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Together with KPMG’s Pure Sustainability team, Attensi has developed an app that provides effective training on ESG-related topics. The app uses game-based principles to educate users, with early results indicating success.

KPMG previously tested the solution with game-based knowledge transfer in connection with MIFID II.

KPMG Pure Sustainability focuses on ESG gamification, and the collaboration between Attensi and KPMG furthers these efforts. The game-based principles, such as reward points and instant feedback, help employees become more motivated and engaged in the training. The app allows the training to take place anywhere, at any time, giving users complete flexibility.

The outcome has been positive, with the first pilot project delivering impressive results that demonstrate the app’s engaging content, including:

• Among the users who achieved certification, each user played 29 times on average.
• This corresponds to 73 minutes spent on the content.
• On average, each user played their way through the entire app 4.8 times during the test period.

Attensi partners Kjell-André Steffensen and Christian Kavli explain that the sustainability app combines knowledge and “know-how” and is effective in educating employees in Norwegian companies on sustainability issues.

Christian said: “People are really engaged, and we see that it quickly becomes a competitive game where the employees play repeatedly. It’s the same effect you see with other games like Candy Crush and the like.”

Kjell-André added: “When it comes to learning about sustainability, this type of repetition and realistic learning is pure gold.”

The benefits of the training are obvious to KPMG. Stine Lise Hattestad Bratsberg, partner at KPMG Pure Sustainability, sees great opportunities for further development. She said: “We really believe in this training, and the timing couldn’t be better. This is at the core of our sustainability efforts.”

“The sustainability space is quite large, and KPMG have a highly competent team on topics such as strategy, reporting and finance, including the EU Green Deal and the accompanying taxonomy. We create gamification solutions that help people learn about sustainability in an engaging way. For us, it is important to move from talk to action on sustainability by giving our people the knowledge they need to become agents of change.”

Stine Lise adds: “At KPMG we are used to delivering in-person lectures, but together with Attensi we are now able to deliver a broader offering to our clients, allowing employees to train whenever and wherever they want. The feedback on the ESG app so far is very positive, so we are excited about continuing to develop our product offering together with Attensi.”

Stine Lise, Christian and Kjell-André all highlight several documented benefits of game-based learning, saying: “Employees get to try a bunch of relevant challenges, and this happens in an exciting and interactive way. Competitive elements of the training are producing better results and more effective learning.”

Results show 70 percent of UK businesses are missing out on the benefits of the technology

New Windsor NY, September 22, 2021 –  DocuWare, provider of cloud solutions for document management and workflow automation, today releases findings from their latest survey, indicating that despite the convenience and efficiency of electronic signatures, many organisations in the UK are yet to fully implement the technology due to myths and misunderstandings.

The survey* of over 1400 business users revealed that businesses overwhelmingly cited efficiency and speed as the top reasons for adopting electronic signatures. Not only that, but they also have a positive knock-on effect on entire workflows, with 48% of respondents citing this as a top benefit of digital signatures. But organisations are still missing out on these benefits, with the majority (<70%) having not fully adopted the technology. Our survey examines why this is the case and our eBook demonstrates how businesses can quickly implement e-signatures for themselves and be ready for a hybrid workplace.

“Electronic signatures are no longer a ‘good to have’ but a vital tool to maintain business continuity,” said Dr. Michael Berger, DocuWare President. “At DocuWare we can help organisations fully embrace the benefits of secure electronic signatures, enabling organisations to seamlessly and securely complete workflow documents anytime, anywhere, and on any device.”

While more than 83% of respondents indicated they use electronic signatures at least some of the time, our survey shows that the main obstacle to fully implementing this technology is due to misconceptions and misunderstandings about security, technology, compliance, or forgery.

Key survey findings help explain away some of the myths and fears:

• Around 44% of UK respondents cited cyber security issues as the biggest risk for electronic signatures. However, electronic signatures are more secure than paper documents and the use of quality third-party digital signature products, such as those offered by DocuWare, helps to fully secure an organisation’s information and signature processes.
• 10% of respondents said the biggest roadblock to electronic signature use in their business was a steep learning curve. However, digital signature tools are as easy to use as an app on your device, and where there may be some setup required to first implement the technology, DocuWare can provide implementation assistance.
• 22% of UK respondents noted that changing legal requirements or noncompliance was a factor in implementing electronic signatures. Electronic signatures are now being used in all manner of industries, including highly regulated fields such as healthcare and finance. DocuWare can work with businesses to understand compliance needs and ensure any document management solutions implemented are in line with those requirements.
• 40% of UK respondents reported being worried about unauthorised signatures. However, it’s much more likely to get an unauthorised signature with pen-and-paper processes. With an electronic signature, someone must prove that they are who they say they are before they can sign the document. And then the signature and the document are locked in place and can’t be altered, creating a lasting record of the signature.

London, U.K. (September , 2021) —  Tenable®, Inc., the Cyber Exposure company, has published results of a study that found 72% of U.K. organisations attribute recent business-impacting* cyberattacks to vulnerabilities in technology put in place during the pandemic, while 68% suffered attacks that targeted remote workers. The data is drawn from ‘Beyond Boundaries: The Future of Cybersecurity in the New World of Work,’ a commissioned study of more than 1,300 security leaders, business executives and remote employees, including 168 respondents in the U.K., conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Tenable. 

Over a year after work-from-home mandates went into effect, many organisations are planning their long-term hybrid and remote work models. In fact, 70% of U.K. organisations now support remote employees, compared to 31% prior to the pandemic, while 86% plan to permanently adopt a remote working policy or have already done so. But embracing this new world of work has opened organisations to new and unmanaged cyber risk. 

Enabling a workforce without boundaries: Only 48% of U.K. organisations are adequately prepared to support hybrid working models from a security standpoint. The result is that 78% of security and business leaders believe their organisation is more exposed to risk as a result of remote work.

Cloud adoption accelerated for critical systems: As part of changes made in response to the pandemic, 46% of organisations moved business-critical functions to the cloud, including accounting and finance (42%) and human resources (33%). When asked if this exposed the organisation to increased cyber risk, 80% of security leaders believed it did.

Attackers are taking advantage: 90% of organisations experienced a business-impacting cyberattack* in the last 12 months, with 51% falling victim to three or more.

“Remote and hybrid work strategies are here to stay and so will the risks they introduce unless organizations get a handle on what their new attack surface looks like,” said Amit Yoran, CEO, Tenable. “This study reveals two paths forward — one riddled with unmanaged risk and unrelenting cyberattacks and another that accelerates business productivity and operations in a secure way. CISOs and CEOs have the opportunity and responsibility to securely harness the power of technology and manage cyber risk for the new world of work.”

Hybrid work models and a digital-first economy have brought cybersecurity front and center as a critical investment that can make or break short- and long-term business strategies. To address this demand, 75% of U.K. security leaders plan to increase their network security investments over the next 12 to 24 months; 73% will increase spend on cloud security; 66% plan to spend more on vulnerability management.

“The rapid adoption of technology to support a hybrid working model and moving business-critical functions to the cloud were a necessity driven by circumstance,” said David Cummins, VP of EMEA, Tenable. “The reality has seen the corporate attack surface explode, with many organisations still struggling to understand and address the risks introduced. Managing the plethora of technologies is now necessary to ensure enterprises aren’t left vulnerable and susceptible to cyberattacks.”

Further results from the study, including how organisations can manage risk in the new world of work, are available.

Note to Editors:

• Forrester Consulting conducted an online survey of 44 security leaders, 43 business executives, and 81 remote workers (i.e., full-time employees working three or more days from home) in the U.K.. These are a subset of a wider study of 426 security leaders, 422 business executives, and 479 remote workers as well as six telephonic interviews with business and security executives, to explore shifts in cybersecurity strategies at large enterprises made in response to the pandemic. The study was fielded in Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, the U.K. and the U.S. in April 2021.

*“Business-impacting” relates to a cyberattack or compromise that results in one or more of the following outcomes: a loss of customer, employee, or other confidential data; interruption of day-to-day operations; ransomware payout; financial loss or theft; and/or theft of intellectual property.

About Tenable

Tenable®, Inc. is the Cyber Exposure company. Over 30,000 organizations around the globe rely on Tenable to understand and reduce cyber risk. As the creator of Nessus®, Tenable extended its expertise in vulnerabilities to deliver the world’s first platform to see and secure any digital asset on any computing platform. Tenable customers include more than 50 percent of the Fortune 500, more than 30 percent of the Global 2000 and large government agencies. Learn more at www.tenable.com.

24 September 2021

Excel Networking, the number one cabling brand in the UK market according to BSRIA research, has been named as a finalist for the ‘Outstanding Contribution to Sustainability and Efficiency’ category in the DCS Awards 2021. The DCS Awards – now in their eleventh year – are designed to recognise and congratulate data centre industry innovation.

Tracey Calcutt, Marketing Manager commented “We are delighted to be shortlisted in this year’s DCS Awards. We’re proud to be leading the way when it comes to removing single use plastic from the supply chain, so we were excited to learn that this year, for the first time, the DCS Awards included a specific energy efficiency/sustainability innovation award.”

Since August 2019 Excel Networking have been delivering the majority of their products in plastic free packaging, saving over 16 Million plastic bags from the entering the supply chain each year. This was a first for any cabling brand in the industry and surprisingly it is still the only brand to be fully plastic free across all of the cabling and connectivity products.

Tracey continued “Not only are the majority of our Excel brand’s products supplied in plastic free packaging, but also our product shipments are dispatched from our warehouses with recycled paper and card alternatives, rather than using conventional bubble wrap and plastic tape.”

Tracey concluded “The Excel brand is owned by Mayflex, part of the Sonepar Group which is a 23Billion Euro global organisation and as a group there is strong commitment and drive to dramatically reduce our carbon footprint and to become carbon neutral by 2040, as well as accelerating the market adoption of clean energy solutions.”

Selection for this award is based on public vote. Please help us by voting for Excel Networking Solutions here.

Voting closes on 15th October 2021 and the following rules apply:
• You can make only one vote per award category.
• Votes will only be accepted from a current business email address.
• Votes from third party email providers (Hotmail, Yahoo, etc.) will NOT be counted.
• A nominated company or supplier cannot vote for themselves any such votes will NOT be counted.

22nd and 23rd September – Olympia London, England – The UK’s largest event for the booming data analysis and management market, Big Data LDN (London) will rewelcome global data leaders in person with the theme, most relevant to the post-lockdown era, of taming “data demons”.

Big names for Big Data
Since Big Data LDN’s inaugural 2016 event the attendance has grown rapidly from 3,000 delegates in the first year, with 8,000 attendees expected this year.
During its history, experts and thought leaders have spoken out at Big Data LDN about the present and future of data, including Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, Alan Mak MP, chairman of the Fourth Industrial Revolution Parliamentary Group and Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Chris Wylie.

This year, Big Data LDN 2021 welcomes the world’s most famous authority in Behavioural Economics: the Undercover Economist, author and award-winning Financial Times columnist, Tim Harford OBE. His keynote speech will be followed by a glittering cast of speakers, including AWS, Snowflake and Lloyd’s Bank, as well as the ongoing support of the Government’s Office for Artificial Intelligence.

Free expert learning and development
This year’s edition places emphasis on making data work harder to help post-pandemic recovery, scale business operations, and gain strategic insights. At the event, delegates will hear from over 180 world-class expert speakers in eight technical and business-led conference theatres, with real-world use-cases and panel debates.

Bill Hammond, Big Data LDN Event Director, commented, “UK organisations share a number of common pain points around data. They face the same challenges, and are looking for the same solutions: innovative, effective, efficient. The pandemic proved businesses now need to meet their data demons head-on.”

“As UK businesses strive to overcome and thrive in this landscape, Big Data LDN brings together global data leaders and businesses to learn from each other and share guidance and inspiration. This year, we are delighted to welcome back our delegates and celebrate the opportunity to hear from industry leaders, network with fellow data experts and explore innovative technologies with exhibitors.”

Blueprint LDN: All about Cloud-Native Infrastructure
This year Big Data LDN is co-located with a new breakout event, Blueprint LDN, the UK’s cloud-native infrastructure community gathering. By registering free for Big Data LDN, attendees will also be able to attend the Blueprint LDN conference & exhibition. Event-Driven Architecture (EDA) leader Solace will host the first day at the EDA Theatre, with a keynote address from CTO/CPO Shawn McAllister.

• New CCO aims to help Squirro become market leader for Insights Engines and Augmented Intelligence

Zürich, September 23 2021. Squirro, the Augmented Intelligence solutions provider, has announced the appointment of entrepreneur and digital transformation expert Bernd Schoppas Chief Commercial Officer. He will accelerate growth and help the company become the market leader for Insights Engines and Augmented Intelligence.

Schopp was CEO and co-owner of leading DACH Digital Transformation agency Namics. At Namics, Schopp grew the business to a client-centric international organization with more than 550 employees. After Merkle acquired Namics, he was part of the European Executive Management team of Merkle that integrated the Namics business into the Merkle EMEA organisation.

“Squirro is a company I’ve been aware of for a long time – it has an inspiring team and is a recognized visionary leader for its AI driven Insights Engine platform,” said Bernd Schopp, Chief Commercial Officer, Squirro. “AI will be a major driver of competitive advantage for companies, yet it is also currently overrated in a couple of cases. Applying AI to augment the business intelligence needs to be professionalized with standard platforms and upskilling, and Squirro has a significant opportunity to be the organization to make this happen for enterprises all over the world.”

Schopp’s immediate priority will be to accelerate growth on Squirro’s existing core offering, used by some of the world’s biggest and best-known enterprises. Together with the team, he will also look to refine company positioning, streamline market messages, and extend Squirro’s partner landscape.

“Bernd has an impressive record in scaling businesses and instilling in them a strong commercial focus, so he’s the perfect appointment for Squirro at this stage in our journey,” said Dorian Selz, CEO, and Co-Founder, Squirro. “We have ambitious growth targets in Europe, the US, and SE Asia, and having Bernd onboard is a major asset in helping to achieve those targets. There is a real window of market opportunity for Squirro right now, and I can’t wait to work with Bernd on realizing that potential.”

“Squirro has the vision to end enterprise search as it currently exists, and replace it with a contextual and relevant system of Insights. It is the perfect platform to deliver actionable insights whenever it is needed and in the full context of what the user is doing,” continued Bernd Schopp. “The future competitive advantage of enterprises will be based on how fast and accurately they can create actionable insights from the data they hold. This is where Squirro can be transformative, and I’m excited to be helping them on this journey.”

22 September 2021

MARLBOROUGH, USA & LONDON, UK Sept 23, 2021 – HubStar, an industry leader in next-generation workplace solutions, today announced it has acquired Lone Rooftop as part of its mission to accelerate the world’s transition to smarter ways of working.

Since 2014, Amsterdam-based Lone Rooftop has developed solutions which enable a data-driven approach to optimizing real estate costs and workplace experience.

“Lone Rooftop’s exceptional platform for measuring and improving space utilization will enhance our suite of workplace solutions for today’s hybrid, adaptive world of work,” said Steve Vatidis, Chairman, HubStar Group. “Now part of the HubStar family, this extraordinary team and technology will help us empower Corporate Real Estate and Facilities leaders to reduce costs, consolidate portfolios, transform employee experience and improve sustainability.”

Investment, growth and innovation
Lone Rooftop’s customer base, which includes blue chip enterprises and Higher Education establishments, can anticipate a bright and stable post-acquisition future for the enterprise software they use to manage their spaces and places.

“HubStar’s investment in growth and innovation will bring next-generation capabilities to more organizations than ever. New and existing customers will benefit from advanced functionality that goes far beyond data, delivering actionable insights and continuous transformation.” concluded Vatidis.

Auke van den Hout, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Lone Rooftop investor, Nimbus Ventures, said, “This move transforms the workplace market. Lone Rooftop and its clients are well positioned to benefit from this world-class combined team. HubStar is a market leader in this space, with an extremely experienced management team and the full resources and R&D expertise to continually provide direct and long-term value to clients. ”

Post-lockdown hybrid working
Adding Lone Rooftop’s advanced space utilization platform to the expanding HubStar Group, which includes space scheduling solution Smartway2, is a step forward in post lockdown corporate estate management. Hubstar is meeting its commitment to designing, building, selling and servicing technology platforms that deliver an ever-improving workplace experience in a hybrid working world.

London, UK, and Chicago, IL, September 22, 2021 – RLDatix, the international leader in governance, risk and compliance (GRC) solutions for healthcare, announced today the completion of the acquisition of UK-based Allocate Software (“Allocate”), a leading provider of human capital management solutions that help healthcare organisations deliver safe and effective care. The acquisition was previously announced on June 28th, 2021.

With the completion of this acquisition, RLDatix cements its position as the global innovator in healthcare GRC, combining its industry leading patient safety, risk, compliance and provider management capabilities with Allocate’s leading workforce management solutions. It also further accelerates Applied Safety IntelligenceTM, the company’s strategy to shift healthcare from reactive risk management to proactive prevention.

“We’re thrilled to complete the acquisition of Allocate and start the next chapter of our exciting journey together,” said Jeff Surges, CEO, RLDatix. “Covid-19 has reminded us that patient, workforce and organisational safety are inextricably linked, as burnout, well-being of care-givers and overall resilience are challenges felt by healthcare providers around the world. With the acquisition of Allocate, RLDatix is well positioned to continue delivering innovative, scaled and needed solutions that link healthcare GRC and workforce management. Combined, we will make healthcare safer.”

“We have always understood the link between patient safety, the welfare of staff and workforce technology and are very excited to join forces with RLDatix,” said Nick Wilson, CEO, Allocate Software. “With increasing demand for care and the ongoing clinician shortage being faced in healthcare we fully expect to positively impact both staff welfare and patient outcomes. We will be able to ensure that resources are planned, supported and truly underpinned by patient safety and quality.”

“The combination of RLDatix and Allocate creates an organisation of significant global scale that is poised to drive innovation in healthcare for years to come,” said Vivek Kumar, Partner at Five Arrows Principal Investments. “We look forward to supporting Jeff and his team in this exciting next phase of the company’s growth.” “RLDatix and Allocate are integral to some of the world’s largest healthcare organisations,” added Reid Perper, CIO, Five Arrows Capital Partners.

“This combination is uniquely positioned to deliver continued growth while unlocking exciting new opportunities that will benefit customers around the world.”

“It has been a pleasure working with RLDatix over the past three years to scale the business through organic and acquisitive growth, helping to solidify its position as a global leader in GRC,” said Naveen Wadhera, Managing Director at TA. “As we continue our partnership, we believe RLDatix and Allocate’s collective learnings and best practices will strengthen the combined company’s competitive positioning and help healthcare organisations around the world provide safer, higher quality, and more efficient care,” added Ethan Liebermann, Managing Director at TA.

Each month, 1.2 million staff utilise Allocate solutions to manage their working lives, over 1.4 million temporary staff shifts are filled and over 8 million hours of nursing care is redeployed for safety-related purposes. Worldwide, millions of people are protected by RLDatix software as they navigate the healthcare system, and as organisations shift towards high reliability, the company’s expanding solution set will provide the data and analytics that drive actionable insights and overall improvement.

Together, RLDatix and Allocate will be better able to support strategic initiatives across human capital management, patient & health worker safety, and other healthcare operations critical to driving safer, better care for all.

About RLDatix

RLDatix is on a mission to change healthcare. We help organisations drive safer, more efficient care by providing governance, risk and compliance tools that drive overall improvement and safety. Our suite of cloud-based software helps organisations report on adverse events, reduce healthcare-acquired infections and ensure patient safety learnings are implemented across the continuum of care. With more than 5,000 customers over 20 countries, RLDatix software protects hundreds of millions of patients around the world. RLDatix is controlled by Five Arrows and TA Associates as major shareholders. For more information, visit www.rldatix.com.

About Allocate Software
Allocate Software is a leading international provider of Human Capital Management solutions, supporting the operational and administrative needs of health, care, defence and commercial sectors.
In the health and care sector, Allocate is enabling the delivery of safe and effective care at optimal cost, by helping organisations to have the right people in the right place at the right time. With over 800 clients and over two million staff rostered daily, Allocate serves the largest public and private sector institutions around the world. Allocate Software is headquartered in the United Kingdom, with nearly 700 employees, including over 200 in research, development, and product management functions. It provides services and support to its international customer base through regional offices in the UK, Sweden, Germany and Australia. For more information, visit www.allocatesoftware.com.

About Five Arrows
Five Arrows Principal Investments (FAPI) and Five Arrows Capital Partners (FACP), together “Five Arrows”, are part of the corporate private equity arm of Rothschild & Co’s Merchant Banking business which manages over €17 billion. Five Arrows is focused on investing in middle-market companies with highly defensible market positions; strong management teams; business models with high visibility of organic unit volume growth and strong free cash flow conversion; and multiple operational levers that can be used to unlock latent value. Sectors are limited to data and software, technology-enabled business services and healthcare.
For more information visit: www.rothschildandco.com/en/merchant-banking/corporate-private-equity.

About TA Associates
TA is a leading global growth private equity firm. Focused on targeted sectors within five industries – technology, healthcare, financial services, consumer, and business services – the firm invests in profitable, growing companies with opportunities for sustained growth, and has invested in more than 550 companies around the world. Investing as either a majority or minority investor, TA employs a long-term approach, utilizing its strategic resources to help management teams build lasting value in high-quality growth companies. TA has raised $47.5 billion in capital since its founding in 1968 and is committing to new investments at the pace of over $3 billion per year. The firm’s more than 100 investment professionals are based in Boston, Menlo Park, London, Mumbai, and Hong Kong. More information about TA can be found at www.ta.com.

Sophie James Decor is an exquisite new consumer paint brand launched in the UK from an existing family run commercial paint business, Lexpol (U.K) Limited.

Paint specialist and dad of 7, Tony Cheeld, has been producing paint for 30+ years and now his wife Sara Cheeld and children have taken the opportunity to build a legacy for their father by creating multi-use paint company Sophie James Decor.

Inspired by the rise in home decor and the dependency on each other throughout the Coronavirus pandemic, the siblings collaboratively came together with leadership from Lizzie, Sophie and Will Cheeld to develop the business.

Undergoing new business and brand development, the family unit incorporated two of the children’s names into the identity to create Sophie James Decor.

The range consists of 40+ unique colours, based on commercially proven formulations, which have been produced to motivate others with their unique names and colour stories inspired by family memories.

The product line launched at the start of September and is now available for purchase through sophiejamesdecor.co.uk.

“It was important to us to build a brand with heritage that would be sustainable for future generations.” – Lizzie Cheeld

The paints are mixed to order in a factory in Dedham. Each self-priming colour can be used on an array of materials from wood to walls suiting both interior designers and upcycle enthusiasts to create beautiful homes and spaces.

Features include:

– Quality & durability – Sophie James Decor paint formulation gives unparalleled quality and exceptional durability proven by over 30 years commercial use so you can trust that it is long lasting.

– Multiuse – From upcycling furniture to painting outdoor walls, Sophie James Decor paints everything and one pot could be used for craft, doors, wood trim and more.

– Suitable for all surfaces – Sophie James Decor paint is suitable for a variety of surfaces including wood, metal, glass and concrete.

– Internal or external use – All Sophie James Decor paints can be used both in and outdoors.

– No primer or surface wax required – Our unique formula makes the paint self-priming with inbuilt wax properties.

– Excellent coverage – A single 1L tin can offer up to 14 m²/l maximum coverage per coat.

– Rapid dry – Sophie James Decor paint allows you to paint 2 coats in 2 hours with our quick drying formula.

– Slow touch dry – This feature ensures minimal brush stroke effects when paint is applied.

– Eco-friendly – Sophie James Decor paint has a low VOC. The packaging is entirely eco-friendly using recyclable tins and cardboard packaging with biodegradable loose fill made from GM-free starch which dissolves in water.

– Responsibly sourced – Sustainability is important to Sophie James Decor and the finest ingredients are responsibly sourced for every Sophie James Decor product. As far as possible Sophie James source materials within the UK


For further information and images please contact Amy at Aphra on 01206 912914 [email protected].