Here comes the Sun: How to boost productivity and wellbeing this summer
The UK has already hit it’s third heatwave of the summer. How can employers keep productivity flowing while also allowing extra flexibility? Five HR experts share their tips.
Smarter systems: How benefits tech is powering better employee experiences
A new global study from Benifex shows that smarter benefits systems don’t just offer an upgraded experience – they produce real wins in employee engagement, retention and wellbeing.
HR’s role in handling domestic abuse disclosures
With one in five UK employees experiencing domestic abuse, workplaces can be one of the few safe spaces a victim-survivor can turn to for help. Here, Susan Bright, CEO of EIDA (Employers’ Initiative on Domestic Abuse), shares guidance for HR teams on handling domestic abuse disclosures with compassion and clarity.
HR is at the helm of the smarter work revolution
The phrase ‘working smarter’ is more than just a catchy slogan in today’s fast-moving workplace – it’s a critical survival strategy. For HR leaders, this necessitates harnessing digital tools to eliminate persistent productivity blockers and design a more agile, empowered workforce.
Have better impact: Three imperatives for thoughtful leaders
Through work, we all have an impact on colleagues, customers or society. How can we ensure we use this power to good effect? Quentin Millington of Marble Brook looks at the value of being ’thoughtful’, and what three central imperatives of thoughtfulness mean in practice.
62% of workers left underwhelmed by their benefits, despite rising employer spend
Despite 79% of organisations increasing employee benefits spend in the past 12 months, 62% of workers struggle to see the value of what’s on offer, new Benifex research reveals.
Why HR should assume every AI tool has been hacked at work
Many employees use public AI tools with good intentions, but without oversight they risk opening organisations up to security risks and PR nightmares, warns Joseph Semrai, CEO of Context. That’s why he urges HR leaders to assume every AI model is compromised at work.
What’s the conversation you’re avoiding?
It’s natural to want to avoid a tough conversation, but silence has a cost. By choosing Catalytic Conversations, you can learn to spark change that matters.
The loneliness-conflict loop: How HR can break the cycle
The rise of social isolation among employees has coincided with another worrying trend – an increase in workplace conflict. How can HR leaders break this concerning cycle? Anna Shields, Director at Consensio, explores how emotional intelligence, manager training and early intervention can help teams reconnect, communicate better – and handle conflict with confidence.
New study reveals ‘shadow AI’ trend: 54% of workers would use AI without company approval
More than half of employees say they’d use AI tools at work without their company’s authorisation, according to new global research from Boston Consulting Group. The findings highlight rising security risks, with nearly two-thirds of workers also feeling undertrained in how to use AI effectively.
Don’t let culture derail your merger and acquisition (M&A): Five steps for HR leaders
Culture clashes are one of the top reasons M&As fail – yet many leaders still overlook this critical factor. Ella Overshott, Partner at Pecan Partnership, shares five practical steps HR leaders can take to ensure cultural integration drives, rather than derails, deal success.
AI layoffs pose risk: Build strength, not weakness
Last week the chief executive of BT Allison Kirkby said the group’s ambitions to harness the “full potential of AI” may involve more layoffs than her predecessor had outlined in 2023. Here, Quentin Millington of Marble Brook considers four ways leaders can ensure artificial intelligence strengthens – rather than weakens – their team’s value.
How to avoid a war over the return to the office
At a time when conflict is growing over return-to-office mandates, Paul O’Donnell, Managing Director of CMP, considers how HR can defuse tensions and help shape a new ‘normal’ for working practices.
‘Sighing in frustration’ ruled as discrimination at tribunal
With a recent tribunal ruling that sighing is a form of discrimination, HR adviser Kate Palmer explores how employers can better support neurodiverse employees and champion a diverse and inclusive culture.
Healthy CEOs, hurting workforces: What’s behind the 48% wellbeing gap?
New global research finds that CEOs report positive wellbeing at a rate nearly 48% higher than employees. In this piece, HRZone’s managing editor Becky Norman explores the stark imbalance, the barriers undermining employee wellbeing, and how HR can help remove them.
AI in graduate recruitment: What HR leaders need to know
With AI-generated CVs flooding inboxes and graduates lacking key workplace skills, how can you spot real potential? Mark Griffith, Founder & CEO of FourthWall, shares why traditional hiring methods are falling short – and what you can do instead.
HR lessons from Dermalogica’s unfair dismissal dilemma
When a tribunal found Dermalogica guilty of unfair dismissal, disability discrimination and breaching part-time workers’ rights, the legal implications were clear. In this expert analysis, employment lawyer Sandeep Leighs, Partner at Shakespeare Martineau, breaks down what went wrong – and what you must do to avoid making the same costly mistakes.
Pride amid DEI pushback: Why HR must show what allyship really means
Pride flags are flying this month, as they are every June. But in this period of anti-DEI rhetoric, your team is watching – now more than ever – how your organisation responds. Kerry Nicholson, Chief of Operations for Brand Champions, explores the feelings of exclusion and exhaustion felt by the LGBTQ+ community today, and how organisations can be genuine allies amid increasing DEI resistance.
Small changes, big impact: How employers can empower better everyday wellbeing
Small shifts in daily habits can transform workforce health – and your bottom line. Conor Barry, Physical Wellbeing Lead at Benifex, unpacks the latest evidence on how movement, micro-breaks and mindfulness can help reduce absenteeism, boost mental resilience and improve sleep. If you want to build a culture of proactive wellbeing, this is where to start.
A quiet revolution in men’s mental health: Lessons for the workplace
During Men’s Mental Health Awareness Week, leadership coach and author Thom Dennis explores what employers can learn from the quiet rise of grassroots peer support groups. With men accounting for three-quarters of all suicides, he argues it’s time for workplaces to take greater responsibility and reframe their approach to supporting men’s wellbeing.
