The world may seem bleak right now, but Team Human can still have the last laugh August 10, 2020 “A day without laughter is a day wasted.” Words of wisdom from the twentieth century comic genius that was Charlie Chaplin. But whatever 2020 is ultimately remembered for, it seems set to be a year where very few of its days will have been characterised by cheerfulness. The epic challenge presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, [...]
‘Edtech’ surges to the top of the class August 6, 2020 | City Talk From near-ubiquitous interactive whiteboards to cloud platforms, coding and coaching via video-call, education technology has travelled a long way since schools introduced basic computing laboratories in the 1980s. These advancements have been given a further powerful push by the digital acceleration triggered by coronavirus: most visibly in the need for teaching professionals to deliver classes [...]
More women at the top means more profits for businesses — and a stronger economy for everyone August 6, 2020 A warm-up act will normally dismiss the first polite round of applause from an audience and insist they can demonstrate more enthusiasm than that. Many a time I’m the warm-up act on the boardroom stage. I may never manage to work the crowd into a frenzy, but at the very least I wake them from [...]
For young Londoners, working from home is a cramped and dismal experience August 5, 2020 Ah the great British work from home experiment: levelling the playing field, redressing work-life balance, enabling millions of people to work when and where best suits them. After a brief period of chaos at the end of March when the nation struggled to get to grips with Zoom and Amazon sold out of laptop stands, [...]
Going back is not an option — so let’s go forwards to work August 3, 2020 For decades, working culture has been stuck in a rut. We have been at the mercy of inflexible antiquated systems, processes and policies which serve a few and don’t include everyone. So if lockdown has brought us one thing, it’s the opportunity to fix it. Excitingly, we are finally seeing conversations about who and what [...]
Ethical capitalism can rebuild the world for the better August 3, 2020 The time has come for ethical capitalism — not as an optional extra, but as something that is critically important for consumer trust in business to flourish in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The public is brassed off with businesses not paying their dues to society, and their voices are getting louder. They are [...]
This pandemic has not spared our children — we face a youth mental health catastrophe July 31, 2020 The coronavirus crisis has changed us all. Whether through bereavement, job losses, isolation, or drastic changes to work and schooling, 2020 has radically altered the world as we know it. We are yet to know how long we will have to live with Covid-19 — the government oscillates between telling us things will be back [...]
Give people seeking asylum the right to work in Britain July 30, 2020 The Prime Minister has said he wants the UK to build back better as the country and economy recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. That’s a worthy goal — and the good news is that there are thousands of people in our communities with a wide variety of skills who are desperate to help. They are [...]
Let’s not squander this unique opportunity to harness the benefits of a new model for work July 30, 2020 It’s no stretch to say that, without remote working, thousands of businesses would have ground to a halt over lockdown. The mass work-from-home experiment over the past four months has not only saved them, but shown that it is possible to fundamentally shift ways of working while continuing to be productive and deliver results. Before [...]
Harness young talent to get the UK economy back on track July 29, 2020 As businesses continue to feel the economic disruption created by Covid-19, front of mind will be not only confronting the immediate challenges, but their long-term recovery plan and the actions necessary to ensure that they emerge from the crisis in a strong and competitive position. The UK’s young talent is a core part of this. [...]