Search Results for: remote working

October 1, 2015

US sees biggest jump in working from home since 2008, claims study ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, Knowledge, News, Wellbeing

According to an analysis of the just-released 2014 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by GlobalWorkplaceAnalytics.com, approximately 3.7 million US employees (2.5 percent of the workforce) called home their primary place of work in 2014. This represents a 6.5 percent increase and the largest year over year growth in the number of people working from home since before the recession. The ACS data is based on a nationwide survey of answers to the question “What was your primary means of travel to work during the survey week—’Worked at Home’ is one of the choices. The count only includes those who work at home at least half of the time. According to Global Workplace Analytics far more people work at home on a less frequent basis and many work in “third places” such as coffee shops, co-working facilities, libraries, and just about anywhere there’s an internet connection.

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September 28, 2015

More people are working from home, but they can end up feeling lonely ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Workplace

More and more British workers are working remotely, from home and other locations, but they are growing increasingly disconnected from their colleagues. Those are the findings of two studies into new ways of working conducted independently by Plantronics and Regus. According to the Plantronics survey of 2,500 staff, flexible working was given another boost over this Summer in response to the (intermittent) good weather and industrial action by London public transport staff. During August, more than half (55 percent) of the workforce chose to work from home or remotely more convenient to them, the audio communications firm’s study found. On the flipside, the survey of 4,000 workers by serviced office provider Regus claims that almost two-thirds of employees who work from home miss mixing with colleagues and can feel lonely as a result.

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August 25, 2015

Flexible working and coworking are disrupting property markets worldwide ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Property

Coworking space and the growth of flexible are already having a major disruptive effect on commercial property markets worldwide, according to a study from real estate trade association CoreNet Global. The survey of members representing a diverse range of sectors found that the two most disruptive trends in the market over the short to medium term are flexible working environments (64 percent) and new technology (64 percent). The report, which has been issued to CoreNet members ahead of the organisation’s 2015 EMEA Summit which will take place in London in September, claims that coworking spaces are capitalising on these trends to have a major disruptive effect on local property markets and are particularly attractive to occupiers from specific sectors such as those working in financial technology.

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August 24, 2015

Flexible working now an almost universal employee benefit, claims study ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Workplace

A new report from employee benefits provider Unum claims to set out the future trends and challenges affecting the benefits packages firms should offer staff. One of the headline claims from the report is that four out of five employers (79 percent) already offer flexible working. ‘The Future of Employee Benefits’ report surveyed 13 organisations and incorporated the results with those of a series of interviews and roundtable discussions with employers and specialists including representatives from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. The report identifies a series of macro trends affecting workplace wellbeing and the recruitment and retention of employees over the next 15 years, which were categorised into four distinct working environments: The Ageless Workplace; The Mindful Workplace; The Intuitive Workplace; and The Collaborative Workplace.

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July 29, 2015

Public sector lagging behind in use of technology and flexible working

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Public Sector, Technology

As we reported last week, the UK public sector is embracing some interesting new ideas in the way it uses real estate, especially its commitment to get rid of some of it by adopting flexible working and shared space. However, it’s one thing looking to use space in more flexible ways but without the technological infrastructure, it’s hard to see how they will be able to achieve as much as they could. It is in this regard that they are lagging behind their contemporaries in the private sector, according to a new report from O2 and YouGov. While the report, Redefining selling, serving and working, offers up the usual appeals for us all to make more use of the sorts of things O2 wants us to buy, there is plenty of interesting detail to tease out once the pinch of salt has been applied, not least how business practices and the way people use technology vary across sectors.

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July 19, 2015

Weekly Insight on gender pay, green buildings, agile working and more

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Facilities management, Newsletter, Workplace, Workplace design

In this week’s issue; Mark Eltringham argues that the focus on a mythical gender pay gap, as repeated by the Prime Minister, obscures the real issues women (and a growing number of men) face; more evidence emerges to crush another myth, this time the one that equates the health impacts of sitting with smoking; the UK’s ‘greenest Government ever’ abandons its zero carbon buildings plans; Simon Heath questions the reported impact of robots on workplaces; Sara Bean on how firms are leaving remote working employees to fund their own kit; the under-reported and ongoing allure for employees of filthy lucre over flexible working opportunities; and the enduring suspicion of wearable technology in the British workplace. Subscribe for free quarterly issues of Work&Place and weekly news here, follow us on Twitter and join our LinkedIn Group to discuss these and other stories.

July 9, 2015

Many employers discourage home working, unless it is out of hours

by Sara Bean • Comment, Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

A combination of tube and rail strikes causing travel disruption in London today, means many businesses will accede to requests to work from home. Yet a large number of UK employers are still reluctant to encourage home working. According to a recent report by Redcentric, despite the fact that that just under a third of UK office workers reported an increase in productivity when working outside of the workplace, 48 percent of respondents claimed that their employers didn’t allow them to work remotely, with 23 percent saying that their business simply didn’t like them doing it, for reasons such as data privacy and loss of productivity. Yet research by PMI Health Group shows nearly a third of staff feel pressured to routinely check and send emails from home, which suggests that employers tacitly encourage home-working, as long as it is on their terms.

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July 1, 2015

Takeup of flexible working remains sluggish in UK SMEs claims Microsoft study

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Technology

It’s now one year since the UK Government extended the right to request flexible working to nearly all UK permanent employees. Two new surveys have been published to coincide with the anniversary and gauge the effects of the legislation. Both surveys, from EY and Microsoft UK, paint somewhat mixed pictures, with uptake considerably slower than might have been expected. The study by Microsoft, one of the UK’s great champions of flexible working, found that just 22 percent of workers in SMEs have requested flexible working as a direct result of the new legislation. The report also found that over half (55 percent) of British office workers are still required to work from the office during set working hours. A similar proportion (44 percent) claim it is not possible for them to work remotely under any circumstances.

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June 5, 2015

European employers failing to provide technology for collaborative working

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Technology

Although most organisations encourage remote team work, only 3 percent of European employees say their current working environment is suitable for collaborative work such as online video conferencing, according to new research by ADP. Almost half (44%) of workers say that technology helps them understand the mission and values of their organisation, whilst 51 percent believe that technology fosters better relationships with colleagues. Yet one in four employees would like to have more quiet zones for detailed thinking, while a third (30%) would like to have access to technologies that enhance collaboration such as file sharing tools. Employees in the UK are less likely to be equipped with the latest technology; more than eight in ten (82%) French, German and Dutch employees have access to the latest business tools to allow them to do their job effectively, compared to 70 percent of UK employees.

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May 29, 2015

London firms focus on wellbeing and agile working to attract staff

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Property, Wellbeing, Workplace design

An additional 5.1m sq. ft. of office space will be required by 2019 to accommodate the growth of professional services firms in London, claims new research from CBRE. According to the studio, firms will also adopt more pragmatic workplace strategies that focus on agile working and wellbeing to meet their objectives. Nearly all (92 percent) of the respondents to CBRE’s Professional London survey claim they use the workplace to enhance employee satisfaction and 83 percent of firms use it to control costs. Firms are also placing more emphasis on wellbeing and more agile and intensive ways of using space, according to CBRE. Other factors such as technology and the design of the workplace are also increasingly important. The research suggests that staff are increasingly attracted by on-site amenities, connectivity and location and other ‘lifestyle offerings’.

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April 22, 2015

Flexible working and smart tools prove a big hit with UAE employees ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace

It’s not just in the UK where employees say they are attracted by the idea of flexible working. A new study from YouGov commissioned by the Dubai based Federal Authority for Government Human Resources (FAHR) claims that employees in the United Arab Emirates now rate employers most highly for the smart tools and flexible working opportunities they offer. The study of over 1,000 employees and HR professionals in the UAE was commissioned to uncover emerging trends in human capital management. It found that 64 percent of employees rate flexible working hours, provided by employers based on personal circumstances, as good or very good, which is particularly prevalent amongst Emirati respondents (83 percent). The majority of employees (74 percent) also believe a remote and flexible work schedule increases their productivity.

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April 20, 2015

Uptake of flexible working at UK firms continues to gather pace ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Workplace

In the last three years the adoption of flexible working by UK organisations has increased by over a third (37 percent), according to new research published by recruitment consultants Robert Half. The study, based on interviews with 200 HR Directors also claims that concerns that remote working without direct physical supervision leads to a decrease in productivity are increasingly unfounded. The research reveals that 60 percent believe giving employees greater autonomy over working styles and practices including remote working and flexi-time results in increased productivity. Respondents also increasingly believe that offering greater autonomy to employees results in positive business benefits. Over half (51 percent) thought greater employee autonomy boosts creativity and almost half (45 percent) believe it makes employees easier to manage.