March 25, 2022

New technology will increase size of workforce, poll claims

A new survey from Protiviti and the Oxford Global Centre on Healthcare and Urbanisation at Kellogg College claims that 74 percent of global business executives believe that emerging and new technology will increase the size of the workforce in the next decade. It also suggests that 86 percent expect the types of jobs their employees will perform to be different from today — a figure that remains nearly unchanged regardless of where the leader’s company is headquartered globally. More →

March 16, 2022

Working from home may help recruitment, but doesn’t stem resignations

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Organisations looking to stem the tide of the so-called Great Resignation shouldn’t rely on working from home alone to retain their top talent, according to new research, which reveals that working from home (WFH), flexible working hours and even four-day work weeks, won’t necessarily be enough to keep employees onboard. HR software provider CIPHR conducted a survey of over 330 British employers last month to discover how the increasingly competitive talent market has affected their staff retention and recruitment drives over the past twelve months. Based on the results, nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of employers have experienced an increase in employees voluntarily resigning and 71 percent have found it more challenging to recruit new employees. More →

March 16, 2022

Younger workers say the pandemic has held back their careers

by Jayne Smith • News, Workplace

Businesses risk losing a whole generation of talent as nearly half (49 percent) of 18-34 year olds plan to quit their jobs in the next twelve months. That’s according to new research from Personio, which is calling on businesses to urgently re-engage this generation of workers – or risk even more problematic talent shortages as they navigate the year ahead. The research, which surveyed HR decision makers and workers in SMEs across the UK and Ireland, finds that 59 percent of younger workers (18-34 year olds) feel they’ve missed out on promotions they felt they were due. In addition, two thirds (66 percent) feel the pandemic has held them back in their career – suggesting that serious concerns around their career development and progression are influencing their decision to move on. More →

March 14, 2022

Flawed organisational design thinking continues to hold businesses back

by Jayne Smith • News, Technology, Workplace

The Josh Bersin Company, a research and advisory company focused on HR and workforce trends and issues, has revealed new research which claims to show how organisational design has a direct relationship to the ability of any business to prepare and scale for the future. The study concludes that traditional approaches to organisational design, usually centred around job roles and reporting structures, are holding companies back and in some cases, exacerbating current and future talent challenges. More →

March 11, 2022

Four day week now more attractive thanks to pandemic

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

The COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns and shift to remote working has had a significant impact on organisations’ attitudes towards a shorter working week, new research from Henley Business School has revealed. The longitudinal study found that 65 percent of UK businesses surveyed are now implementing a four-day working week for some, or all, of their staff, compared with 50 percent who answered a similar survey carried out by Henley in 2019. More →

March 10, 2022

Nearly three quarters of people have ignored mental health to continue working

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

More than 7 in 10 UK employees have pushed through a mental health struggle to avoid taking time off work in the past three months, according to a new report by BetterUp Labs. Over half (59 percent) also reported that they’d had to push through a physical health struggle, suggesting there is widespread hesitation about stepping away from work to take time to recover. The report also claims that over a quarter (26 percent) of respondents have or have had a mental wellbeing condition, with 30 percent of women and 21 percent of men reporting this. More →

March 2, 2022

Quarter of young people don’t want to work for firms with unsustainable practices

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News

Almost a quarter (24 percent) of Gen Z employees (18 to 24-year-olds) would not work at a business that profits from unsustainable practices, according to a a new poll from PLAY. Among British employees more broadly, two-thirds surveyed (68 percent) felt it was important for the company they work for to be committed to acting sustainably, and nearly half (44 percent) want businesses to demonstrate the initiatives or goals that will make the entire business more sustainable (not just one part of the business). However, pay remains the most attractive job feature for most surveyed, inlcuding young people. More →

February 24, 2022

Location pay doubts are now rife amongst organisations

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Workplace

The latest data from XpertHR suggests that 44 percent of UK organisations are ‘unsure’ about the future of their location pay arrangements following the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent shift to hybrid working. Location pay is currently offered by more than half of UK organisations (55 percent). Its most common form is a London allowance on top of basic pay (offered by 40 percent of organisations),with inner London employees receiving a median location payment of £3,775 (£3,250 in outer London). More →

February 20, 2022

Firms will need to build bridges with employees as they adapt to hybrid working

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Workplace

As we enter a new phase of working life following the short term changes made to cope with the pandemic, the three key priorities for the 1,300 employers surveyed by the Benefits & Human Resources Consulting operation of Gallagher for its 2021/2022 State of the Sector report (registration) are: the need to re-engage their teams around purpose, strategy and values (53 percent); the need to adapt communication channels to engage the workforce better as they move to newly implemented models of hybrid working (39 percent); and the need to enhance people manager communications (31 percent). More →

February 14, 2022

Record pay rises on the cards to address tough recruitment conditions

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

Employers anticipate offering record pay rises of 3 percent in 2022 as they look to combat increasing recruitment and retention difficulties. This is the headline finding from the CIPD’s latest quarterly Labour Market Outlook, which highlights the scale of the growing challenge facing organisations in finding and keeping staff, and how they are responding. This quarter’s pay award figure is the highest since the survey was conducted using its current methods in the winter 2012/13 report. The Labour Market Outlook surveyed more than 1,000 employers in January 2022 about their hiring, pay and redundancy intentions for the first quarter of the year. More →

February 10, 2022

ESG concerns mean half of younger workers considering career change

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

Companies across the UK risk losing out on top talent if they fail to take account of younger workers’ greater ethical awareness, with the majority willing to sacrifice earnings for their values. New research by Robert Half claims that nearly two in five (38 percent) employees would look for a new role if they thought their organisation was not doing enough on ESG (environmental, social and governance) issues, such as reducing carbon emissions or operating ethically. More →

February 8, 2022

New business climate demands agility from managers, report claims

by Jayne Smith • Business, News

A new report, The Big Reset Playbook: Change Agility (registration) from work trends analyst The Josh Bersin Company, claims that traditional approaches to change management have often fallen short of expectations, and that new workplace practices based on agility are now needed to manage change in a new business climate. According to the report ‘businesses are looking to tackle the challenge of managing change in a new reality that includes the shift to hybrid working, globalization and The Great Resignation’. The research claims that in companies that successfully manage change, leaders and high performers reinforce the company’s mission and purpose, explain how their reinvented business models work, create cross-functional teams to design and implement change, and maintain forward momentum. More →