How can generosity help with managing a team?
A workplace where staff and team members are listened to, appreciated, supported and praised is a workplace where people want to give their best, where people’s ideas and creativity can unfold. Generosity helps to foster this creativity and helps to boost morale and performance as well as mental and emotional wellbeing among employees. Bringing out […]
Selecting ‘employees of the future’ at O2
To combat the competitive challenge of online shopping, ‘bricks-and-mortar’ retailers are having to adapt, by enhancing their in-store service and providing a personalised and compelling customer experience. Recognising this trend, O2 has created two new ‘stores of the future’ in London and Manchester. Roughly three times the size of a high street O2 phone shop, these […]
Breaking the stigma: why every office needs a Mental Health First Aider
Depression, anxiety, stress – mental health issues in the workplace are cause for concern for many employers. According to the HSE stress, depression or anxiety accounted for 9.9 million days lost to work related ill health between 2014/2015. If absenteeism is having an impact on organisations, consider the impact of presenteeism to the organisation’s bottom line […]
The diversity challenge? Team cohesion grows from shared goals
Nisha from Finance eyes her lemon meringue cupcake, the topping melting in the sun. Liz from Communications forces a bright grin as she grapples with the microphone. “And the winner of the Cupcake King or Queen of 2016 is…” Nisha hasn’t mistakenly entered herself for The Great British Bake Off, she’s just struggling to enjoy […]
HR in retail: 5 trends HR leaders should watch out for in 2017
The battle for consumers’ hearts and minds is constantly being waged between online-only companies and bricks-and-mortar retailers. It’s often pointed out that the on-demand economy doesn’t need to put boots on the ground, to use a military phrase; that’s widely regarded as a competitive advantage as it saves money on overheads and wages. The solution […]
Coffee Break: Empathy, employee surveys and HR dark arts
Here is your weekly round up of news, opinion and interesting blogs from across the HR world, which we've been busily curating for you over the past few days. Let us know what you've enjoyed reading this week, and tell us what you think of the articles we've shared. Strategy – Defence of the #HR dark […]
“The gig economy is risky but rewarding. All the mistakes are yours to fix, but you can also be proud of your results.”
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? Want […]
Personality at work: are you from the dark side…?
You have both light and dark personality traits If you’re a Star Wars fan you’ll no doubt be familiar with the ‘dark side of the force’, the battle between light and dark with characters drawing power from the mystical dark side. The idea that we can have both light and dark aspects of our personality, […]
Bricks to clicks – how to achieve more effective resourcing through employee profiling
The faces of teams in retail are changing at such a rapid pace – all rushing to jump on the online retail band wagon and survive the tsunami of retail store closures across the country. If established giants like BHS have to close the doors of their retail empire and make thousands of people redundant […]
The role of feedback in performance management – the conditions for success
There are lots of companies making changes to their Performance Management systems and most of the changes revolve around feedback. But have we got it right? Those of you who read our articles and regular newsletter will know we have views on the role of feedback that are, some would say been quite controversial. We […]
Forgetting ‘normal’ – how HR can help showcase the positive differences of dyslexic team members
One in 10 people in the UK is dyslexic, myself included. I've experienced first-hand so many outdated attitudes towards dyslexia and other learning differences. Yet I feel proud of the innovation and creativity dyslexia allows. Dyslexia is classed as a disability - which automatically generates preconceived notions of the person suffering from it – “you’re […]
“We hire people who want to think for themselves, who want to be a force for good.”
OVO is a fast-growing energy company based in Bristol, already making a name for themselves both as a challenger within the industry and for having strong focus on company culture and values, having grown from a handful of employees seven years ago to over 1,200 today. We headed over to their foliage-filled office to take a look […]
What can HR do to encourage social advocacy from employees?
This is a guest post from Rhiannon Stroud – strategist at Synergy Creative – explaining the benefits of social advocacy and the practical steps needed to implement it into your organisation. This is the second in a series of articles where we explore how HR can use social media to improve their processes; something Synergy Creative will also be discussing during […]
Is Artificial Intelligence in learning an oxymoron?
It really is only a matter of time before virtual assistants are so advanced we may eventually be educated by them. Once enough data on language processing, reasoning, planning and cognitive modelling has been collected and appropriately arranged, tracking learning behaviours, giving personalised feedback, prescribing level-specific tasks and genuinely tailored course material in an instant […]
You can’t handle the truth: Are you being bullied or performance managed?
You’re being bullied, but an inner voice is telling you it’s performance management. You’re good at your job but whatever you do is never good enough for your manager. When you try to discuss your concerns, your manager says, “I don’t control how you feel, only you control how you feel”, making you feel victimised. […]
Bagging a lucrative highly-paid role takes effort and time. Here’s how to focus that effort and shorten the time
There are few common traits and experiences amongst people that succeed in securing highly-paid roles. Personality, innate talent, professional networks, education, available opportunities, even chance encounters, can all play a part. To add to this, organisations are becoming increasingly meritocratic. This is a good thing, especially for those previously overlooked. However, for all those ambitious […]
Coffee Break: Trust, culture management and the importance of being liked at work
Here is your weekly list of news, opinion and interesting blogs from across the HR world, selected by us so you don't have to spend your coffee break scrolling through newsfeeds. Let us know what you've enjoyed reading this week, or tell us what you think of the articles we've shared in the comments below. […]
Just how can you quickly spin up teams on the fly and make them more efficiently?
In response to today’s rapidly changing contexts, businesses are regularly reviewing their lists of projects, closing down some and kick-starting others. With this constant flux, building teams on the fly and expecting quick results is becoming a common occurrence in modern organisations. What type of leader is best suited to build them and what should […]
How could you improve your graduate recruitment program?
Fresh talent is a valuable resource for any company. Graduate recruiting programs should start when the students begin their final university year and persevere until their graduation ceremony. Many students limit their career options to KPMG, Accenture, and Deloitte. There are high chances that your next ideal candidates will graduate this year, but they might […]
Employee engagement interview: Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons’s CEO, Nick Stace
This is an interview with Nick Stace, CEO of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, about their approach to employee engagement, common mistakes that other organisations make and what their next step on the engagement journey will be. Jamie Lawrence, Editor, HRZone: Why do you think you appeared on the Best Workplaces list? What makes […]