March 25, 2021
Corporate wellbeing could add £61bn to the English economy by 2025 through added productivity, if UK companies can create new wellbeing strategies and improve underperforming ones, according to a new study by Westfield Health. More →
March 24, 2021
The Covid-19 pandemic had a serious impact on the home office furniture market in 2020, according to a new report, by AMA Research. Despite a move to homeworking, demand for home office furniture is expected to have declined by 8 percent in 2020; however this can be contrasted with the 17 percent fall in the total office furniture market. More →
March 24, 2021
Employees are more likely to resist beneficial organisational changes if they contradict historic firm values according to research from Imperial College Business School. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced organisations all over the globe to rethink how they do business, yet it may not be easy to make lasting change if new organisational practices grate against traditional, deeply-held values. More →
March 23, 2021
A new report from think tank Demos and Legal & General calls on the UK Government to back policy change that supports growth of hybrid working and local offices to drive forward its plans for regeneration and economic growth. The report, Post Pandemic Places, claims that huge increases in home working, coupled with a desire for continued flexibility, could support significant increases in local spending. On the back of the findings, the report calls on the government to incentivise the establishment of more local offices and hybrid working initiatives. More →
March 18, 2021
Temporary moves boost creativity according to new research from Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM). The study suggests, when front-line employees are exchanged between company sites, they contribute more valuable ideas. More →
March 15, 2021
One of the most significant consequences of the 2008 economic crash was a remarkable shift in the nature of employment. The recession led to a surge in the number of people categorised as self-employed. The numbers have been increasing ever since, albeit at a lower rate. By the end of 2019, the number of self-employed people in the UK exceeded five million people for the first time. Fifteen percent of the workforce. More →
March 15, 2021
We are scarcely nine months into the Covid-19 pandemic, after a long spring and harsh summer. Social distancing has led to remote working becoming widespread, leading to doubts regarding the office’s long-term relevance. However, Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) argues in a recent report that the office’s traditional domain will expand, with new functions including fostering collaboration, facilitating company culture, and promoting human experience. Similarly, experts increasingly characterise the workplace as a hybrid ecosystem combining virtual and physical elements with geographically-dispersed campuses. More →
March 10, 2021
New research from Opinion Matters, commissioned by SocialChorus, claims there is a stark disparity between desk-based/wired and frontline workers when it comes to Digital Employee Experience (DEX) with a fifth of HR and Internal Communications (IC) respondents admitting to focusing on employees in the office, and just 12 percent prioritising deskless workers. More →
March 9, 2021
Until recently, the nature of business was widely predictable. Tried and tested operational methods enabled businesses to forward plan confidently based on what had worked before. Even before the cataclysmic events of the global pandemic, the workplace landscape was shifting dramatically, with innovation, disruption, workforce and consumer expectations evolving at a pace. As we enter 2021, every business will need to rapidly adapt and evolve to survive and workforce agility will be a critical factor for that survival. More →
March 9, 2021
The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has published Renewable Energy Procurement and Carbon Offsetting Guidance for Net Zero Carbon Buildings. This guidance provides clarity for the property and construction industry on the procurement of high-quality renewable energy and carbon offsets for net zero buildings and organisations in the UK. More →
March 8, 2021
A healthy, engaged and productive work environment starts with conversations about people’s needs. So whether you have always been on a co-located team or are a veteran of remote work, there are new circumstances and the old rulebook doesn’t quite help. The change has been sudden, in a sustained moment of uncertainty, and has disrupted employee routines and support structures. More →
March 23, 2021
Sustainable office design will not be possible until we are clear about a few things
by Joanna Knight • Comment, Environment, Furniture, JK, Workplace design