The HRZone Interview: David MacLeod on employee engagement
David MacLeod is co-chair of the employer-led Taskforce on Employee Engagement. He, together with Nita Clarke, director of the Involvement and Participation Association, was responsible for compiling an influential report for the government on engagement in 2009, which was followed by the launch of the Taskforce to carry on promoting and developing some of the […]
Talent Spot: Community blogger, Emma Littmoden
On Emma Littmoden’s road to the top, you’ll find some loo roll, wet wipes and a jockey’s uniform. Before becoming sales and business development partner at leadership development provider The Living Leader, Littmoden had earned her sales spurs selling hygiene products and been one of the top five female amateur jockeys in the country. In […]
In a Nutshell: Five ways to introduce change without alienating staff
As HR director of IT reseller Trustmarque Solutions, Liz Reynolds has helped steer the company through some massive change as a result of growth. Here, she shares her tips on how to manage such change without alienating staff: 1. Listen to people It’s the people on the front line doing the jobs who know what […]
Talent Spot: Louise Rooney, head of HR at ServiceSource
As HR manager at IT firm ServiceSource, Louise Rooney has a major recruitment job on her hands. When she first joined, the company’s headcount was about 120, but in less than a year, it had grown to 165 and there are plans to create another 100 posts over the next few months. “Sourcing the right […]
The HRZone Interview: Jon Ingham on where HR is going wrong
In the view of Jon Ingham, HR consultant, author and blogger, the current obsession of HR practitioners to be seen as business people first and HR professionals second could seriously backfire. The danger is that, by becoming too much like everyone else in the business, HR will lose sight of what its key focus should […]
In a Nutshell: Five tips to foster a change-friendly culture
A recent study conducted by IT product and services vendor Fujitsu confirmed what many have long suspected: Just over two thirds of the employers questioned believed that they were failing to keep up with the growing pace of change – despite all of the financial risks that such a scenario generates. But what is it […]
Talent Spot: Liz Reynolds, HR director at Trustmarque Solutions
The wonderful if daunting thing about dealing with people for a living is their unpredictability, which can pose problems for even the most seasoned of HR professionals. Liz Reynolds, HR director at technology reseller, Trustmarque Solutions, learned this lesson early on in her career. Looking through an office window, she glimpsed a very senior […]
HRD Insight: Allianz’s Philip Gennoy on aligning HR and business goals
For Allianz Insurance’s HR director, Philip Gennoy, the key to ensuring that HR strategy and business goals knit tightly together is to keep a close eye on both the day-to-day nitty-gritty as well as the bigger, more long-term picture. The idea is that by breaking strategy down into bite-sized tactical pieces, it becomes possible to […]
In a Nutshell: Five ways to make the right impression when hiring talent
Every business wants to hire the best talent, but the problem is that the best talent can be selective. As a result, Olivia Hill, head of HR at the Association of Accounting Technicians, believes that it’s important for employers to give jobseekers the right impression during the recruitment process and shares her insights into how […]
Talent Spot: Ella Bennett, HR director for Fujitsu UK and Ireland
Since taking over as Fujitsu’s HR director for the UK and Ireland in 2009, Ella Bennett has achieved a lot. She’s reorganised the HR function, helped set up a new leadership team and employed social media to enable better communication between staff and the executive team. “I’ve learnt a huge amount being in ICL and […]
In a Nutshell: Seven songs to ensure career success
Peter Cook is a management consultant who uses his three passions of business, music and science to engage his audiences at corporate events and conferences. By drawing parallels between the music and the corporate worlds, his aim is to communicate key lessons to business leaders in a way that is more accessible than bombarding them […]
In a Nutshell: Five tips when recruiting for a start-up
The hospitality sector is a people business and poor management can quickly turn customers off, no matter how plush a hotel’s facilities. Caroline Lowe, HR director for Hilton London Heathrow Terminal 5, who was involved in launching the hotel last year, explains how she dealt with recruiting the right 130 staff to try and ensure […]
Talent Spot: Community blogger, Peter Cook
“If I had to reduce my life to three words, they would be science, music and business,” says Peter Cook, management consultant, speaker, author, blogger, music lover and former scientist. Cook is actually managing director of two management consultancies, which he jokingly refers to as his day job and his night job. The day job […]
Talent Spot: Simon Linares, group HR director at Telefonica Digital
When Telefónica Digital launched last year, group HR director Simon Linares had the daunting but exciting prospect of helping to create a very different organisational culture from that of its parent company. Its parent, Telefónica, is the Spanish owner of mobile operator O2, of which Linares was formerly group HR director too. But his […]
In a Nutshell: Five considerations when setting up your own business
Karen Gill, co-founder of everywoman, a women’s membership organisation that aims to increase both the number and status of women in business, knows from first-hand experience how hard it is to set up a company and the pitfalls that await. Here she offers advice to anyone thinking of striking out on their own: 1. Learn […]
Talent Spot: Caroline Lowe, HR director for Hilton London Heathrow Terminal 5
Caroline Lowe, director of HR for Hilton London Heathrow Terminal 5, was single-minded about wanting to work in the hotel industry. As a result, she undertook a degree in hotel management and, on finishing her studies, went straight into the operational side of the business. “I just always enjoyed being in hotels: the look […]
In a Nutshell: Six considerations when devising an HR strategy
What’s the best way to develop an effective HR strategy? Christina Lattimer, founder of HR and leadership development consultancy People Discovery, shares some of her ideas on the subject, while maintaining all the while that simplicity and clear communication are key: 1. Understand the business and its people On the one hand, it is crucial […]
Talent Spot: Karen Gill, co-founder of everywoman
Karen Gill knows all about the hard work and knock-backs entailed in setting up a new business. Thirteen years ago, with the help of a friend, Maxine Benson, she established everywoman, a women’s membership organisation that aims to increase the number and status of females in business. The organisation, which today has 40,000 members, […]
In a Nutshell: Five tips for rolling out a global HR system successfully
In July this year, Aviva completed the UK roll-out of an HR system from Software-as-a-Service vendor, Workday, following successful implementations at the insurance provider’s subsidiaries in Europe, North America and Asia. Based on the experience, here are acting group HR director Carole Jones’ top five tips to help ensure that your global applications deployment works […]
Talent Spot: Community blogger, Christina Lattimer
Christina Lattimer, owner of HR and leadership development consultancy People Discovery, has been tackling HR issues for all of her working life, even if she didn’t take up her first official HR position until 10 years ago. “I’ve only been a pure HR specialist since 2002 and was a business manager for lot of years […]