Search Results for: management

March 13, 2019

Companies that adopt agile working enjoy improved financial performance, claims report

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

Companies that embrace agile working and and a generally more flexible and responsive way of working enjoy a financial and operational competitive advantage over their rivals, according to new research from PA Consulting. Two thirds of the respondents said that their business model is at risk of fundamentally becoming outdated, with agile considered a key method for transitioning to a future-proof strategy. While agile is typically regarded by many as a method geared at streamlining operations, PA Consulting’s research suggests the approach could take things a step further. The consultancy conducted an international study among 500 executives of large companies across a range of sectors, asking them how they view agile working and what they see as the key factors for successful adoption. More →

March 12, 2019

Insight promotion: creating a frictionless (not flawed) workplace experience

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Insight promotion, Workplace design

To mark the launch of Workplace House, a multi-brand co-creation space in the heart of Clerkenwell, a consortium of participating brands hosted an event to explore the factors that contribute towards a good (and not so good) workplace experience.

March 11, 2019

Many leaders lack the skills needed to manage in the digital age

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology

A study conducted by The Oxford Group (registration) claims that companies are struggling to adapt to a digital workplace as leaders lack the critical digital skills they need to transform the organisation. Whilst 96 percent of respondents said the onus is on leaders to drive the adoption of new technologies and 94 percent believe it’s important for leaders to challenge traditional ways of thinking, only a third (33 percent) of leaders feel well prepared to lead their business. Gaps in leaders’ digital skill-sets are having a major impact on their ability to transform; 41 percent say that a lack of digital expertise makes decision-making more difficult, and 30 percent say it has prevented their team from innovating.

March 6, 2019

Less time spent commuting is key to workplace wellbeing

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

Lenovo has released a study on ‘Britain’s evolving workplace’ (registration). It claims that more than three quarters (76 per cent) of those that have no commute by working from home are overall satisfied with their job and a third (37 per cent) of those surveyed admit to choosing their current role based on its close proximity to their home. The report claims that the changing nature of the modern workplace benefits both workers and employers, with one in ten workers most productive outside of typical 7am to 6pm working hours and a quarter (26 per cent) wishing to work more flexible hours.

February 28, 2019

Communication skills trump experience as quality employers look for in candidates

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

New research from The University of Law Business School has analysed over 700 keywords from the job specifications of 30 common business roles (across three popular job sites), to reveal what employers are looking for from candidates. The research highlights the crossover in skills and requirements across roles and industries, helping encourage those considering a career move, or just starting out in the world of business by showing how qualified they may already be for a new career. Its key finding is that employers are hugely more interested in people’s interpersonal skills than their work experience.

February 27, 2019

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Workplace ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Facilities management, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

We know, and have for a long time, that the workplace is in a state of near constant flux and so we often fall into the trap of assuming that there is some sort of evolution towards an idealised version of it. That is why we see so many people routinely willing to suspend their critical facilities to make extravagant and even absurd predictions about the office of the future or even the death of the office. This is perniciously faulty thinking. However we can frame a number of workplace related ideas in terms of evolutionary theory, so long as we accept one of the central precepts about evolution. Namely that there is no end game, just types progressing and sometimes dying out along the distinct branches of a complex ecosystem. As a nerdy sort of guy of a certain age, I’ve tended to frame my thoughts on all of this with reference to an idea from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by the great Douglas Adams.

February 26, 2019

IFMA UK joins forces with Greenpeace and Kids Against Plastic

by Mark Eltringham • Environment, News

With over 12.7 million tonnes of plastic entering the ocean every year, killing over 1 million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals, it is estimated that by 2050 plastic will outweigh fish in our seas. Humans produce nearly 300 million tonnes of plastic every year, half of which is for single use. This is simply unsustainable.

February 20, 2019

It is time for organisations to embrace the digital workplace

by Christian Brøndum • AI, Comment, Facilities management, Flexible working, Technology, Workplace

With the rise of both cloud-based technology and the worldwide gig economy, the last ten years of the 21^st century have seen some near-revolutionary changes in workplace practice. Entrepreneurs everywhere have been more than happy to make use of these developments, taking advantage of the new business models these changes have brought. For example, IDG found that 73 percent of the organizations that they surveyed have at least one application already in the cloud, and according to ONS, since 2010 there has been a 25 percent increase in the number of non-employer businesses in the private sector, a change attributed to the growing popularity of the gig economy. However, despite all the advances in workplace culture, thousands of workers in the UK are being left behind in outdated modes of work.

February 17, 2019

Century Office begins experiment into six hour working day

by Neil Franklin • Company news, Flexible working

Century Office will soon be commencing an experiment into a shorter working day. In collaboration with the University of Essex, Century Office will be shortening the working day down to 6.5 hours. They expect that, although it remains to be proven, that employees will become more focussed and productive as the desire for more leisure times and time for self-care, family, hobbies etc outweighs the tendency for idle chat and periods of low productivity. It is also hoped that participants will feel less anxious or tired as they have more time to pursue personal endeavours and come out of work mode.

February 14, 2019

Digital transformation requires more than just new technology

by Arnab Banerjee • Comment, Technology

Digital transformation has been a priority for businesses for many years, primarily to benefit from the opportunities presented by a mix of digital technologies and their impact across all aspects of society. Customer-facing functions such as sales, marketing and procurement, in their quest for new revenue sources and information-powered ecosystems of value, have led the way on digital transformation, while HR has historically taken a back seat. But in order for the entire organisation undergoing transformation to work together holistically, HR needs to take the lead and embed a digital DNA within the organisation.

February 13, 2019

Organisational innovation being stymied by lack of senior support

by Sara Bean • AI, News, Technology, Workplace

A lack of senior stakeholder support is the greatest inhibitor of change, new research suggests as despite considerable enthusiasm to innovate, organisations are being thwarted by tight resources and strong internal resistance. The data commissioned by KCOM found that organisations are also limiting themselves by turning away the specialist skills and experience that could help them advance, through overly predictive procurement processes. They are however, eager to be more competitive, which is why organisations are making big investments in innovation projects. Almost half (43 percent) consider driving digital transformation to improve competitive advantage to be their top priority in the next year. A further 32 percent are allocating at least 20 percent of their IT budget to new projects. Both public and private sector organisations are also taking an increasingly people-centric approach to digital transformation. In the next year, 80 percent said they would incentivise staff retention through training, accreditation and career development to deliver on their innovation strategy. This is compared to 71 percent who said they would do so by investing in new technologies.

February 12, 2019

Lack of cohesion in many organisations on adoption of digital workplace

by Sara Bean • AI, Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Technology

The majority of organisations (58 percent) do not have a have a clearly defined strategy in place when it comes to adopting and integrating digital workspace technology which suggests that implementing and making use of such technology is still being carried out in something of a haphazard manner. The findings of the research are summarised in SoftwareONE’s Building a Lean, Mean, Digital Machine report, which also claims that, despite the fact that almost all organisations (99 percent) employ some form of digital workspace technology, respondents have encountered a host of challenges when it comes to using them. These include higher security risks (cited by 47 percent) and a lack of employee knowledge in how best to use the solutions (45 percent). More →