November 24, 2020
Digital skills gap poses major economic threat, Microsoft study claims
The UK’s digital skills gap could pose a risk to economic recovery, new research from Microsoft claims, with over three-quarters of UK leaders citing a large digital talent pool as essential to driving UK competitiveness. The study, Unlocking the UK’s potential with digital skills, was conducted in partnership with Dr Chris Brauer at Goldsmiths, University of London to assess the UK’s skills gap and provide practical guidance for organisations on how to tackle it. It predicts the rise of a “Next Gen Worker” that is empowered by low-code and no-code technology, but also finds that a failure to embrace technological skills could leave companies struggling to compete on the global stage. (more…)
A new white paper claims that while supplier codes of conduct are important, they are ineffective if their requirements are not met with actions to bring about transparency. To be effective, codes of conduct should support an authentic determination to embed company values and to foster strong business relationships that encourage honest communication and transparency that include monitoring the effectiveness. 
Despite the last-minute extension of the furlough scheme, new research conducted among UK business leaders claims that great concern remains around making redundancies and in particular the legal risk. The survey of over 440 UK business leaders, conducted by employment law and HR support firm 
A new paper from the 
Poise by Bisley is part of the new Belong collection, which has been developed to transcend both the traditional office and homeworking environments. The Poise range consists of a variety of desking and table options, which can either be used as stand-alone pieces of furniture or sit together to form a cohesive office setting. Calling on Bisley’s heritage in workplace innovation, all have been designed in response to the events of 2020, seamlessly adapting to fit either the home or a commercial office environment. 
Workplace design and fit out company Area has become a founding member of 
The construction of new offices in central London has declined by half (50 percent) in six months as developers and occupiers shift their focus to refurbishment, according to Deloitte Real Estate’s latest 
New research published by 
Staff need on average three days a week (2.91) in the office to achieve maximum productivity, according to a new study by 
It has now been more than eight months since the government first advised people to work from home if possible, due to COVID-19. The shift to remote working happened suddenly in March and quickly became part of everyday life; in April 2020 alone, 
A survey issued by architecture, design, and planning firm 
November 23, 2020
The crisis is making us more authentically human at work
by Jill Dark • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing, Workplace design