What you can do about the workplace gender gap
Workplace gender gaps persist despite progress, but HR teams can take concrete steps to close them. Setting specific diversity goals, leveraging employee referrals, and building an inclusive employer brand are key strategies for increasing women in leadership roles and creating a more diverse workforce.
Falling into an HR hole? What potential pitfalls are ahead for HR.
HR directors face a critical challenge: trapped managing day-to-day recruitment and staffing tasks, they struggle to develop long-term business strategy. This reactive approach risks exacerbating talent shortages and skills gaps that already affect over one-third of UK businesses unable to fill skilled vacancies.
How a bad night’s sleep can disrupt the workplace
Poor sleep quality increases the likelihood that employees will engage in unwanted workplace behavior the following day, particularly those with low moral identity. Research shows this pattern of behavioral disruption can cost companies up to $200 billion annually in the USA through actions like extended breaks, early departures, and theft.
The secrets of simple graphics
Simple graphics don’t require artistic skill—just basic shapes and clear communication. Success means helping people understand your message, not impressing them with fancy drawings. Focus on simplicity, consistency, and purposeful design to create effective visual content.
The promises and pitfalls of hand drawn graphics
Hand drawn graphics use simple images and text to explain complex information, improve engagement, and facilitate collaboration in meetings and presentations. Research shows 90% of brain information is visual, making graphics highly effective for communication and decision-making across organizations.
HR and the bigger world picture: how can it make an impact?
HR professionals can drive organizational impact by aligning talent strategies with corporate goals. Key priorities include redesigning organizations to enable change through empowered team networks, and developing leaders with emotional intelligence and authoritative styles that inspire rather than command.
HR, up your impact: what gets measured gets done
Effective HR measurement drives organizational success. This article explores how to set meaningful performance metrics across four strategic HR areas—including organization redesign, leadership capability, and tracking progress—ensuring resources focus on goals that genuinely benefit the business rather than vanity metrics.
HR, up your impact: what happens when reality bites?
When HR implements strategic changes in organizational design and leadership, reality often reveals gaps in planning. This article explores how to adapt when inevitable deviations occur, emphasizing the importance of staying engaged with stakeholders, remaining flexible to improvements, and ensuring accountability during implementation.
Transaction cycles: a simpler future for an effective HR function?
Transaction cycles organize HR processes around complete employee journeys rather than departmental silos, offering employees simpler interactions and enabling HR to accurately track costs, improve services, and demonstrate strategic value to the business.
Four ways for HR to become a force for innovation
HR can become a force for innovation by empowering frontline employees, eliminating annual performance cycles, restructuring teams, and reimagining HR’s own role. Traditional HR processes prioritize compliance over creativity, crushing the conditions needed for innovation to thrive.
Book review: Will it make the boat go faster?
Will It Make the Boat Go Faster? draws on Olympic rowing champion Ben Hunt-Davis’s Sydney 2000 Games experience to offer practical strategies for goal-setting, motivation, and performance. Co-authored with management consultant Harriet Beveridge, this 4/5-star book translates athletic success principles into actionable advice for business professionals and HR leaders seeking greater effectiveness.
British resilience demands… resilient Britons
Britain’s resilience depends on its people being resilient too. Discover how to test your own resilience, build protection factors through daily habits, and maintain your emotional reserves to navigate challenging times.
A new wave of AI and what it means for recruitment
AI and deep learning are transforming recruitment by addressing long-standing challenges: 85% of job applicants receive no response, while 71% of employers struggle to find candidates with required skills. New AI-powered solutions promise to streamline hiring and reduce the average time to fill positions.
Greatest extension of workers’ rights or a great big headache for SMEs?
Theresa May’s employment law announcement expands workers’ rights including gig economy protections, unpaid care sabbaticals, and mental health discrimination coverage. While presenting some challenges for SMEs around unpaid leave and sabbaticals, businesses gain certainty from retained EU employment standards and predictable National Living Wage increases through 2022.
Reflections from the 2017 CIPD L&D Show: attention spans and a marketing approach to talent
The 2017 CIPD L&D Show explored how declining attention spans are reshaping workplace learning strategies. With micro-learning platforms gaining traction, HR professionals debate whether quick-fire content truly delivers engagement or if traditional learning methods remain valuable for diverse learner preferences.
“Planning has become vital for me so I mix my week up so I don’t go stir crazy disappearing into my laptop.”
HR consultant Jo balances client work, workshops, and strategic planning by mixing her week between office days, client visits, and remote work to stay focused and avoid burnout. She prioritizes health and financial wellbeing education, helping employees feel more confident managing money.
The sharing block: how restricting employees from sharing ideas is holding back business
Restrictive communication practices and formal-only idea-sharing channels are disconnecting employees from leadership and stifling innovation. Research reveals UK businesses rely too heavily on one-way broadcasts while limiting when and how workers can contribute ideas, harming motivation and job satisfaction.
How to conserve mental energy during the day
Learn how neuroscience explains mental performance and energy levels throughout your day. Discover practical strategies based on the Yerkes-Dodson principle to maintain optimal focus and avoid burnout.
The case for and against: L&D Accreditation
Explore both sides of L&D accreditation’s value in closing the UK skills gap. This balanced debate examines how credentials can verify employee capabilities and support workforce development, while considering potential counterarguments to formal qualification requirements.
Is your dress code fit for 2017?
Dress codes are facing legal scrutiny for discrimination, particularly regarding gender-specific requirements like high heels. Gary Cattermole discusses how organizations can create inclusive dress codes that align with 2017 workplace values while maintaining their brand identity.
