Sir Digby Jones, UK Skills Envoy and former director general of the CBI, launched the new Work Wise UK Quality Mark during the Work Wise UK Summit at the QEII Conference Centre in London in mid-May. The new quality mark will allow any organisation to gain recognition for its successful introduction of new smarter working practices in the workplace.
Sir Digby Jones said: “The nature of work is changing fundamentally. UK businesses need to understand this, and adapt and evolve accordingly. The introduction of new smarter working practices is gaining momentum not only to improve business productivity but also to be able to recruit and retain the staff needed to do business.
“Those organisations which achieve the Work Wise Quality Mark will be well placed to attract the very best staff, as the labour market becomes ever more competitive and society becomes increasingly aware of the benefits of flexibility and new ways of working.”
Sir Christopher Bland, chairman of BT Group, said: “The national announcement of the Concordat and the development of a new quality standard dedicated to smarter working policies are key milestones that will establish strong foundations for the project in the coming years.”
Assessment for the quality mark will normally take two days and require an organisation to demonstrate:
- Understanding and use of smarter working techniques as a strategic planning tool.
- Staff involvement in defining future strategies.
- Vision in planning for the future.
