weak UK productivity has worsened as a result of a slow-down in job turnover during the recession and an extraordinary run of hiring that has preceded the recent return to growth. More →

February 20, 2014

Could personality profiling help create a more productive office environment?

by Suzanne McMinn • Facilities management, News, Workplace, Workplace design

Creating the most productive working space to help get the best from your people is an ongoing battle. What suits some doesn’t suit others. So if there was some way of assessing up front how people like to work and the environment that would make them their most productive, engaged and committed – before you rearrange the furniture, fittings and layout – would you leap at the chance of finding out? One approach could be personality profiling. If you could climb inside the minds of your current and future employees and assess how they best like to work, their personality and how this then drives them to be more productive in certain working environments than others – who wouldn’t want to have a delve around? Or are we in danger of pandering to personality stereotypes? More →

February 14, 2014

Virgin Atlantic first airline to apply Google Glass to customer service

by Sara Bean • Company news, Facilities management, Technology

It’s already been predicted that Smart Glasses will be a boon to technicians, engineers and healthcare workers, as well as useful interactive, hands-free devices for office staff. Another obvious application for wearable technology is in customer services. Virgin Atlantic is applying the technology to deliver the airline industry’s most high tech and personalised customer service yet. Working with air-transport specialist SITA, it’s the first airline to test how the technology can best be used to enhance customers’ travel experiences and improve efficiency. During a six week pilot scheme, concierge staff in Virgin Atlantic Upper Class Wing at London Heathrow airport will use wearable technology to greet customers by name and begin the check in process. The benefits to consumers and the business will be evaluated ahead of a potential wider roll-out in the future. More →

February 7, 2014

Looming resource constraints go way beyond carbon, warns the Carbon Trust

by Sara Bean • Environment, Facilities management, News

Sustainability in business must expand to meet future demands on resources. These constraints will go way beyond energy management, but include water, waste and land-use; for example there could be a 40 per cent gap between available water supplies and water needs by 2030, and some critical materials could be in short supply as soon as 2016. Organisations that adapt their business models by assessing their exposure to such resource constraints can identify how to manage these risks and exploit commercial opportunities. In turn this will improve efficiency, strengthen long-term resilience, and drive business returns. So says the Carbon Trust’s new report, Opportunities in an resource constrained world, which has profiled four of its customers: Whitbread, BT, Stagecoach, and Bord Bia and sets out some of the steps they have taken on sustainability. More →

January 22, 2014

Plans submitted for 19 storey tower in Manchester business district

by Mark Eltringham • News, Property

Developers have submitted plans for the development of a new tower on the site of an existing office building in Manchester city centre. Allied London is looking to create a new 19 storey office in Spinningfields, the city’s troubled £1.5 billion business district which ran into development problems at the height of the recession between 2007 and 2010. The new building a will offer over 340,000 sq. ft. of office space and is designed by Ian Simpson Architects who were responsible for the design of the Beetham Tower. The ground floor is also likely to incorporate retail outlets, cafes and restaurants. A final decision on the application from the local authority is due in April. Quay House, the current building on the site, is argued by the developer to be under-occupied and outdated.

January 20, 2014

Largest single office floor plate unveiled in Leeds as demand for space increases

by Sara Bean • Company news, News, Property

The largest single office floor plate currently available in Leeds city centre has been unveiled, following the completion of a £1million refurbishment programme at one of the city’s landmark office schemes. The NFU Mutual insurance firm, which owns No 1 Whitehall Riverside, has refurbished 34,000 sq ft of space within the building to transform the 4th and 5th floors. In a first for the Leeds office market, 100 per cent LED lighting has been installed on both floors, to provide low maintenance, good quality lighting which will reduce CO2 emissions for future occupiers. Joint letting agents Jones Lang LaSalle and DTZ say that the building, which provides 127,731 sq ft of office accommodation over eight floors, helps to meet increasing demand for quality office space in the centre of Leeds. More →