IN-TRAY
Detox the o≈ce
The bad news is that the UK workforce is de-motivated by rundown, poorly kept offices – but employers take heart, 81 per cent of the workforce is prepared to help clean or renovate the office! So let’s dish the dirt on the average state of the office:
■ Those working in the media are least happy with their office environment
■ 50 per cent say they need an attractive work space to feel motivated
■ Women are more likely to litter their desks with dirty plates, sweet wrappers and fruit peel
■ Over three quarters (76%) of people say they’d be put off a new job if the office was grotty
■ The kitchen was deemed to be the more unpleasant area, with 30 per cent of the vote
■ 49 per cent of people eat at their desk every single day
Summer sickies on the cards?
Football fever is going to be hitting British offices up and down the country come June and July, when the World Cup takes place. Research from
PricewaterhouseCoopers has found that close to one in four workers say they’ll be keeping up with the highs and lows of the tournament by watching matches while in the office. In order to combat absenteeism Asda has even gone as far as offering a Shift Swap scheme so that staff can rearrange their shifts to catch important matches, where cover is available.
The joys of spring
It may officially be spring time but the Health Protection Agency is predicting that up to one million Brits will fall victim to the winter vomiting bug before the summer arrives. Although the condition (officially called norovirus) is not danger- ous for the majority of healthy people it
can result in some nasty side effects and means time away from the office. The absence management group, First Care, has revealed that records show that since February, levels of norovirus have been higher than last year’s figures and there was also a significant increase mid-March.
THE VIEW FROM
Lorraine Stevens has been PA to the Chairman of Derrick Wade Waters Chartered Surveyors since 1993.
MY DESK
WHAT IS THE SKILL YOU USE MOST IN YOUR JOB?
Diplomacy, juggling priorities and a touch of assertiveness.
BEST PART OF YOUR ROLE?
It is a very varied role as the company is multi- disciplinary and we deal with many different aspects in the property business, but there is a real buzz when we manage to get a good result for a client.
WORST PART OF YOUR ROLE?
There are many interruptions working in an open plan office, and property can be a very frustrating business!
WHAT’S IN YOUR TOP DRAWER?
Various collected receipts for the team’s expense claims, two cereal bars, my car keys and a sewing kit (you’d be amazed how often it gets borrowed).
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TODAY?
Edited a structural crack investigation report, completed the division’s invoicing, given out various keys, and booked the flights for the company awayday to Copenhagen.
WHAT DO YOU SEE FOR THE FUTURE OF THE PA?
I think we are an endangered species. The skill set needed has changed drastically in the time I have been working. Younger professionals are very PC literate, so do not need PA/secretaries as much as previously. Companies are very cost-conscious, so I believe a one-to-one PA is going to be a real luxury item in the future.
Cora@ExecutivePA.com
www.executivepa.com » Apr/May 2010 » 07
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