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☆ From body sensors to water coolers, here's how companies are watching how full their offices are
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Some employers are turning to sensors that can tell when a person is sitting at a desk or using a conference room. So if you have sensors, you're able to release the no-shows and put those back into the pool," he said. What the office water cooler actually revealsThere are other ways that measuring office occupancy can help understand employee habits. In 2019, 21% of flavored-water hounds in East Coast offices were using Bevi machines early or late in the day. This year as more companies have been instituting RTO mandates, getting workers back to the office — and knowing they're there — has been a heated fight .

Persons: Alex Birch, Kathleen Hall, Birch, Big, It's, Sean Grundy, Bevi, they're, Grundy, —, Goldman Sachs, I'd Organizations: Service, Google, Citadel, Deloitte Locations: Wall, Silicon, Australian, East Coast, Boston

☆ Two under-the-radar ways bosses are tracking how full their offices are
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Employers have unique ways of telling how full their offices are. There's more interest now that more bosses are calling their workers back to the office. What the office water cooler actually revealsThere are other ways that measuring office occupancy can help understand employee habits. In 2019, 21% of flavored-water hounds in East Coast offices were using Bevi machines early or late in the day. The difference between RTO mandates and knowing how office space is being usedThese metrics aren't the same as tracking badge swipes .

☆ Where in the World Are People Back in the Office?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In London, a politician wrote not-so-subtle notes to remote workers last year, hoping to persuade them to spend more time in the office: “Sorry you were out when I visited,” Jacob Rees-Mogg, then a government minister, recalled writing in messages left on the desks of Cabinet Office staff members who were working from home. When the coronavirus pandemic took hold in 2020, many industries across the world shifted to remote or hybrid work. It was an immense experiment that yielded different results for different cities — with long-term standoffs between executives and workers in some cases, and a sweeping return to the office in others. Whether a person is more likely to do work at a cubicle in a big office tower or on the living room couch now depends on where in the world those cubicles and couches are. Many Asian countries have lower levels of remote work than countries in Europe and North America.

Persons: ” Jacob Rees, Mogg, Jem Kim, videoconference, Autónomo, México Organizations: Sequoia, Stanford, Instituto, Ifo Institute Locations: London, Seoul, San Mateo, Calif, Europe, North America, Britain, Canada, United States

☆ At least 2 days in office is the 'sweet spot' for hybrid workers, according to new research
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( Morgan Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Employees overwhelmingly prefer hybrid work, but the optimal number of days in the office is still up for debate. For other workers on a 5-day workweek schedule, that may mean 2 or 3 days in office each week. "Our research shows it's the 'hybrid sweet spot,'" George says. "You need to be intentional and anchor those office days around activities that are most effective in-person, whether it's career workshops, feedback sessions or team brainstorms." The most successful return-to-office strategies have clear operating norms that go beyond how many days employees should be working together in person.

Persons: Katy George, McKinsey's, George, I've, we're Organizations: McKinsey, CNBC Locations: I'm

☆ Remote jobs are becoming more 'gig-like' as workers feel detached from their company's mission, Gallup finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Noah Sheidlower | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Remote workers say their connection to their company and its mission feels increasingly "gig-like," Gallup finds. According to a new Gallup survey, a record low 28% of remote workers felt their company's mission made them feel their job is important, down from 32% last year and 37% in 2020. Remote workers are also on the whole feeling less loyal, which could impact employee retention and productivity. For some companies, remote work fits since employers trust their workers to get the job done. Hybrid and fully remote workers did not have improvements in engagement, though 38% of both groups still report feeling engaged.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, what's, — Organizations: Gallup, Service, Meta, Federal Reserve Bank of New, Manufacturing Survey, Business Locations: Wall, Silicon, India

☆ Grown-Up Theater Kids Run the World
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Madison Malone Kircher | More About Madison Malone Kircher | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Muttering “thank you, five” under their breath when you swing by their cubicles to remind them about a team meeting happening in five minutes. Performing slightly too well at office karaoke after protesting slightly too much about getting onstage. Former theater kids. What happens to theater kids when we grow up? There’s, of course, the dream scenario: The theater kids who are driven and talented and lucky enough become working theater adults.

Persons: it’ll, Ben Platt, Tony, Evan Hansen, ” Locations: “

☆ People would rather work anywhere but the office — including their gyms
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

It shows how remote workers, or hybrid workers, crave a third space that isn't work or home. As the Wall Street Journal reports, gyms are the latest venture to break into offering coworking space. Its website touts that the gym's members lounge "offers communal work tables and social lounge spaces available from open until close for all club members," where members can "catch up on some work" or "just relax after your workout." As research on remote workers' time use shows, more are using their breaks to work out or participate in other leisure activities. That could explain why a gym-based coworking space is so appealing: You get the ability to socialize, work out, and still get your work done.

Persons: crave, Chelsea, Chelsea Piers, Nick Bloom, Bloom Organizations: Service, Wall Street Journal, Chelsea, Stanford Locations: Wall, Silicon, Brooklyn

☆ How Do You Personalize Your Cubicle? We Want to See It.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Gregory Schmidt | More About Gregory Schmidt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Now the lowly cubicle is making a comeback, as workers head back to the office and find they have lost the privacy and quiet they have working at home. Seeking quiet areas for focused work, workers are turning once again to cubicles and the isolation they offer. The New York Times team that covers business is planning an upcoming story on the return of the cubicle as part of our Square Feet series on live/play/work spaces. We want to feature photos of office cubicles. Send us your photos; we’ll pick the best and send a photographer to your workplace.

Persons: Cubicles, John Malkovich, ” Organizations: New York Times

☆ The Afterlife of Forlorn Office Furniture
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Stefanos Chen | More About Stefanos Chen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Herman Miller is one of the most revered makers of office furniture in the world, its designs so esteemed that its Aeron chair, which became a fixture of New York City cubicles, was put in the Museum of Modern Art’s permanent collection. This month, some Herman Miller chairs, which can retail for over $1,000, met a less dignified fate: an appointment with the crushing metal jaws of an excavator. More than three years after the coronavirus pandemic began, about half of the office space in the New York City metro area in June was occupied, according to Kastle Systems, a security-card company tracking activity in office buildings. The hollowing out of the city’s cubicles has raised existential economic and cultural questions, but also a big logistical one: What do you do with all that office furniture?

Persons: Herman Miller Organizations: Museum, Modern, New, Kastle Systems Locations: New York City

The Secret Service is investigating the matter, the White House said. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters: "Where this was discovered is a heavily traveled area where many ... West Wing visitors come through." The West Wing is attached to the executive mansion where President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden live. Jean-Pierre said West Wing tours took place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The discovery led to a brief closure of the White House complex on Sunday.

Persons: Karine Jean, Pierre, Jean, Joe Biden, Jill Biden, Biden, it's, Jeff Mason, Steve Holland, Heather Timmons, David Gregorio, Howard Goller Organizations: West Wing, U.S, Washington , D.C, Office, West, White, Administration, Wing, East Wing, Thomson Locations: Washington ,, Camp David , Maryland

☆ After getting fired from one job and nearly canned from another, I finally learned the key difference between work and school
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Henry Blodget | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In my 20s, I struggled with the transition from school to work. The difference is that the money is going the other way when you're at work. So, in the hopes of saving those who ask for advice from their own self-inflicted career sabotage, I sometimes ask them this:"What's the key difference between school and work?" In school, you're the customer. But as you transition from school to work, remember which way the money is going.

Persons: —, I'd, I've, haven't Organizations: Service

HONG KONG, June 27 (Reuters) - A series of brutal attacks in Hong Kong is shining a light on mental health in a city that has suffered from particularly acute strains while lacking sufficient resources to provide proper care for all who need it, mental health groups say. A city government spokesman, asked about the state of mental health, referred Reuters to a meeting the administration organised this month aimed at exploring more ways to address mental health problems and support people who suffer from severe mental disorders. Mental health experts point to the COVID-19 pandemic as a major factor in the increase in mental health issues, as it has been in many places. 'EXHAUSTION'Judy Blaine, a researcher and consultant on mental wellbeing, says it is the compounding of stresses that takes a toll on Hong Kong's people. Carol Liang, deputy CEO of the group Mind Hong Kong, said waiting times for cases deemed non-urgent can be as long as 90 weeks in the Hospital Authority system.

Persons: Abby Choi, Judy Blaine, Hong, Blaine, Carol Liang, Hong Kong, Farah Master, Anne Marie Roantree, Robert Birsel Organizations: Hong Kong Foundation, Organization, Reuters, Hospital Authority, Organisation for Economic Cooperation, Development, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Hong Kong, Beijing, Hong

☆ Empty offices, abandoned malls, concerns over crime: Why San Francisco, the Golden City, is losing its luster
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Al Yoon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Days later, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and coowner Brookfield gave the San Francisco City Centre back to their lenders after the exit of retailers left the mall just over half occupied. Whatever is going on in San Francisco, we are not interested in being part of that any longer." Fear of crime taints the cityCrime, or the fear of it, often creeps into conversations about San Francisco, too. "I ask, what's the driver" of the San Francisco office vacancies, Scavone told Insider. He continued: "Is it because downtown San Francisco is somewhat of a difficult commute from suburbs in Marin County or the East Bay?"

Persons: Manus Clancy, Trepp, —, Brookfield, Clancy, Salesforce, Jeff Burg, he's, Burg, we're, Thomas Baltimore, hasn't, Elon Musk, Bob Lee, Frank Scavone, Scavone Organizations: Service, San Francisco, California, Hilton San Francisco, Square, Parc, San Francisco City Centre, San, Krea, Union, Census, LinkedIn, Park Hotels, Resorts, Westfield, ABC, San Francisco Travel Association, Elon, Foods, The New York Times, McKinsey & Co, downtown Locations: San Francisco, San, San Francisco Chronicle, Westfield, Real, Francisco, New York, cubicles, Boston , Chicago, Houston, Miami, San Francisco's Hayes Valley, Manhattan, Tenderloin, —, downtown San Francisco, Marin County

☆ Big global employers plan modest cuts to office space: Knight Frank
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Suban Abdulla | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Hannah BeierLONDON, June 6 (Reuters) - Half of large multinational companies plan to reduce office space as they adjust to hybrid working patterns, although the cuts are likely to be modest as few plan to go fully remote, a survey from real estate agents Knight Frank showed on Tuesday. Knight Frank said 50% of employers with more than 50,000 staff intended to reduce office space, typically by 10% to 20% in the next three years, as they reassess their needs following the introduction of remote working during the COVID-19 pandemic. But at companies with up to 10,000 staff split across different countries, most expected to increase office space. Mat Oakley, head of commercial research at Savills said demand for office space in London had increased, and flexible working appeared less of a challenge than previously thought. "There are definitely challenges for office demand but these have been largely overstated particularly when you take into consideration employment growth," Oakley said.

Persons: Hannah Beier LONDON, Knight Frank, Tim Armstrong, Antony Antoniou, Robert Irving Burns, Mat Oakley, Savills, Oakley, Suban Abdulla, David Milliken Organizations: FMC Corporation, REUTERS, Bank of England, British, Land Securities, P, Thomson Locations: Philadelphia , Pennsylvania, U.S, Britain, Mat, London

☆ Opinion | Men Have Lost Their Way. Josh Hawley Has Thoughts About How to Save Them.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Carlos Lozada | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

In Bly’s view, part of the answer was to recreate ancient rites of male initiation and restore mentoring between young men and their elders, a relationship that instructs boys to channel, but not suppress, their instincts. And he urges young men to assume greater responsibility for their own lives (“Ditching porn is a good place to start,” Hawley writes) as a step toward glimpsing that missing vision of manhood. To dismiss or mock such views merely because they come from Josh Hawley is to let partisan commitments overwhelm intellectual ones. “Much of today’s left seems to welcome men who are passive and tame, who will do as they are told and sit in their cubicles, eyes affixed to their screens,” Hawley writes. Hawley is not necessarily wrong when he complains about the mixed messages aimed at young men today — Your identity is yours to shape and claim, but why are you so toxic and oppressive?

Persons: Schlesinger, John F, Kennedy, John Wayne, ” Hawley, Josh Hawley, Hawley, today’s, “, ”, … Organizations: Trump Locations: America

But in the last few years, increasing pay transparency has become a common cause for young workers, anti-discrimination advocates, and, increasingly, state legislators. But employers in states with transparency laws make up for it by imposing informal rules that prevent employees from talking about pay. If the "new norm" of salary transparency had supplanted the old taboo, then we'd expect a large majority to chafe under outdated restrictions against discussing pay. Strong support for managers in general appears to translate into strong support for managerial approaches to pay secrecy or transparency. If salary transparency is actually going to become the "new norm," it will clearly require more than our existing set of state laws.

☆ CEOs thought the return to office debate was over. It looks like they were wrong
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Cheryl Winokur Munk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Other companies, too, could see reverberations if they enact similar policies, especially if the mandates feel arbitrary, human resources professionals say. That's why companies that want to bring workers back to the office need to focus on reconfiguring workspaces to foster additional collaboration. If your company hasn't yet, maybe don't 'mandate'Many companies are still ironing out their return-to-office policies. JustAnswer, an online source for professional information, has seen a 49% increase in questions related to return-to-office mandates and/or policies in its Employment Law category compared with May 2022. Companies should also evaluate whether across-the-board policies make sense, or whether in-office mandates should be implemented for certain functions only, Kogut said.

☆ New York Is Full of Empty Offices After Covid. Make Way for the Playground City. - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Edward L. Glaeser | Carlo Ratti | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +20 min

We are witnessing the dawn of a new kind of urban area: the Playground City. The transformation toward the Playground City will not happen on its own. To draw people into the Playground City, we need to show, not tell. 6.Engage citizensGovernments should empower citizens to participate directly in making the Playground City. The Playground City sees people as both a means and an end, and it should involve them in the process of its creation.

☆ Young remote workers are missing out on crucial IRL feedback from colleagues
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

For young workers, not being in an office can mean they don't get as much feedback from colleagues. The pushback against remote work comes as more CEOs have been calling workers back to the office. But workers — especially those taking care of kids or others — grew accustomed to the flexibility that remote work can afford. Despite the risks, many of those potentially in danger of missing out on professional growth are most in favor of remote work, according to surveys, the Times noted. And some companies that have embraced remote work report success.

☆ Inside the Wild World of Celebrity Keynote Speakers: Drugs, Alcohol
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( David Kushner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +31 min

"I never saw myself as a speaker, let alone a motivational speaker," Leonard tells me while his assistant irons his jeans. 'When I ramble," Hunter told me, "hit me in the leg!" Every plane had been grounded, including the one stuck on the tarmac with an increasingly inebriated Hunter Thompson trapped inside. But by far the most all-consuming task was booking gigs for Hunter Thompson. Just before a debate with G. Gordon Liddy at Brown University, Hunter demanded that Betsy Berg, whom I now worked alongside at GTN, score him some crystal meth.

☆ Bosses hate work from home because 'home' is for women
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Aki Ito | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

And the old way was clear: The office is for work, and the home is for — well, for whatever unpaid stuff it is that women do while their men are at work. Skeptical that work — real work — could be done at home, bosses quietly penalized the women who opted for flexible schedules by sticking them with boring assignments and denying them promotions. Embracing remote work is a good start, but it comes with risks of its own. Since the pandemic hit, I've heard a few CEOs liken remote work to opening Pandora's box. Women working from home are no longer the aberration — tradition-bound executives are.

☆ My company is making us go back to the office 2 days a week to boost morale — but no one wants to be there
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Rebecca Knight | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Remote work was for tech people or consultants — not for regular folks. So when COVID first hit and I, along with almost every other office worker in the world, got sent home to do my job, I didn't know what to expect. But now, management is backtracking and saying we need to be in the office at least two days a week. Earlier this year, management ordered us to go back to the office two days a month; starting this summer, they've mandated two days a week. I'm looking for another job, which is frustrating since I'd rather stay with my company and continue being the productive remote worker that I am.

☆ Gary Vaynerchuk to managers: Forget a 4-day workweek. If you want to make your people happy, fire the jerks.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Jason Lalljee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Gary Vaynerchuk said companies should fire the "assholes" creating "toxic" work environments. He has also said recently that companies need to appeal to Gen Z better, given their many work options. In TikToks posted this week, Vaynerchuk railed against "toxic work environments," slamming companies for retaining employees and management that compromise the "joy" of their staff members. "Joy doesn't come from four-hour workweeks," Vaynerchuk said in one video, seeming to reference the current movement for a four-day workweek. And Vaynerchuk is betting that people also want to be treated right while on the clock.

☆ Gen Z, Millennials Are Now As Sick and Tired of Their Jobs As Boomers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Aki Ito | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Young workers may not possess the experience or wisdom of their older colleagues. When Gartner asked people what was preventing them from going into the office, Gen Zers were more likely than other generations to cite social anxiety. Pollak, the consultant, told me about a client who complained that their Gen Z employees were "abusing" the company's vacation policy. But these are the very people who can help young workers feel more seen and motivated in their jobs. My suggestions are targeted to shore up engagement among young workers, but they'd actually be good for everyone.

☆ Swipe your badge or get fired? Employers and workers face a reckoning over returning to the office.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Rebecca Knight | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Employers are hardening demands for workers to return to the office and quashing resistance. Apple is tracking employee attendance and has threatened action against staff who don't work from the office at least three days a week. Today, though, as a recession looms, companies are rolling back perks and demanding workers return to their desks or risk termination. After 2020's COVID-19 lockdowns forced office workers to work from home, many of them discovered the benefits of remote work. Many of the same companies demanding workers return to the office have recently conducted mass layoffs — some more than once.

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