How far are companies willing to go to offer as much flexibility as possible in the workplace?Flexible working has never been so desirable. Going through the Covid pandemic has proved to many that it is possible to work just as productively from home as in the office. Possibly even more productively with less distractions, no time wasted on travelling to the office etc.At Adrem Group, we have fully embraced flexible working. Many of our consultants are based outside of London and are able to spend the majority of their time working remotely from home. That wasn’t enough for us and we decided to take this one step further…Recently, a number of our employees have chosen to combine a holiday with working; One of our consultants, Abe Khan, was able to travel to Istanbul for 2 weeks to visit friends. He arranged to work in the mornings and take the rest of the day off to relax. This meant that he was still able to keep on top of his work, his clients and colleagues were not affected by his holiday, and he didn’t have hundreds of emails to catch up on when he returned home.Our Payroll Manager, Rozeta has also just returned from Albania where she was visiting her family. Roza was away for 2 and a half weeks but worked part time throughout her holiday where she was still able to manage the payroll function remotely.By having this flexibility both Abe and Roza were able to save their annual leave for additional time off throughout the year. The best of both worlds, they were able to stay on top of their work but still had plenty of time to relax, see family and friends, and enjoy their holidays! #flexibleworking#workingfromhome#workingfromholiday#workingremotely#flexiblework#flexibleworkplace​

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​Here at Adrem, we measure our activity by tracking and regularly reviewing key data points. This helps to keep our consultants and, therefore our clients informed as to what is happening in the market. Our Associate Director,Carl Nevel, recently reviewed the architecture placement data from Q1 (2022) and has some interesting insights to share. These insights provide an indication as to who is currently ‘winning the race for new talent’ within the architecture industry.  For the third consecutive quarter, the number one reason that a candidate made the move was for greater flexibility (to work from home). With the ideal arrangement appearing to be a hybrid working week, with an average of 3 days working from the office and 2 days working from home.  Over 76.2% of individuals that made the move decided to join studios that were offering a hybrid working week and only 19% made the move to studios requiring employees to be in the office full time. The remaining 4.8% of candidates were hired by firms that have fully embraced remote working, often with an open office policy in place. Back in 2021, we surveyed over 678 architectural professionals and found that 23% of employers had returned to the office full time, 47% had adopted a hybrid working week, 23% were working flexibly, and 7% were completely remote with no plans to return to the office. Please help us to build an accurate picture of the current ‘lay of the land’ by taking a moment to respond to the following poll….Thank you in advance for taking part. If you find insights like this helpful, please give this post a thumbs up and, if you would like us to cover a certain topic, please drop a comment below. #wfh#workingfromhome#flexibleworking#workingremotely#flexibility#architecture#dezeen#archdaily​How has your company (workplace) decided to operate?​Back to the Office (Full-Time) 19%​​Split: Office Based & WFH 48%​​Flexible (Open Office Policy) 24%​​Completely Remote (WFH) 9%​269 votes • Poll closed​​​

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​Upskilling in the Workforce: How Office / Business Support Staff Can Stay Relevant in the Industry...As competition increases in this fast-paced digital world, more and more employees are looking to upskill themselves. Finding talented business support staff, PA, receptionists, and office managers is one of the biggest concerns of employers who are recruiting. As competition increases, more and more employees are looking to upskill themselves.How To Upskill Yourself As An Employee...If you want to become a better asset to your workplace and stay relevant in your industry, here are some upskilling techniques you can follow:- Online Courses -The biggest advantage of virtual courses is that they can be accessed from anywhere at any time, eliminating the restrictions of working hours / office-based learning. Employees can access online courses to 'up their talents' and qualifications from credible sources likeSkillshare,LinkedIn Learning,HubSpot Academy,MIT Open Learning, and more. You can learn these courses at your own pace whenever you have the time to do so.- Micro Training -Microlearning or micro training involves short-term, bite-sized learning activities. Not only are these training activities short in time, but they also enable you to retain learned content in a better way.Microlearning focuses on narrower topics that you can get in short doses and do not take as much time as longer training courses. With this type of training, employees can boost their learning and performance most efficiently.- Mentoring -Getting the expertise of a person who is more experienced than you is a great way to upskill yourself. Employees can shadow their mentors, watch them work, have discussions on the type of skills they want to cultivate, and learn directly from their experience under them.- Coaching -If you want to learn under a coach, you can do so. Coaches receive special training to guide people who are new to the industry or want to elevate their skills.Coaching offers a personalized learning experience that aligns with a worker’s personal goals and helps them realize their potential. This is a highly effective strategy to close your skill gap and work toward your goals in small steps.Why Upskilling Matters...Upskilling is one of the most effective ways to stay relevant in your industry:● Helps you become more valuable to your employer so you can get that salary increase or promotion● Learning something new gives you a fresh perspective and makes your job more satisfying● Allows you to discover new passions● You grow as a person by constantly learning new skills● Enables you to take on more responsibilityUpskilling not only makes you better at what you do, but it also helps you become more valuable to your current and any potential new employer. It also improves your personal development and allows you to achieve both your personal and professional goals.#upskilling#newskills#training#learning

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​Adrem teamed up with the Bartlett School of Architecture to host a Careers Fair where 120 students managed to get a hit of the professional atmosphere of 30 of the top practices in architecture. This was a momentous occasion as after two years of teams lectures and face masks, this was the first social milieu for students and design studios of this kind. Both groups welcomed the resumption of discussions about careers and cultures, in this return to socialisation and most importantly being seen and heard.We were happy to help host this and give advice on CV’s, folios and the changes to the world of employment since the pandemic. The Adrem team welcomed the opportunity to lend a hand and offer our support in getting the wheels of industry and normality turning once again!Architecture can do many things but bringing people together to talk about the future is perhaps one its most powerful contributions to the spirit.Thank you for joining us.#architecture#bartlett#studentsuccess#studentsupport#students#careers#future#employability​

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​Happy 1 Year Anniversary to Carly Thomas - Business Support expert. Adrem were delighted to recently announce that Carly joined forces with Lucy Kennelly, in a job share. They specialise in both Temporary and Permanent Recruitment, within the Business Support sector. Covering a wide range of job roles, such as PA / Studio Managers, Document Controllers, Administrators, HR professional and Finance experts. Thank you, Carly, for being such a wonderful addition to the Adrem community.   #anniversary#anniversarycelebration

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Around 14 years ago I was involved in helping to organise a lecture by a little-known architect at the time from Burkina Faso. I was keen on this, as developing architecture was not particularly followed much less appreciated in the UK. Apart from the DPU at UCL there was little experimentation into this genre of developing indigenous architecture, in the UK architectural circle.The Architect that was invited was Francis Kere who was a charismatic and incredibly charming speaker who made a mesmerising first impression. He spoke about people and communities and how the projects he had designed had been built by the local community and to get them made he had to learn from techniques from local craftsman and then work out how to develop their methods with some new ideas. This meant he had to physically craft and build, as did his troupe of German helpers. Because there would be little distinction between designing, crafting and building, the local community did not see a distinction between the design and the build, it was all part of one holistic composition. Years later if the younger people in his village were asked what they wanted to be they would say ‘we want to be a Francis’ meaning whether it was designing, carpentry, weaving or building it made little difference it was part of a whole because people didn’t have a title or a better way of describing the change in looking at their local buildings. This was immersive architecture, with a fully engaged community.​​What Francis has done is utilise his German education to re-engineer traditional mud brick and corrugated metal buildings to create a new lexicon. Redefining chunky, clunky materials, into finely crafted, elegantly ventilated habitats all of which are environmentally on point, sustainable, maintainable, and economical. Meanwhile the large overhanging cantilevers and elegant lattice structures that lift the roof are the refinements that meshes Western and African materiality and design languages.​​​The Pritzker Award to Francis Kere is a real turning point in Architecture unlike those gone before. It is a recognition to a ‘different kind’ of dialogue and innovation in design, away from the perceived glossy opulence of western architecture. As Alejandro Aravena the head of the judging panel for Pritzker said his ‘body of work shows us the power of materiality rooted in place.’ No doubt there is the huge impact that his win makes to the discourse on race and culture in architecture which in itself is a positive evolution.  However the real reason why this is a great choice of recipient is that it will give immeasurable hope and create fantastical dreams for generations of youngsters, considering architecture as a job. It celebrates indigenous vernacular architecture as fed through the filter of evolutionary design. A process can be seen where ‘local’ can be a thing of beauty, with cultural heritage and architectural innovation. Most importantly children saying‘I want to be a Francis’, is the epitome of an architect connecting and giving hope, not just through his buildings but through his engagement as a human being a relatable human architect, connecting to the audience and community he serves. That is the celebration and why he so richly deserves this award and something we can learn in the west. ​

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Business Support - Job share announcement!Carly Thomas & Lucy Kennelly are joining forces to work as one.  Adrem is thrilled to announce that we have a brand-new job share in our business support team.  Lucy is moving from her candidate lead role into a recruiter position.  Job share is a great way to create consistency, whilst facilitating part-time working solutions for employees. Adrem is delighted to support flexible working arrangements.#newwaysofworking#jobshare#teamwork​

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​We are always on the look out for good candidates; therefore, your friend and colleague referrals are very important to us. Referrals are a great way to assist your network in their job search and are something we like to show our thanks for. To show our gratitude, we reward successful referrals with a gift card to the value of £150 for a permanent candidate upon placement in a job and completion of 12 weeks employment.To register your referral, please send your details and theirs and we'll get back to you shortly.​Terms & ConditionsYou must have the permission of the candidate before recommending.The candidate must not already be registered on Adrem database.A recommended candidate can only be nominated once and the first person to nominate such candidate will be eligible for payment.The referee is eligible to receive a voucher if they refer a person who is placed in a permanent position within 6 months of registration by Adrem.Payments will be made in vouchers.In the event of any disputed fees, Adrem reserves the right to vary or terminate all or part of the terms of the referral Scheme at any time without notice. There is no alternative offer and the offer must be redeemed within three months of notification.Following all reasonable reference checks, the decision of a Director of Adrem will be final.Adrem reserves the right to amend or change the terms and conditions of the Referral Incentive Scheme without written notice. These terms are final and non-negotiable.

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​On Monday 21 June, there will be less than 10 days to go until the deadline of 30 June 2021 for applications to be made to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS).The Home Office will be marking this milestone with a daily count down on our social media platforms between now and the final day of the scheme to reach non-applicants with the urgent call to apply as soon as possible.An application to the EU Settlement Scheme by 30 June 2021 secures your existing rights in UK law until you’re granted a status, so we’re urging eligible to people to apply now, and not to delay.    Over 5 million people have already been granted a status that allows them to continue to continue to work, study, and access free healthcare and benefits in the UK after 30 June 2021.Help to applySupport is available seven days a week by telephone and by email, for anyone who needs help with their application. The Home Office has a dedicated team of more than 1,500 people working alongside a UK-wide network of 72 charities and local authorities dedicated to supporting the most vulnerable and hard-to-reach applicants including those who are disabled, elderly, isolated, have language or literacy problems, are the victims of domestic abuse, struggle with technology or have further vulnerabilities.Your contributions are invaluable in helping to reach these people in the final few days left before the deadline of 30 June 2021. Thank you to everyone who shared content for the 30 days to go milestone earlier this month. The response was incredible with over 293 separate organisations participating in the activity with a combined reach of 7.1 million across Twitter and on Facebook.  As an employer it is not your responsibility to make sure your EU employees have applied, but you can play a role by reminding them of the approaching deadline and cascading the information in the employer toolkit available on GOV.UK. You will not need to carry out retrospective Right to Work Checks on existing employees after the 30 June 2021 deadline. However, from 1 July, new EU, EEA and Swiss employees that you hire will need to demonstrate their right to work either with the pre-settled or settled status, or with a visa under the points-based immigration system. These Right to Work Checks can predominantly be conducted digitally for EU, EEA and Swiss citizens.We have published a new guide for EU, EEA and Swiss citizens on viewing and proving their immigration status (eVisa). The guide explains how people can view, prove and share their immigration status, update their details, what they should expect when crossing the UK border and how to get help accessing their immigration status. Please feel free to share this with your employees or networks.Key points to remember in the run up to the deadline•    A range of support is available to those who need help to apply. Please help us reach these people by sharing the link to support services across your channels.   •     Share this link: www.gov.uk/help-eu-settlement-scheme•    If an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen and their family members have lived in the UK for many years or have a permanent residence document or EEA Biometric Residence Card (BRC), they still need to apply to the EUSS (or apply for British Citizenship) by 30 June 2021 to continue to live and work in the UK. •    An application must be made for every eligible child within a family. Parents should apply on behalf of their children, even if they have already applied and been granted a status themselves. •    Eligible close family members living overseas can apply to join an EU, EEA or Swiss family member who started living in the UK by 31 December 2020. They can apply to come to the UK at any point. More information on joining family members can be found on GOV.UK.•    An application to the EU Settlement Scheme by 30 June secures your existing rights in UK law until you’re granted a status, It usually takes around 5 working days for complete applications to be processed, but it can take up to a month. Some cases may take longer to process applications if they are more complex, such as where the person has a relevant criminal record.•    Those who have successfully applied to the EUSS can access their pre-settled or settled status online, update their personal details, and get a ‘share code’ to prove their status to others at www.gov.uk/view-prove-immigration-status. More information and guidance can be found in the guide for EU, EEA and Swiss citizens on viewing and proving their immigration status.•    Individuals with status under the EUSS should ensure that they update their online account with all valid travel documents (such as passports or national identity cards) that they hold and intend to use for travel, to avoid any unnecessary delays at the border. They can do this online by going to www.gov.uk/view-prove-immigration-status•    We have published non-exhaustive guidance on reasonable grounds for missing the deadline on GOV.UK. Examples of reasonable grounds include instances where a person had a serious medical condition, which meant they were unable to apply by the relevant deadline, or someone who is isolated, vulnerable or did not have the digital skills to access the application process.  Thank you for your continued support in assisting EU, EEA, and Swiss citizens to apply to the EUSS, helping to secure their future in the UK.

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