October 2, 2023

Sustainability and skills at heart of RICS’ new manifesto for the built environment

by Jayne Smith • Environment, Facilities management, News

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is launching its manifesto for the built environment in the lead-up to the next UK General Election, titled Empowering a Sustainable Future. The UK’s built and natural environments face large-scale challenges ranging from climate change to a cost-of-living crisis. According to the manifesto, endemic skills shortages undermine development in the industry while the workplace has become more fluid post-pandemic, with the built environment needing to reflect the change in workforce behaviour and its approach to sustainability. More →

September 25, 2023

Report links economic growth with the idea of ‘good work’

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

In advance of the main party conferences, the CIPD is calling for the next UK Government to develop a long-term workforce strategy to underpin a broader, bolder vision for economic growth. This is a central message in its new ‘Manifesto for Good Work’ which outlines the public policy changes needed to address the UK’s multiple challenges, for all the main UK political parties. These challenges include stagnating productivity, rising skills shortages and our ageing working population. More →

September 21, 2023

Workers increasingly concerned that AI will come for their job in the very near future

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working

Two thirds of IT workers and nearly half of office workers think that generative AI may come for their jobs within five years, according to a new report from Ivanti. The poll of nearly 8,000 respondents worldwide also suggests that 57 percent of people report ‘serious friction’ with workplace technology at least weekly and 61 percent say negative experiences with work tech affects their morale. More →

September 20, 2023

Knowledge workers have a particularly unhealthy relationship with work

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Three quarters of UK knowledge workers say they have an unhealthy relationship with work and two thirds of those say that work has had a negative effect on their health and wellbeing. That is one of the headline findings from a new report into the working lives of 15,600 people worldwide from HP. The report also suggests that three quarters of respondents would take a pay cut to be happier at work or to work wherever they want. More →

September 14, 2023

Is the Flexible Working Bill a game changer or paper tiger?

by Sam Ross • Comment, Flexible working

As LinkedIn data has shown, demand for work flexible working is high. And it outpaces the current availability of remote work offers. In the UK alone, listings for remote jobs have increased by 277 percent. Job postings for hybrid or remote positions received an increase in applications (189 percent) over in-office roles. People want to work remotely for various reasons. So they can live in their chosen home rather than in a tiny flat in London without sacrificing their career. So they can care for family – children, parents, grandparents. The demand for flexible work is driven by a desire for balance. The need has been clearly voiced – and the workforce is hungry for new modes of work. Looking at this background – the cheerful response to the passing of the bill is understandable. More →

September 8, 2023

Not many people want fully remote work, but nearly everybody wants a better office

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology

Just 7 percent of UK office workers back fully remote work, but eight in ten would like to see significant improvements to their company’s office and more support for flexible working, according to the Sony State of Offices Report 2023 [registration]. The report from Sony Professional Displays and Solutions Europe suggests that over two fifths (41 percent) of UK office workers still prefer to work from a dedicated company office, and across Europe this trend is even more pronounced with over half (53 percent) favouring office-based work. However, eight in ten (79 percent) in the UK call for improvements to offices, and the tech within them, to better suit their new flexible, asynchronous working styles. More →

September 5, 2023

From ego to eco – a universal approach to workplace transformation

by Eugenia Anastassiou • Comment, Environment, Everything Omni

You might quite rightly be thinking about the relevance of such a ‘hippy, dippy’ soundbite on the hard-hitting world of work and the workplace, especially in this climate of uncertainty with a myriad of challenges facing business, the workforce and commercial real estate globally. I first heard the phrase ‘going from ego to eco’ at a series of presentations cum incubator events EverythingOmni ran with participants of all ages/backgrounds/career levels representing 18 countries on the Uncertainty of Work.

August 22, 2023

Advancing accessibility and reaping the rewards of disability inclusion

by Katy Talikowska • Comment, Facilities management, Workplace design

In business, companies have a responsibility to balance profit-driven strategies with wider social commitments. As well as being the right thing to do, a focus on the latter can invariably drive economic value. Companies that prioritise diversity, for instance, earn 2.5 times higher cash flow, while inclusive teams are 35 percent more productive. As a result, diversity in the workforce is now widely accepted to be both a moral necessity and a commercial opportunity, with more and more corporates incorporating DE&I policies into their operational frameworks. Despite this progress, the disability community is still largely excluded from these discussions around inclusion. More →

August 14, 2023

People and firms often have very different views on the value of meaningful work

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

A new study from IBM claims that while employees rank meaningful work as something they care about deeply, executives say it’s the least important factor to their teams. The study, Augmented work for an automated, AI-driven world surveyed 3,000 global C-Suite executives across 20 industries and 28 countries. It also suggests that executives in the UK estimate that 41 percent of their workforce will need to reskill as a result of implementing AI and automation over the next three years. More →

August 9, 2023

Connection and collaboration motivate people to work from an office

by Neil Franklin • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace design

The key driver for employees wanting to go into the office is the need for socialisation and collaboration, according to the latest quarterly Workplace Index from Eptura. The report claims that this is an acknowledgement of the desire to be part of a community and the potential isolation of working at home. More →

August 7, 2023

Wellbeing of HR professionals yet to return to pre-pandemic levels

by Mark Eltringham • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

The wellbeing of HR professionals has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels, with UK HRs in particular lagging at times behind their global counterparts when coping with today’s challenging economic and operating conditions. This is according to a three-year comparative research project by Culture Amp and Thrive at Monash Business School, which found that in 2020, when the pandemic was first starting to bite, 45 percent of global HRs felt equipped to manage their own personal and work life demands. More →

August 2, 2023

Do political and social opinions belong in the office? People can’t even agree on that

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

The UK workforce is divided on whether political and social opinions belong in the office, according to a new report from HiBob. According to the poll commissioned for the report, half of UK professionals (53 percent) feel that respectful socio-political discourse in the workplace should be encouraged. However, the other half (45 percent) believe socio-political discussion should be kept out of the office, citing concerns over the impact on company culture. More →