How far up your list of priorities are you putting yourself?

I have recently been conducting research for my next book about stress. It’s certainly a fascinating topic and I have been involved in lots of interviews, with an eclectic mix of people, attempting to establish what tips people into a state of distress. Of course we are all unique, and like snowflakes everyone is different. […]
Tackling health and wellbeing: why we created the National Forum for Health and Wellbeing at Work

Professor Sir Cary Cooper CBE is the 50th Anniversary Professor of Organizational Psychology and Health at Alliance Manchester Business School, President of the CIPD and Co-Chair of the National Forum for Health and Wellbeing at Work. We asked him to tell us more about why the forum was set up, and what it hopes to achieve. A […]
How to break down persistent silos and connect your organisation – does training help or hinder?

A recent study of over 500 HR managers showed that silo working continues to hold organisations back and that our approach to talent development is perpetuating, rather than solving, the issue. Silos are nothing new, and an understanding of their impact on organisational performance is widely recognised. So why do we continue to experience them, […]
Is the power pose a fake? Re-analysing Amy Cuddy’s work

Mental health in the workplace – it's time to end the stigma and discuss this massive topic. This post is part of our mental health focus! Take a look at everything we're offering, totally free, here. Back is September 2014 HRZone did an extensive article on Amy Cuddy’s TED Talk "Your body language shapes who […]
My eight-year-old’s workload warning led me to a healthier balance

A few years ago, my daughter, who was eight at the time, took it upon herself to have a chat with me about my workload. I was running a business and renovating the family home whilst single-handedly bringing up my two children. My daughter pointed out that I was trying to do three jobs, and […]
Round-up: 7 things we’ll cover in mental wellbeing month

March is mental wellbeing month on HRZone. We'll be highlighting lots of content around all aspects of mental wellbeing in the workplace, taking a holistic look at how we can create the right conditions for psychological warmth and health at work and at home. Here are 7 things we'll be covering during March: 1. Presenteeism […]
“Use their language, not language from an HR text book.”

Taking on a new role is as challenging as it is exciting. In this series we will be talking to HR professionals who are getting to grips with a new job and finding out what attracted them to the role, as well as what their key priorities are for the months ahead. Want to tell […]
“There are four big obstacles leaders encounter when trying to learn mindfulness.”

This is an interview with Martin Boroson, a mindfulness thinker, writer, speaker and coach. He has developed a technique called One-Moment Meditation® to help executives use mindfulness throughout their daily work lives. Martin will be speaking at Mind & Matter 2017, the Mindfulness at Work conference, which is taking place in Central London on April 27th […]
Freelancers, org structures and puppy paternity leave

It's time for your weekly update of news, opinion and research from across the HR industry. Let us know what you think of the articles we've shared, and tell us what you've enjoyed reading this week too! Performance – Maybe you should just do the job you were hired for (Tim Sackett) – How a good […]
How to build a business case for your employee engagement programme

The main driving force behind any organisation is its people. The right people analytics programme will help you measure the leadership, vision, happiness and cultural alignment within your organisation. These metrics have in the past been considered as immeasurable and vague. Consequently, the drive to collect data around them is often discounted. Employee engagement technology […]
Beyond quotas: what are the ingredients for true diversity?

Diversity in the workplace is a good thing. It’s amazing to think that there can be so much confusion and controversy over such a seemingly simple statement. The problem begins to appear when we start to define our terms. What do we mean by diversity, how can we measure it, and how does it benefit […]
Managing the pitfalls of meaningful work

Today’s shifting social and economic landscape has encouraged a focus on conscious capitalism and a move away from short-term profits alone to take into account the wider interests of a range of different stakeholders. From the employee perspective has come a renewed interest in creating jobs that are meaningful and full of purpose. It is […]
It’s sales & marketing, not sales versus marketing – creating more collaborative teams’

When it comes to preparing for presentations, there are major differences between the opinions of the marketing and sales teams. I’ve lost track of the number of marketing teams I’ve talked to who have discussed at length the growing gap they are seeing between their own work and the work of their sales teams when […]
5 viewpoints on anonymous employee feedback + 2 tools you can use

The business case for feedback is supported by lots of evidence (see here, for example), but there's uncertainty around whether anonymous feedback is the right way to go or whether you should encourage people to provide open and honest feedback. Five viewpoints on anonymous feedback Viewpoint 1: A mixed kettle of fish – but leader […]
“As a manager of flexible workers, it is important to put trust in your team.”

Tim Stone is Vice President Marketing EMEA at Polycom and will be speaking at the Agile Working Event to be held on March 29th in London. Jamie Lawrence, Editor, HRZone: Lots of companies would love a 'no holds barred' flexible working policy but are terrified of giving up control. How did you guys overcome this? Tim […]
“L&D should consider the needs of all and not just the top five percent that get on the development radar.”

We're always curious to hear how our members and contributors tackle the challenges that the ever-changing world of HR throws at them. We've got a wealth of experience and knowledge across the site, and what better way to showcase the diversity of our community than to get them to walk us through an average day? […]
Book review: Corporate Energy: How to engage and inspire audiences

HRZone has a range of books available for review. If you would like to receive one of our business books, free of charge, please contact the editor on editor at hrzone dot com and we can send you a list of what's available. In return, we ask for a 400-700 word review of the book, […]
A review of bright light therapy lamp Lumie Brightspark

The BrightSpark is a freestanding lightbox, designed to help stabilise your natural bodily rhythms in the winter months when there’s little sunlight. Recommended for sufferers of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) as part of a treatment called bright light therapy, it’s sold by Lumie, a Cambridge-based company known for its ‘natural wake up lamps.’ It retails […]
Lessons in management: we asked some senior leaders what their first-time mistakes were

When it comes to pivotal points in your career, being a new manager has to be one of the most challenging. You’re used to being a star performer – that’s why you were promoted – but to succeed as a manager, you need to master an entirely new set of skills. To help new leaders […]
HR dreams, family leave and the need for evidence-based practice

Top of the day to you, and welcome to our latest round up of news, blogs and opinion from across the HR industry. Let us know what you think of the articles we've shared, and tell us what you've enjoyed reading this week too! Future work – The top jobs in 10 years might not […]