Search Results for: office

Hybrid working not always well supported by current tech infrastructure

Hybrid working not always well supported by current tech infrastructure

A steampunk office illustrating the poor state of tech supporting hybrid workingAlmost two thirds (63 percent) of IT directors are not very confident in their IT estate’s ability to fully support hybrid working, but over seven-in ten (71 percent) of organisations are not placing IT investment at the top of the priority list. These are among the findings from a new poll undertaken by Apogee Corporation. Due to limitations with the current IT setup, 89 percent of respondents identify that it is preventing effective collaboration, with almost half (48 percent) admitting that remote staff don’t have access to the same solutions as office workers. More →

In person work can make the signs of burnout easier to spot

In person work can make the signs of burnout easier to spot

A snuffed out candle to illustrate the issue of burnoutA new poll from Barco claims that a third of people who mostly work in the office found it easier to tell when a colleague is overworked or stressed when seeing them face to face, leaving some remote workers at risk of struggling under the radar of management teams. This comes as over a quarter of staff report experiencing burnout over chronic work-related stress that has not been managed successfully.  More →

BW showcases new Design and Build service

BW showcases new Design and Build service

BW design and Build serviceBW: Workplace Experts has added to its expertise in fit out with a new design and build (D&B) service. BW Design and Build extends the company’s service portfolio, encompassing a pool of resources that are now able to design and deliver from within. This forms part of the firm’s commitment to ongoing and dynamic investment in supporting future client relationships. It is also in line with BW’s three layers: Innovation, Diversity and Net Zero, launched last year as part of its Purpose Report. More →

Self-confident bosses are most resistant to change, study claims

Self-confident bosses are most resistant to change, study claims

Chief Executive Officers with exaggerated self-confidence show a preference for steadiness within organisations, claims new research from the University of Mannheim Business School. Marc Kowalzick, Post-Doctoral researcher at the University of Mannheim Business School, and Moritz Appels, former University of Mannheim PhD student and now Assistant Professor at Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, address a central dilemma in our understanding of CEO hubris: Are these CEOs particularly inclined to change their firms’ trajectories or not? More →

Third of employees won’t switch off over Christmas, even though the boss wants them to

Third of employees won’t switch off over Christmas, even though the boss wants them to

An illustration of employees in Christmas hats sitting in front of a computerA poll of over 2,000 UK office workers by Slack and YouGov claims there is a ‘worrying disconnect’ between bosses and employees on work expectations during the Christmas period. The majority (83 percent) of UK bosses, with leadership responsibilities, say they will encourage people to switch off during the holiday season. But, despite this, a third (32 percent) plan to be online and available to work during the holiday season—even when they have time off. More →

Millions now able to request flexible working on day one of employment

Millions now able to request flexible working on day one of employment

Millions of employees will be able to request flexible working from day one of their employment, under new government plans to make flexible working the default. Flexible working doesn’t just mean a combination of working from home and in the office – it can mean employees making use of job-sharing, flexitime, and working compressed, annualised, or staggered hours. The raft of new measures will give employees greater access to flexibility over where, when, and how they work, leading to happier, more productive staff. Flexible working has been found to help employees balance their work and home life, especially supporting those who have commitments or responsibilities such as caring for children or vulnerable people. More →

The failures of work give us hope for the future

The failures of work give us hope for the future

Workplace engagement is approaching an all-time low, and typical employer reaction has been characteristically resigned. Actually, that last statement was inaccurately soft. Let me rephrase: most employees either don’t care about or actually hate their jobs, and employers couldn’t care less. More →

Women far more likely to have disadvantageous flexible working arrangements

Women far more likely to have disadvantageous flexible working arrangements

An illustration of a women slumped at a table with a laptop, to illustrate the specific challenges of flexible working for womenWomen are much more likely than men to be in flexible working arrangements that mean they lose hours, and therefore pay, according to new TUC analysis of official statistics.  The findings have been published, a year after the government closed its consultation on flexible work, and ahead of the next committee stage of Yasmin Qureshi MP’s private members bill on flexible work. More →

Employees avoid telling employers about less visible disabilities

Employees avoid telling employers about less visible disabilities

The silhouette of a group of four people in an office window overlooking LondonTwo in five (43 percent) employees with a less visible disability haven’t disclosed it to their employer, according to a new poll.  The research from healthcare provider Bupa claims that not wanting to ‘cause a fuss’ (30 percent) or be treated differently (25 percent) were the key reasons for keeping their condition to themselves. Nearly a quarter of those affected (23 percent) haven’t told their employer about their condition due to worries that they wouldn’t be believed, while one in five (20 percent) expressed concerns that their disability might impact their career opportunities. More →

Let battle commence. Here’s Works magazine issue 3

Let battle commence. Here’s Works magazine issue 3

A picture of a great office from Works magazine 3Without wishing to sound overly dramatic, welcome to the greatest workplace battle of the decade. (And one we’ll continue to cover on Insight, IN Magazine and Works, issue three of which you can find here – and very nice it is too.) When Elon Musk recently called on all Twitter employees to ready themselves for ‘long hours at high intensity’ or to leave, he basically – in his own inimitable style – dispensed with the niceties but said what some others really would like to say to their own people. More →

Always connected in the age of disconnection

Always connected in the age of disconnection

All of humanity’s problems,” the French scientist and philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote in 1654, “stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” He may have been right, but then again, sitting in a room alone isn’t necessarily a great state of permanent being either. There was a time we used to talk with dismay about the Japanese phenomenon of intense social distancing known as hikikomori. We would consider with horror the isolation, lack of engagement with society, poor mental health and loneliness of the people who had almost completely withdrawn to their rooms. Those poor bastards locked up in enclosed spaces linked to the outside world only by screens. More →

Majority of firms currently using technology to plug talent gaps

Majority of firms currently using technology to plug talent gaps

In the face of hiring and skills issues, 77 percent of UK organisations say they are finding ways for technology to do jobs formerly performed by people, according to a new poll from Rackspace Technology.  According to the survey, two thirds (64 percent) of UK companies are downsizing their staff, facilitated by technology, out of a necessity, with roles in customer service the most likely to be automated, as identified by 70 percent of business decision makers – followed by IT operations (62 percent), sales and marketing (57 percent), business operations (56 percent), and HR and admin (56 percent). More →