Kings Langley Community Information Portal

1. How to manage someone you are not too keen on. Most of us probably gravitate towards direct reports who act nice and do not deliver bad news. But it is often those who provoke or challenge us - the people we like less - who prompt new insights and help propel the team to greater success. When you dislike a colleague, you might - consciously or not - mismanage them, treat them unfairly, or fail to see the real benefit they can deliver. READ MORE

2. Bank ‘helpless’ on inflation. The governor of the Bank of England has warned of “apocalyptic” global food price rises and admitted he is “helpless” in the face of surging inflation. Andrew Bailey told MPs on the Treasury Select Committee that he has “run out of horsemen” as prices rise at the fastest rate in three decades. Bailey added that Ukraine, one of the world’s major producers of wheat and cooking oil, was struggling to export food during the conflict. “That is a major worry not just for this country but for the developing world,” he said. The Telegraph

3. Gray met PM to discuss photos. Sue Gray met with Boris Johnson to discuss publishing photos as part of her report into Downing Street parties. According to a senior government source, the PM had told the civil servant the decision was a matter for her, and the findings of her investigation were not discussed. However, Labour said the “secret meeting” could damage confidence in the report, which is due to be published this week. Meanwhile, a former civil service chief has said the “real issue” in the ‘partygate’ scandal is the leadership of Johnson and the cabinet secretary, who is widely expected to be sacked. BBC

4. Is your employer living with you now? Employee monitoring has grown exponentially as the pandemic shifted the workplace “from the controlled enclosure of the corporate office to the wilderness of the kitchen table”. While surveillance software has often been deployed for security purposes, more of it is being used now to gauge the productivity of those working remotely. Monitoring features have become ubiquitous in applications such as Slack. But how much of the surveillance is constructive, or even OK in the privacy of our homes? The Economist

5. How do you avoid the mid-afternoon slump? Whether you’re in the office or working from home, there are compelling scientific reasons why our focus lapses in the mid-afternoon. Our circadian rhythm naturally leads to a dip in concentration and feelings of fatigue, and scientists say poor sleep and dehydration are among the things that can make it worse. The popular instinct is to reach for a coffee or a sugary snack, but they are not necessarily a long-term fix. What works for you? VOTE HERE

6. Busywork dominates the workday. Do you spend your workday feeling like you’re not quite accomplishing what you should be? You're not alone – according to a global survey of more than 10,600 knowledge workers, people spend around 58% of their time on "work about work", including meetings and emails, with a higher figure among managers. The study found 23 hours per week are lost to menial, repetitive tasks, with people spending only a third of their time on skilled work and 9% on strategy. How would people improve productivity? Nearly half of respondents suggested more efficient meetings and clearer responsibilities. Bloomberg

7. WFH police investigating murders. Police detectives are investigating rapes and murders while working from home. Several forces now have official “hybrid working” policies which allow officers to carry out inquiries without leaving their houses. Simon Kempton, the national treasurer at the Police Federation, said that “broadly speaking… pretty much any sort of an inquiry that could be done with a laptop or a phone” can be conducted from home, “whether it’s shoplifting or a murder or anything in between”. A government source described the revelation as “baffling”. The Telegraph

8. Pollution causes one in six deaths. A global study has found that pollution is killing nine million people a year, making it responsible for one in six of all deaths. Toxic air and contaminated water and soil “is an existential threat to human health and planetary health, and jeopardises the sustainability of modern societies”, the review, published in the journal Lancet Planetary Health, concluded. The researchers estimated the economic impact of pollution deaths at $4.6tn (£3.7tn), about $9m a minute. The Guardian

9. Eight new cities created. Eight new cities are being created for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee, with at least one in every UK nation - and on the Falkland Islands and Isle of Man. Milton Keynes in England, Dunfermline in Scotland, Bangor in Northern Ireland and Wrexham in Wales all get the title. It is a first for places in an Overseas Territory - Stanley, in the Falklands - and a crown dependency - Douglas, in the Isle of Man - to win city status. Colchester and Doncaster complete the list getting the royal honour. The announcement of the latest civic honours takes the number of official cities in mainland UK to 76, with 55 in England, eight in Scotland, seven in Wales and six in Northern Ireland. BBC

10. The bottom line. 45% of adults in Scotland support keeping the monarchy, compared with almost 60% across Britain; 85% of British adults expect the monarchy to still exist in a decade. The Guardian