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Workplace culture

Today

Coles coming: The 720 Bourke Street building previously leased to health insurer Medibank, will house the supermarket’s new head office from 2027.

Coles shifts HQ to CBD in chase for talent

The supermarket giant is leaving its suburban home of almost three decades. The new HQ is much better served by public transport, a benefit to more staff.

  • Michael Bleby

Yesterday

McKinsey & Co global managing partner Bob Sternfels at a Senate hearing in Washington DC last year. He has sought to reassure staff that nothing will change at the firm despite a push against DEI policies.

Forget DEI, McKinsey says ‘diverse meritocracy’ is its workplace goal

The consultancy has long been a big advocate of formal diversity goals. But it has never put in targets or quotas, and has an “aspiration” of gender parity.

  • Edmund Tadros and Daniel Arbon

Sydney’s home of ASX sells for $250m as office vibe picks up

Office investment is picking up amid growing confidence the devaluation cycle is bottoming and workers are being told to spend more time in their workplaces.

  • Nick Lenaghan
Woolworths has told its office-based staff that some of their roles will be made redundant as part of a restructure.

Woolworths to cut some office-based roles

The supermarket giant has told its office-based employees that some of their positions will be made redundant as part of a broader restructure.

  • Euan Black

This Month

Ita Buttrose leaves the Federal Court building in Sydney.

‘Activist’ Lattouf should not have been hired, says Buttrose

The former ABC chairwoman denies causing Antoinette Lattouf to be dismissed, despite forwarding complaints and suggesting an “easy exit” through feigned illness

  • Updated
  • Paul Karp
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CBA is cracking down on working coming in, then heading home to work.

CBA cracks down on ‘coffee badging’, Woolies joins WFH push

The big four bank tells staff they have to spend at least four hours in the office to count for a day’s work, while Woolies joins the back-to-the-office push.

  • Updated
  • Euan Black

Office mandates stretch towards four days; Mondays, Fridays on radar

There’s a push to move from three days to four in the workplace, and cut out the long weekend. It also means CBDs will get a lot busier.

  • Nick Lenaghan

Woolworths orders 10,000 staff back to the office

Supermarket chain Woolworths has told its 10,000 office-based workers they will have to attend the workplace at least three days a week from October. 

  • Euan Black
Work from home generic.

The baffling (and little-known) WFH statistic

Businesses are tightening hybrid work rules, but working-from-home levels have so far barely budged.

  • Pilita Clark
Accenture chief executive Julie Sweet said the consulting firm was making the changes to comply with President Trump’s executive orders.

Accenture to end DEI policies to comply with Trump

Accenture CEO Julie Sweet advises staff of a global evolution as the consulting giant abandons DEI programs in response to President Donald Trump’s orders.

  • Euan Black, Edmund Tadros and Jemima Whyte
Canva’s Charlotte Anderson says goal-setting and face-to-face interactions can help motivate workers.

Stuck in a rut? Here’s how to shake off the post-holiday blues

If you feel like you’ve been wading through treacle since returning to work, you’re not alone. Career coaches say it’s a common feeling at this time of year.

  • Euan Black
While China has announced a probe of Google for alleged antitrust violations, analysts say the tech giant is less susceptible to tariff risk than its more hardware-focused peers.

Google kills diversity goals in Trump era

The search giant is eliminating its goals to hire more minority employees and reviewing its programs, as Silicon Valley retreats from DEI initiatives.

  • Julia Love
Dovetail co-founder Benjamin Humphrey says his relationship with a senior lawyer for the company was consensual and declared.

Dovetail executive alleges the start-up’s CEO repeatedly assaulted her

The senior female lawyer has detailed a workplace where staff were often drunk. The company denies her claims and says the relationship had been declared and was consensual.

  • Amelia McGuire
Andrew Forrest has opened the floor for his “troops” to ask management anything they want.

At Fortescue, you really can ask the boss anything

A permanent ‘Ask-Us-Anything’ portal has prompted staff demands for everything from an office swimming pool to $100,000 cash prizes to more biscuits in kitchenettes.

  • Hannah Wootton
Many buildings were lit up on 24-26 Feb and 3-5 March to coincide with Sydney WorldPride events, which brought a wave of tourists.

Lived diversity at work let me step in to the light as a trans woman

My story shows that what mattered was care not a formal diversity and inclusion policy.

  • Stephanie Banning
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January

After the column ran, Microsoft gave Bing a lobotomy, neutralising the chatbot’s outbursts and installing new guardrails to prevent more unhinged behaviour.

Will AI make you dumber?

It’s a question that some HR bosses are pondering, albeit in less dramatic terms. And an academic paper might hold some answers.

  • Updated
  • Euan Black

No comment: DEI debate too controversial for corporate Australia

Amid reports of increased employee opposition, the question over the future of diversity and inclusion programs appears to be too hot to touch.

  • Euan Black
Meta is one of the latest companies to join the stampede of organisations scaling back diversity initiatives.

The skills business leaders need to navigate DEI backlash

The ability to build common ground will be critical for any business looking to create resilient and cohesive teams that thrive.

  • Sandra Peter
Lawyers are reporting a blowout in payment times.

Burnt-out lawyers seek exit amid long hours, high targets

Australian billing targets are moderate compared with big US legal firms, but profit pressures mean partners are pushing juniors to work longer.

  • Maxim Shanahan
Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg says the corporate world has become “culturally neutered”.

What Facebook’s shift to ‘bro culture’ means for corporate Australia

Australian executives are openly discussing what they were once too scared to say out loud: has the corporate world’s push for greater diversity gone too far?

  • Patrick Durkin and Euan Black

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/topic/workplace-culture-1mtt