Search Results for: people

The ups and downs of wearables for workplace health and wellbeing

by • AI, Comment, Technology

Businesses in the 21st century have tried just about everything to improve productivity. For a long time, Google and its ilk were seen as model workplaces, with their open offices and abundance of ball pits and bean bags. Then the consensus shifted, and the cubicle or workstation was seen as the paradigm for employee concentration. Now the focus has shifted to technology, and the field of ‘wearables’. Devices like the Fitbit, Google Glass and Apple Watch have come and gone with significant consumer buzz, but relatively low uptake. What failed to impress consumers, however, may yet have a place in business. For better or ill, it seems the companies we work for are increasingly obsessed with collecting our data.

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A 300 year old idea explains some of the enduring appeal of the open plan

by • Comment, Facilities management, Workplace design

In the 18th Century the utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham came up with his idea of the Panopticon, a prison building with a central tower encircled by cells so that each person in the cells knew they could be watched at all times. Whether they were observed or not was actually immaterial. Bentham called it ‘a new mode of obtaining power of mind over mind’ and while he focused on its use as a prison, he was also aware of the idea’s usefulness for schools, asylums and hospitals. Bentham got the original idea following a visit to Belarus to see his brother who was managing sites there and had used the idea of a circular building at the centre of an industrial compound to allow a small number of managers to oversee the activities of a large workforce. This is something of a precursor of the scientific management theories of Frederick Taylor that continue to influence the way we work and manage people.

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Women and flexible workers significantly more at risk of illegal and inappropriate sexual behaviour at work

by • Workplace

Two in five women and one in five men in the UK say they have experienced unwanted sexual behaviour at work and only a minority ever report it, a BBC survey of 6,206 people has found. The study also claims that people in flexible work are significantly more likely to be subject to assault, rape, unwanted sexual advances and inappropriate behaviour. Around 42 percent of gig economy workers, the self-employed and freelancers reported that they had been subject to or exposed to such behaviour. Respondents were asked if they agreed with the proposition that: “Looking back over my working life, I have witnessed behaviour that I now believe to constitute sexual harassment but didn’t think it at the time.” Four in 10 (42 percent) over-55s agreed. Among those near the start of their working lives (18 to 34-year-olds), three in 10 felt the same way. The poll found that overall, 40 percent of women reported they have experienced some form of sexual harassment at work.  (more…)

Employer bias is undermining business innovation and potential says OU

by • Legal news, News, Workplace

 

Over a quarter of senior managers hire people just like them, and this bias is still rife in some organisations, according to new market research commissioned by The Open University. The study amongst business leaders and employees finds that three in 10 (29 percent) senior managers admit they hire people just like them, and warns employers may be overlooking candidates from different social and educational backgrounds, impacting access to talent, and hindering business innovation and performance as a result. Employers place significant importance on educational attainment (86 percent), cultural fit (77 percent), tastes and leisure pursuits (65 percent), and even social background (61 percent). Considering the typical social make up of managers, this raises concerns about diversity, a key driver of innovation, and hints at a glass ceiling for those from less privileged backgrounds, with the re-enforcement of the historical class system. The issue is prevalent in both recruitment and employment, with bias creating a ‘degree premium’, particularly at entry level.

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Third of applicants turn down jobs due to lack of flexible work options

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

With employment at record levels and the labour market the fiercest it’s been for years, candidates have more choice about where they work than ever before. This is putting substantial pressures on companies to impress talented individuals through the entire recruitment and onboarding process if they want to keep them for the long term. But new research suggests that nearly half (45 percent) of job candidates have turned down a position because they weren’t impressed by the company during the interview process. According to the research by NGA Human Resources other common reasons for declining a position include having a better offer from another company (56 percent), lower than expected salary offer (49 percent) and finding out the role was not as originally described (44 percent). Modern job seekers are now looking for more than just a decent salary. In fact, 33 percent of candidates have declined a position because they didn’t have flexible work options, 29 percent due to the lack of a good benefits package and 27 percent because they didn’t feel they would fit in with their new colleagues.

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Hong Kong replaces London as most expensive place in world in which to rent a workstation

by • News, Property, Workplace design

Hong Kong has replaced London’s West End as the most expensive office market in which to accommodate staff, according to new research from Cushman & Wakefield. The annual Office Space Across The World report surveys occupancy costs across 215 office markets in 58 countries worldwide. Using proprietary data, it ranks occupancy costs per workstation and workplace densities for newly developed or refurbished office space globally. Limited availability and strong demand from mainland Chinese corporations have pushed Hong Kong costs up 5.5 percent to $27,431. Escalating rents are driving a growing number of multinational corporations to decentralise to lower cost areas.

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Reduced hours do not necessarily lead to reduced workloads, study finds

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Professionals who want to work part-time have to do more than renegotiate their working hours; they also have to redesign their jobs to reduce outputs. Research published in the journal Human Relations, by Dr Charlotte Gascoigne from the Timewise Foundation and Professor Clare Kelliher from the Cranfield School of Management, shows that employers often do not reduce workload when professionals transition to part-time. This is not an insignificant problem for employers: one in five professionals and managers in the UK works part-time already, with more than two in five working part-time in the Netherlands. According to previous studies, a quarter of full-timers in the UK would prefer to work part-time, and are prepared to earn less, but don’t believe it’s possible.

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Design sector contributes £209 billion to the economy but problems remain, claims Design Council

by • News, Workplace design

The Design Council has published a new report which sets out the value of the design industry to the UK and identifies a number of issues that need to be addressed to enhance its value. According to the Designing a Future Economy: Developing design skills for productivity and innovation, the sector contributes £209bn to the UK economy, almost double that of what the creative industries were previously thought to contribute. The report also claims that people working in the sector are significantly more productive than the UK average worker. However it also cautions that a skills gap costs the UK economy nearly £6 billion annually. The report was compiled using UK and US-based data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and O*Net, a US-based research company offering definitions and data on different jobs.

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Employers not doing enough to help staff reach their full potential says HR

by • Legal news, News, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace

It appears to have been a challenging year for HR professionals, as a new survey suggests nearly three quarters (72 percent) of participants in a recent survey feel slightly or significantly more over-stretched in their role compared to last year. Forty four percent believe the workforce does not have enough support to thrive, and a further 23 percent don’t feel confident  that their organisations are doing enough to address this issue. Research from a survey of HR people conducted by Cascade HR found that 32 percent of HR managers have found employment legislation harder to navigate. However, a reassuring 61 percent of HR professionals now feel ‘somewhat prepared’ for GDPR, which has understandably taken up a lot of preparatory time and resource as 2017 has unfolded. In fact, only 15 percent of HR professionals surveyed feel significantly or slightly underprepared, which seems to contradict national statistics on a business-wide level.

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Seven workplace stories that have caught our attention this week

by • Features, Flexible working, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

Microsoft’s blueprint for its new headquarters

How work changed to make us all passionate quitters

Workplaces send subconscious signals to people

Ten workplace meta-trends for 2018

Why are we convinced robots will take our jobs despite the evidence?

One in seven employers won’t hire a woman who might have children

The real risk of automation is boredom

What P T Barnum can teach us about the facilities management circus

by • Architecture, Comment, Facilities management, Workplace

Does any of this describe you? “You have a need for other people to like and admire you, yet you tend to be critical of yourself. While you have weaknesses you are generally able to compensate for them. You have considerable yet hidden strengths that you have yet to turn to your advantage. Self-controlled on the outside, you are slightly insecure inside. At times you have serious doubts as to whether you always make the right decision. You prefer a certain amount of change and become dissatisfied when hemmed in by limitations. You pride yourself as an independent thinker and do not accept the statements of others without satisfactory proof. But you also think it can be unwise to be too frank in revealing too much about yourself.” Does this sound familiar? Well it should because that is how most people see themselves.

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Flexible hours best way for employers to reduce staff stress Christmas lead up

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

 

Over 50 percent of respondents to a recent survey want their bosses to offer more flexible hours in the weeks leading up to Christmas to help them deal with the stress of the season, while a significant minority do not want to attend their office Christmas party and see little value in building friendships with colleagues from such events. These are the key findings from the latest survey conducted over the past month by Peldon Rose which claims that 54 percent of people feel stressed in the lead up to the holidays. Yet, while many employers off the typical well-intentioned holiday benefits, such as Christmas parties, office decorations, team outings and lunches, what employees really value are perks that have a direct impact on improving their workload and allowing them to work in a more relaxed manner at this very busy time of the year, such as more flexible hours, finishing early on agreed days and a dress down code.

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