Here are some of our favorite articles from March:
Design
Working from home? Here’s how to make your setup more ergonomic
‘Although it might be tempting to splay out on your sectional, working from your sofa is one of the worst things you can do for your long-term back health. “I have never seen anyone able to maintain both their cervical and lumbar lordosis while sitting on any kind of couch for extended periods of time,” says Devoe.
Remote working
11 easy tips for working from home effectively and productively
Despite the extra time you have now to sleep in, Antonia Hock, head of The Ritz-Carlton Leadership Centre, advises against this.
Jumping straight from the bed to the desk can be unhealthy. People need to start the day with an hour to themselves as a means of reflection. It is this one hour that can determine the level of productivity within the day.
How Dual Career Couples can Work through the Coronavirus Crisis
Couples must now discuss life working from home if they hope to come out of isolation with an intact relationship.
This involves setting principles both can agree on and which to adhere to throughout the course of their time at home. These principles are based on questions such as ‘what matters the most to you in this period’, and ‘what are the things that concern you most’.
Answering these questions together will make the coming months much easier.
8 strategies to keep your mental health in check when working remotely
Working from home requires being kind to yourself, not everyone will adjust to remote working so easily and it will take time to find a stride. Taking a shower and dressing appropriately helps to mentally prepare you for work and achieve the right mindset.
Not working from bed is important otherwise you might associate the bed with work, which can be of detriment when you’ve reached the end of the day and are trying to sleep.
Technology
Working from home: Here are 7 handy productivity apps to make life easier
The remote working experiment is in full swing. This article lists several web applications that can make the transition to remote working easier.
Coronavirus cybersecurity: Nine tips for secure remote working
A compilation of tips to maintain cybersecurity from home.
The advice given includes:
Avoiding unsecured wifi networks and routers
Acquiring a VPN
Setting up a password manager
Separation of personal and work data
Double-checking bank statements
and remaining vigilant for phishing scams.
Flexible working
Great company culture is the basis for successful flexible working
Companies are adopting more flexible working hours for their employees which means they must have a well-developed corporate culture to facilitate productivity.
Healthy corporate culture can be created through transparency with employees. The more transparent management is with information and financial performance to staff, the more motivated employees become.
Future of work
A Report by Peakon found the top trends employees want in a workplace.
Climate action was the main expectation with carbon footprint a prevalent topic of discussion. Employee concerns on flexible working rose by 18%. Employees also expectations for wellness rose with an 18% increase in mentions on surveys.
Staff also expected a rise in diversity and inclusion with comments related to the issue rising by 19%.
Wellness
Office space that’s good for our mental health
Well-designed workspaces are becoming increasingly important for employee wellness.
Access to modern office trends such as greenery and natural light not only benefits employee mental health but has been shown to increase productivity by up to 10%.
Workspaces are using design to fight employee stress. They’ve got a long way to go
A 2019 Gallup report found full-time employee stress had risen by 5% since 2016 which has led to greater efforts on ergonomics to improve moods within the workplace.
Workplace burnout is attributed to feeling stalled and a lack of autonomy, hence the reasoning that if workers feel they have autonomy in how they work, be it at their desk or at a work café, productivity goes up and stress goes down.
Co-working
Why start-up should engage their team to a co-working space
Co-working spaces offer meeting rooms, high-speed internet, and is a necessary step forward for start-ups that need to expand their business.
A study by Deskmag detailed how workers found an increase in productivity in their co-working space by up to 74%. Co-working spaces provide a multitude of advantages over a regular office, the main one being that it is just much cheaper.