September 21, 2022

The twenty-five technologies that can help climate action

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News, Technology

A new report by the World Economic Forum’s Climate Trade Zero initiative calls for scaling up trade in 25 key technologies to support climate action and cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 to meet targets set out in the Paris Agreement on climate change. As many parts of the world face rising energy bills, reducing trade barriers can cut technology costs, as well as speed up availability, innovation, access and adoption. (more…)

September 9, 2022

Calling time on the quiet quitting hysteria

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working

In a 2002 speech, the author Michael Crichton coined the term Gell-Mann Amnesia effect, after the physicist Murray Gell-Mann. He used it to describe a particular phenomenon in which experts in a given field will believe news and opinions in the media, even though they know the same media can be spectacularly unreliable on matters related to their own area of expertise. (more…)

September 1, 2022

Skills gap is the most prominent hiring challenge facing HR leaders

by Jayne Smith • News, Workplace

New research from ECI Partners, a private equity firm, suggests that HR leaders believe the most prominent hiring challenge they currently face is a lack of technical skills and knowledge. Nearly a fifth (18.3 percent) of managers said this was their single biggest obstacle, highlighting the growing concern over the UK’s skills gap. The current labour shortages prompted by a range of factors including Brexit and Covid-19, appear to have further widened the skills gap for recruiters. (more…)

August 25, 2022

Issue 2 of Works magazine continues to shake things up

by Mick Jordan • News, Premium Content, Works Magazine

We’ve received plenty of messages over the past few weeks, asking when we’re going to see the first full publication of Works – the new workplace design magazine (and sister title to IN) following the successful launch of its pilot issue. Well, we’re delighted to announce that the printer’s big red button has been pushed and said issue is on its way. And the digital edition is available to read free now. (more…)

August 25, 2022

How Microsoft’s social listening research highlighted changing attitudes to work

by Camila Angio • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing

The current state of the talent market is putting significant pressure on business. Employers are experiencing an acute skills gap, with average vacancies across industries per 100 jobs ranging between 5 and 8, according to data compiled by the Office for National Statistics in June 2022 – the highest average since records began. As more and more roles require digital skills, businesses are looking to younger generations whose upbringing may have been organically framed by digital tools, platforms and devices. (more…)

August 25, 2022

How to find top tech talent for your business

by Freddie Steele • Company news

Finding the right tech talent for your business is essential for its success. The right employees can help your business grow and reach new heights. When looking for tech talent, there are a few things to keep in mind. Keep reading to find out where to find the best tech talent for your business. (more…)

August 3, 2022

We can re-imagine the future of human resources

by Richa Gupta • Comment, Workplace

The world of work is changing rapidly. Businesses are having to make fundamental shifts to adjust to the emergence of new business models, technologies and the changing expectations of the workforce. This has left human resources teams all over the world needing to efficiently adapt the way they hire, develop and take care of their staff, with the most significant challenge being managing the needs of the current workforce, and addressing their future demands. (more…)

August 1, 2022

Podcast: the weak arguments in favour of offices and the problem with the future of work

by Neil Franklin • Features, Flexible working, Podcasts, Property, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Mark Eltringham the publisher of Workplace Insight and IN Magazine recently joined Caleb Parker, the founder of Bold, on his Work Bold podcast for an unscripted chat on: the future of work and how it may shape the future of commercial real estate; the reasons why anybody might ever want to go back to an office to work; the problem with weak arguments both for and against offices; and the importance of culture and flexibility rather than fixed times and places of work in determining people’s day to day experiences of work. The prompt for this conversation was the occasional discussion on social media over the past couple of years and a recent article exploring the value of weak ties. (more…)

July 28, 2022

Personal space is not merely an issue of hygiene, but a biological imperative

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

The current debate about how much space we will need in the office from now on is not new. As with many of the debate’s facets, the point at which we find ourselves has long been our destination. We’re just here earlier than we might have expected. (more…)

July 28, 2022

MPs call for Menopause Ambassador role to help women in the workplace

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Lack of support from employers for women with symptoms of the menopause is pushing ‘highly skilled and experienced’ women out of work, claims a new report from the cross-party House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee. The authors call on the Government to act, amending the Equality Act to introduce menopause as a protected characteristic, and to include a duty for employers to provide reasonable adjustments for menopausal employees. The MPs also urge the Government to remove dual prescription charges for oestrogen and progesterone as part of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) nationwide, replacing it with a single charge for all women.

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July 28, 2022

KI furniture helps Crunch Digital reimagine Swansea HQ for hybrid working

by Mark Eltringham • Company news

As part of their ‘return to the office’ following the COVID-19 pandemic, Crunch Digital, a digital media specialist that focuses on SEO, pay-per-click-social media, programmatic, technical, and creative services, wanted to create a new office space that promoted both safety and collaboration. The office design, carried out in partnership with Ministry of Furniture and KI furniture also needed to reflect the ethos and culture of the company and cater to a young and innovative workforce. (more…)

July 25, 2022

Have we arrived at a point of equilibrium in the great workplace conversation?

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing

Perhaps the greatest irony of the tedious home v office debate is that the absolutists on both sides rely on many of the same fallacies. They tend to build their arguments around a simplistic view of the office and remote work that has little basis in reality. Unsurprisingly, when they do get their way, reality often bites them in the arse. (more…)