Search Results for: leadership

April 19, 2013

Female-friendly employers named as progress of women in boardrooms stalls

by Sara Bean • Comment, Knowledge, News, Workplace

In an interview this week on BBC’s Newsnight, Facebook’s CFO Sheryl Sandberg, revealed how she’d come to notice a growing gender imbalance as she moved up the corporate ladder. As her new book Lean in, points out, 30 years after women became 50 per cent of the college graduates in the United States, men still hold the vast majority of leadership positions. This is just one of many reasons why the publication this week of the Times Top 50 Employers for Women list of the UK organisations that are leading the way in gender equality in the workplace is to be welcomed.

April 15, 2013

Better reporting required on employee engagement and wellbeing

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Workplace

There is a need for more open reporting on employee engagement and wellbeing by FTSE 100 organisations according to an inaugural report into wellness by Business in the Community. The first Workwell FTSE 100 benchmark, which analysed how FTSE 100 organisations manage their 6.3 million employees gave an average score of just 21 per cent, which said BITC was “not unexpected” at this first stage of development. The highest scoring Workwell indicators were Diversity and Inclusion (at 50 per cent of total marks) and Health and Safety (at 44 per cent), showing how compliance drives measurement and reporting.

March 26, 2013

Survey: Raised levels of staff empowerment and engagement

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Workplace

There has been a positive change in employees’ levels of engagement according to new research from recruiter hyphen. Nearly three fifths (58.6 per cent) of UK workers are proud to work for their current organisation, and over three quarters (76.1 per cent) believe their manager gives them the support and autonomy needed to aide their performance. Zain Wadee, managing director at hyphen, said: “Engaging workers is now becoming an integral part of employment and retention strategies; not least to ensure workers are happy but also to help them perform to the best of their ability.”

March 22, 2013

UK employers failing to measure effectiveness of workplace wellness

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Workplace

Further data from Buck Consultant’s Global Wellness Strategies Report reveals that UK employers know what they want from their workplace wellness strategy, but less than one in 10 (9 per cent) actively measures specific outcomes, and three quarters (74 per cent) of those that don’t say it is due to limited resources. According to the study, increasing employee morale and engagement (73 per cent), improving staff productivity and reducing presenteeism (69 per cent), and reducing absenteeism (66 per cent) are the three top goals for UK businesses; with the top four health risks identified as stress, workplace safety and work-life balance issues and depression.

March 21, 2013

$16m revamp of High Commission in London to showcase Canada’s identity

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, News, Property, Workplace design

As part of the Canadian government’s consolidation of its diplomatic mission in the UK, it has put up for sale MacDonald House in Grosvenor Square in London and will look to develop its other main building Canada House in Trafalgar Square. MacDonald House was formerly the American Embassy until 1961 and the Canadian Government has been looking to consolidate its operations for a number of years. As well as moving its functions under one roof, the Government has earmarked $16 million for a revamp of Canada House which will also be designed to showcase Canadian values and know-how.

March 7, 2013

Green Construction Board publishes carbon emissions routemap

by Sara Bean • Environment, Knowledge, News, Property

Carbon

The Green Construction Board has called for urgent action to reduce carbon emissions as it published a new plan for the sector to meet national carbon reduction targets. The Low Carbon Routemap for the Built Environment, launched at this week’s Ecobuild sets out what is required from the construction industry to achieve its UK government target of an 80 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels by 2050. The GCB also published its ‘Top Twenty Tips’ for greening the industry with a case study engine showing examples of good practice. More →

March 5, 2013

Green issues still a core business concern for managers

by Sara Bean • Environment, Facilities management, News, Property

Green biz

Green issues have become a core business concern amongst managers responsible for the built environment, says the chair of the Green Building Council Andrew Gould in his introduction to a series of essays which highlight the benefits of a sustainable built environment as a driver for growth. Senior executives from 15 major companies, including Atkins, Balfour Beatty and E.ON, have written the pieces which outline the business case for green buildings and infrastructure. Added Gould: “At the start of 2013, with the short-medium term economic forecast only a little improved, the sustainability agenda is actually in rude health.”

March 4, 2013

Nearly all UK employers now offer flexible working, claims survey

by Mark Eltringham • Knowledge, News, Workplace

A new report from the Institute of Leadership and Management claims that as many as 94 per cent of UK employers now offer staff some form of flexible working arrangement. The study of more than 1,100 UK managers found that around three quarters (73 per cent) of respondents said their organisation actively supported flexible work practices, 82 per cent were aware of the benefits of flexible working and nearly two thirds (62 per cent) said that senior managers led schemes by example. There is still work to be done in gaining universal acceptance however with 50 per cent of managers claiming flexible working is now standard practice .

February 26, 2013

Companies must develop a social purpose to survive

by Sara Bean • Environment, Knowledge, News, Technology, Workplace

Research-and-Futures-231x170

Company reputations could collapse in minutes and more firms will develop an explicit ‘social purpose’ according to a new report from Global corporate responsibility consultancy Corporate Citizenship. “Future Business: the four mega trends that every company needs to prepare for” identifies four mega-trends that it says are likely to shape the nature of business over the coming decade. According to the consultancy, over the last year the proportion of S&P 500 companies that report on sustainability performance has grown from one in five to over half and the over the coming decades, it expects at least as much change again.

February 22, 2013

US Federal government confirms green-building requirements

by Sara Bean • Architecture, Environment, Facilities management, Property, Public Sector

the_white_house_0

A new study prepared for the United States Department of Defense (DoD) by the National Research Council has given the seal of approval on the importance of green-building certification programs as tools to reduce energy use and other operational costs. “This reaffirmed what we’ve been saying all along – that LEED makes good economic sense,” said Fleming Roberts, Associate, Policy & Advocacy at the US Building Council. “The report recommended that the Department of Defense should require its new buildings or major renovations to be designed to achieve at least LEED Silver certification.” More →

February 21, 2013

“Groundbreaking” guidance on drivers for social change

by Sara Bean • Environment, Knowledge, News

Network for business sustainability

Businesses can play a key role in driving social change according to a groundbreaking new report. Whether through product labelling, supply chain management, employee volunteerism and partnerships with non-government organisations (NGOs), companies have the power to help people get active, eat healthy foods, use less energy and live more sustainable lives. Now a new guide based on a review of 123 studies from the last 20 years, released by the Network for Business Sustainability (NBS) provides the evidence for any business interested in cause marketing, social innovation or responsible consumption. More →

February 11, 2013

Leading architect appointed to new Obama administration

by Sara Bean • Architecture, News, Public Sector, Workplace design

graves

Leading architect and designer Michael Graves has joined President Obama’s new administration. Graves, who is a wheelchair user, has been appointed to the United States’ Access Board, an independent Federal agency that provides leadership in accessible design. He said: “I am honoured to have been appointed to the United States Access Board by President Obama. When I became paralyzed, I realized that as an architect and designer, and then a patient, I had a unique perspective. As a result, I became passionate about using this perspective to improve healthcare and accessibility through design projects.” More →