Why effective leadership starts with looking inwards

How exactly can a ‘good’ or ‘effective’ leader be defined? How we act, manage, engage with others is how we create the conditions which allow others to thrive. This is why, in leadership, we must devote time to self reflection.
Is your workplace culture one of blame?

Unfortunately, it seems that a workplace culture of blame is not uncommon among organisations but it doesn’t have to be that way. By taking steps towards a culture of accountability we can stop playing the blame game and welcome a productive shift in thinking and behaviour.
John Lewis publishes job interview questions online: Should your organisation do the same?

To support diversity and inclusion in the recruitment process, John Lewis has announced it will post interview questions online to help candidates prepare their responses. Should other organisations follow suit? We ask three experts…
Sainsbury’s employee dismissed for ‘stealing’ a shopping bag

Many are ‘baffled’ that a Sainsbury’s employee of 20 years was sacked for gross misconduct after accidentally stealing carrier bags. However, the employer was within its rights to take this action. This case underlines the importance of having clear policies and procedures in place.
Becoming agile and responsive in the age of ‘permavucalution’

Through effective workforce planning and development we can ensure we are continuously reflecting on our people’s capabilities. This will equip us to respond confidently and judiciously to present and future challenges.
Work-life balance is outdated: Why HR should focus on integration

With the rise of remote and hybrid work environments in an increasingly flexible and shifting world, could it be time to send the concept of ‘work-life balance’ out to pasture?
Why it’s time to rebrand HR

The changing nature of work and business models has applied pressure to HR to truly partner and enable the transformation. But with growing misconceptions of what HR is there to do, is now the time for a rebrand?
Three cornerstones for influencing peers outside HR

HR teams face a perennial challenge: how to gain support for investments in people when the minds of peers are elsewhere. A crucial and often overlooked first step is to secure the personal cornerstones of influence.
Sick note culture and the rise of ‘Corpowelfare’

Gethin Nadin responds to the Prime Minister’s plans to tackle “sick note culture” with government ‘Corpowelfare’ approach.
Identifying the risk factors for suicide within our organisations

Tragically, 6,000 people every year in the UK alone are being lost to something that is now widely described by expert clinicians as preventable – suicide. How can HR professionals understand and mitigate the risk factors?
Self-management part one: How to recruit without managers

In the first instalment of a three-part series on self management, ‘Powered by people’, Perry Timms and Kirsten Buck delve into recruitment and selection, looking at two unorthodox approaches to hiring in unorthodox organisations. What can we learn from these managerless, self-managed organisations?
The transformative power of trust

Trust begins at the leadership level with executives and senior managers delivering a trusted, safe and secure environment for all staff. Let’s look at the importance of trust and how it can be nurtured.
Reducing pressure and reaching potential with a coaching culture

Rising pressure for managers to be productive all the time is leaving little time for them to stop and listen to their teams. It’s time to switch to a coaching culture where individuals feel listened to, valued and able to reach their full potential.
Talent management transformation: When should you start?

In this final article of our talent management transformation series, we look at things that can trigger the need for HR transformation, especially within organisations with under 1000 employees.
Human resources: Whose return on whose investment?

Senior teams expect a return on their investments in ‘people’. But this demand fails to account for the personal capital that employees hand over every single day. To thrive, organisations should ask not what they might take, but how they can give.
Channelling chameleons: Why HR team’s must be agents of change in 2024

Just like chameleons, HR teams must be adaptable to changing surroundings. With their role being increasingly put under the public and social media microscope, adjusting quickly to new employment laws and policies is more important now than ever.
Work and Pensions Secretary claims mental health “gone too far”

Following mental health comments made by the Work and Pensions Secretary and plans to make people signed off work with “mild” conditions search for work, Wellbeing expert Gethin Nadin brings some much-needed clarity on the matter.
Entries for 2024 Culture Pioneer Awards now open!

This year’s Culture Pioneer award entries have officially opened. It’s time to show us what your workplace culture is made of!
New legal rights for carers: What HR professionals need to know

At a time when more workers than ever before have caring responsibilities let’s break down the Carer’s Leave Regulations 2024 and consider how and why employers should go above and beyond in providing more than the minimum that’s required by law.
Barclays discrimination claims: From lip service to lawsuits

Recent allegations of racial and gender discrimination in a hiring decision at Barclays highlights the damage caused by broken talent management approaches. Deborah Hartung explores five ways to fix this frustratingly common business problem.