Search Results for: people management

Half the time it’s management, not the design that makes the workplace stink

by • Comment, Workplace, Workplace design

There is a general consensus around the workplace cognoscenti that design can and does impact upon the productivity and effectiveness of people in the workplace. That’s reflected in research, data and anecdotal exchanges, online and at events. What’s not often done is in linking this data to HR results, from employee surveys. While driven by professionally conscientious HR teams, their goal is shaped by the ever present desire to improve performance and hence save cash and enhance margins.  In other words it’s a management initiative. But half the time it’s management who are the problem.

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NeoCon and ThinkFM offer two different views of the facilities management elephant

by • Comment, Facilities management, Furniture, Workplace design

This week sees two events taking place on opposite sides of the pond that should hold a mirror up to the way we currently design and manage workplaces. In Chicago, it’s time for NeoCon, the annual office furniture behemoth held in the vast Merchandise Mart and attracting some 40,000 visitors, while in London it’s the distinctly  low-key Think FM conference from the BIFM held at the Royal College of Physicians – for today only, as they say. While these are two very different events in terms of scale, content and format and both are nakedly commercial, only one strikes me as particularly meaningful. And even that is only about the meaning of one part of the facilities management elephant.

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Seven thoughts on the UK facilities management association merger

by • Comment, Facilities management

New broomWith breathless excitement a press release announces the proposed merger of all of the UK’s major facilities management and support services trade associations, or rather notes that they: “have agreed to the concept of forming one single and united body to represent facilities management and support services.” With a sense of crushing inevitability the first step has been to form a steering group to address how these and other organisations could come together into this single body to meet the needs of the industry and the professionals that work within it. With this in mind, I proffer a few pieces of advice in the form of seven thoughts for those involved in these discussions.

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What Søren Kierkegaard can teach us about workplace design and management

by • Comment, Facilities management, Workplace design

KierkegaardSøren Kierkegaard was a Nineteenth Century Danish philosopher and proto-existentialist. Not for him the hazy, romantic ideals of many of his contemporaries. He was one of the thinkers who gave birth to the Twentieth Century with its focus on the individual, reality and life in a sometimes uncaring world, although he was no atheist like many of the true existentialists. If he’s generally well known for anything these days it is for a single quotation that reads like a greeting card aphorism but is no less true for that. He said: ‘Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.’ Looking back can give you a real handle on the present. I moved offices recently and as these things happen, a number of books that I routinely ignore fell open while I was looking for some displacement activity.

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Is facilities management evolving into workplace management?

by • Comment, Facilities management, Technology, Workplace

EvolutionNot so long ago, there used to be a lot of talk about the overlap between facilities management and professions such as HR and IT, much of it to do with the endless search for the true meaning of the nascent FM profession. Now there is open talk of convergence of these three and other disciplines as we adapt to the changing world of work. The nature and implications of this new order for those professions, and the role of facilities managers in particular, is the subject of a new book called Moving On: Facilities Management to Workplace Management by Graham Jervis.

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Survey: Work and poor management biggest cause of stress

by • News, Workplace

Stress-300x193Work is the most stressful factor in people’s lives with one in three people (34 per cent) saying their work life was either very or quite stressful – and the top cause (32 per cent) is frustration with poor management. Research commissioned by Mind found work more stressful than debt or financial problems (30 per cent) or health (17 per cent).  However, employees don’t believe that managers are actively tackling causes of stress in the workplace, with only one in five people saying they felt their line manager took active steps to help staff manage stress (22%) or mental health conditions (19%).

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Time to mothball facilities management’s stuffed shirts

by • Comment, Facilities management

Stuffed ShirtMuch hand-wringing and angst in the world of Facilities/Workplace Management at the moment. The usual existential paranoia about relevancy and the need for a seat at the top table; the search for differentiation when pretty much the whole industry does the same things in the same way; hoping to standardise as much as possible under the guise of best practice and looking for ways that add value that won’t put a further pinch on already tight margins. As ever, new legislative and regulatory frameworks will keep the talking heads occupied and BIM (and other new tools) will continue to keep the cash tills ringing at software companies.

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How AI is already changing the world of work

How AI is already changing the world of work

by • AI, Comment, Workplace

AI is already changing the world of work, but not everybody is reacting to it in the same way, writes Laura AndersonAI is rapidly transforming the world of work. That much is clear. Understanding how different generations are adapting to this shift is therefore crucial for any organisation looking to the future.  Our recent study focusing on the generational differences in attitudes towards some of today’s biggest topics sheds some light on what might be driving these trends. Perhaps the most important finding was that nearly two-thirds of Gen Z feel concerned about AI’s impact on their future (only Baby Boomers reported more concern) – even though over half are still using AI day to day. (more…)

Majority of small business bosses support potential right to disconnect law

Majority of small business bosses support potential right to disconnect law

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

A new poll claims that the vast majority (85 percent) of British SME bosses with HR responsibilities support proposals to give staff the “right to disconnect”A new poll claims that the vast majority (85 percent) of British SME bosses with HR responsibilities support proposals to give staff the “right to disconnect”, with 4 in 5 (80 percent) believing the Employment Rights Bill is a positive step forward for employees. The survey was conducted by Breathe HR to uncover sentiment towards new workers’ rights amongst bosses who will be steering through new rule changes at SMEs, ahead of the Employment Rights Bill being laid in parliament. This is expected to take place in the coming weeks, although the implementation of rule changes in practice may be delayed following pressure from certain business leaders. (more…)

Greece goes against the flow by opting for a six day working week

Greece goes against the flow by opting for a six day working week

by • News, Workplace

While countries around the world are exploring the idea of shorter work weeks, Greece has taken what many people may think is a surprising step in the opposite directionWhile countries around the world are exploring the idea of shorter work weeks, Greece has taken what many people may think is a surprising step in the opposite direction. In an effort to boost productivity, the country has implemented a mandatory six-day workweek for certain employees. (more…)

Workplace conflict leads to poor mental and physical health

Workplace conflict leads to poor mental and physical health

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

People who experience workplace conflict have lower job satisfaction and are more likely to experience poorer mental and physical healthPeople who experience conflict in the workplace have lower job satisfaction and are more likely to experience poorer mental and physical health, according to the CIPD Good Work Index 2024. The CIPD’s latest report showed a quarter (25 percent) of UK employees – an estimated eight million people – have experienced workplace conflict in the past year. (more…)

Workplace conflict makes daily life a misery for millions. But there is hope

Workplace conflict makes daily life a misery for millions. But there is hope

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

People who experience conflict in the workplace have lower job satisfaction and are more likely to experience poorer mental and physical health, according to the CIPD Good Work Index 2024.People who experience conflict in the workplace have lower job satisfaction and are more likely to experience poorer mental and physical health, according to the CIPD Good Work Index 2024. The CIPD’s latest report showed a quarter (25 percent) of UK employees – an estimated eight million people – have experienced workplace conflict in the past year. Among those who reported at least one form of conflict, the most common forms were: being undermined or humiliated at work (48 percent), being shouted at or having a heated argument (35 percent), verbal abuse or insult (34 percent) or discriminatory behaviour (20 percent). (more…)

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