July 31, 2023

Best practice for maintaining an agile workforce through upskilling

by Kirsty Greene • Company news, Workplace

Workforces need to evolve now more than ever. A report from the World Economic Forum claims that around a quarter of jobs will shift in the next five years. Its ‘Future of Jobs Report for 2023’ notes that though an estimated 69 million new jobs will be created, another 83 million will be eliminated. A few factors contributing to creating and eliminating jobs are macro trends—such as a rise in sustainability efforts among businesses, the localisation of supply chains, high inflation, and slower economic growth. More →

July 21, 2023

‘People insight deficit’ puts firms’ reputations at risk

by Jayne Smith • News, Workplace

The CIPD is urging business leaders to have board-level HR representation or input to ensure there is the necessary expertise and ‘people insight’ to develop positive corporate cultures and manage workforce risks such as sexual harassment. This is the unsurprising message in a new report from the CIPD ‘The value of people expertise on corporate boards’. It claims just a quarter (25 percent) of FTSE 350 firms have a board member (both executive and non-executive) with an HR background, while only 2 percent have an HR director as an executive board member. More →

July 18, 2023

We need better evidence to help protect people at work

by Sarah Cumbers • Comment, Workplace

We make decisions at work every day and for those in complex roles or in fast-changing situations, it can feel like a continuous process. In business, of course, the choices we make can have a significant impact on the bottom line and, more importantly, our people, the environment and the communities we’re operating in. With so much riding on what we choose to do, our decision-making processes must be designed to maximise our chances of successful outcomes. This is especially so when our decisions involve how to protect people at work so can be literally a matter of life or death. More →

July 14, 2023

To boost productivity in the UK, we need to think big and different

by Peter McAteer • Comment, Technology

The decline in UK productivity since the Great Recession of 2008/2009 has been a matter of concern for business leaders, policymakers, and economists alike. Despite hopes that the pandemic would act as a catalyst for transformation and boost productivity, recent figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that the UK still lags behind several other G7 economies. More →

June 29, 2023

Half of traditional non-tech firms now consider themselves tech firms

by Jayne Smith • Business, News, Technology, Workplace

The pandemic years forced traditional industries to digitise their operations at speed, but three years on, non-tech enterprises across the UK – from sectors including finance, advertising, manufacturing and more – are actively embracing the ‘tech mindset’ more than ever, according to a new report. The poll from Pendo [registration], claims that nearly half (49 percent) of ‘traditional’ enterprises now consider themselves tech firms, and are adopting more ‘tech-like’ strategies, roles and tools to drive innovation and growth. More →

June 26, 2023

A balanced approach: making hybrid working work, and accepting it isn’t optional

by Mavis Boniface • Comment, Flexible working

Hybrid working is back in the headlines – not that it ever really left. A recent report from the Centre for Cities warns hybrid working will result in an “unintended economic impact” and is calling on national government and the mayor of London to do more to remove barriers to getting people back into the office. It suggests a freeze on commuting costs and calls for better collaboration between the private and public sectors to make working in cities more appealing. More →

June 26, 2023

Managers struggling with workload in new era of work

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Workplace

More than three-quarters of employees report that it has become more important for them to receive support from their manager, according to Gartner. Simultaneously, managers are also facing increasing expectations and a greater workload from the organisation, including new responsibilities brought on by hybrid working. A December 2022 Gartner survey of more than 6,000 individual contributors and managers claimed that managers are twice as likely to report an increase in responsibilities versus individual contributors, compared to before the pandemic. For example, 35 percent of managers say they have more direct reports and 49 percent report that the complexity of their responsibilities has increased. More →

June 19, 2023

Instilling company culture across geographic divides

by Sara Whitman and Isabel Conrad • Comment, Workplace

Company culture is one of the most fundamentally important facets of the modern workplace. In the last year, it has been identified as an important factor for 46 percent of job seekers, while 88 percent found it at least relatively important, and 15 percent of job seekers have declined a job because of the company’s culture. Due to the wide breadth of employees in large global companies, everything from time zones and language barriers to country culture and local business norms can create sticking points. For professionals at corporate headquarters responsible. More →

June 16, 2023

You might be working with a narcissist and not know it

by Birgit Schyns • Features, Wellbeing

Have you ever had the feeling that some of your colleagues are working only for themselves, and are not true team players? If your answer is yes, then it is possible that you are working with a narcissist. Narcissists have a heightened sense of what they are entitled to and have a constant need for attention and admiration. They are arrogant and see themselves as superior to others. More →

June 15, 2023

Two thirds of employees have experienced significant workplace conflict

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Workplace

A survey of 2,000 full-time employees has revealed that almost two-thirds (64 percent) of workers have been in a workplace where there has been conflicts between colleagues, with 15 percent subsequently looking to change roles. The research, conducted by communications consultancy Magenta Associates, also found that opposing personality types (47 percent), lack of communication (43 percent), and management styles (38 percent) are the most likely causes of workplace conflict. More →

June 13, 2023

People now less engaged, less fulfilled and more stressed in their working lives

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

New research from the CIPD exploring the quality of UK working lives suggests there has been a negative shift in how people think about and value their work. The CIPD’s Good Work Index 2023 claims that most people like their work and find it satisfying. However, as many as 6-9 million workers, experience poor-quality work in some major respects. CIPD’s survey indicators show that there has been no significant improvement in job quality in the past four years and, in some respects, job quality has gone backwards. Compared to 2019, workers today are less enthused about work, less likely to perceive their work as useful and more likely to simply see work as purely transactional – simply for the money. More →

June 9, 2023

Artificial intelligence will boost short term headcount, claim half of employers

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology, Workplace

More than half (54 percent) of Britain’s employers expect Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies will have a positive impact on their staff headcount over the next two years, according to a survey by Experis, a part of ManpowerGroup. The survey of 2,000+ British employers also suggests that more than two thirds (69 percent) of businesses expect AI tools and technologies – including ChatGPT, Machine Learning and Virtual Reality – to have a positive impact on upskilling and reskilling, as well as on employee training (68 percent). 67 percent of British organisations anticipate a positive impact on employee engagement because of AI technology, and 60 percent think it can positively impact the onboarding process too. More →