Top 10 excuses for failing to engage with engagement

Over the 25 years or so Great Place to Work® has worked with thousands of organisations across the globe we’ve heard virtually every rationale as to why they’ve not yet engaged with engagement. Whilst we fully understand these barriers or obstacles our experience shows that they are not insurmountable; they may be hurdles but not […]
10 things you didn’t know about engagement

Despite engagement being firmly established in HR circles and endorsed at government level, there is still no universally agreed definition. Engagement is an output – one of the key drivers is trust. Only around 1/3rd of employees say they are engaged, putting the UK 9th out of the world’s twelfth largest economies (based on GDP). […]
Thoughts of an American HR officer on a one-way ticket to Saudi Arabia

“Mr. Thomas, we would like to make you an offer”. I thought of the scene in the Godfather where the Don makes an offer that can't be refused. Well the offer was one that I could not refuse. And with that call, my life changed. I would be leaving New York City to live in […]
Interview: Dr Katherine Jones, Vice President, HR Technology Research, Bersin by Deloitte

We conducted this interview with Katherine at HR Tech Europe, which took place on October 24th and 25th 2013. The next HR Tech Europe will take place on October 24th and 25th 2014. You mentioned earlier that a lot more graduates are coming through STEM programmes. With the ‘dataification’ of HR, will the HR department eventually […]
Is HR a department of cobbler’s children?

Do you hate your HR job? Or maybe you don’t hate it exactly, but just think that there is something else out there that you’d enjoy more? Are you, in all honesty, a bit rubbish at it? HR has been getting a lot of bad press lately. Thanks to that woman at the BBC (HR […]
Stress in the workplace – who takes responsibility?

This article has been written to tie in with National Stress Awareness Day (NSAD) on November 6th. This year will be the 15th annual NSAD. The recent CIPD Absence Management report revealed that stress is on the increase. This is despite the fact that more organisations than ever are investing in comprehensive employee wellbeing strategies. […]
Interview: Phil Merrell and Nicola Cull, Directors at Towers Watson

Phil Merrell and Nicola Cull are Directors in Towers Watson’s Communications and Change Management practice. 1. Change is not a new process – there’s been a lot of progress in how companies streamline other processes, such as technology delivery and onboarding, but change seems to be lagging behind. Companies still seem to struggle, often with […]
LIVE: CIPD Annual Conference 2013
The CIPD Annual Conference is taking place on November 6th and 7th at Manchester Central. The event combines an expo floor with relevant organisations and vendors in the HR sphere with a packed conference programme with speakers including: Daniel Pink, former Al Gore speechwriter and bestselling author David MacLeod, chair of the Employee Engagement Taskforce […]
Managing an Employment Tribunal claim from an Employer’s perspective

Any Employer can be the subject of an employment tribunal claim, even those that are well managed, have the best Human Resources and legal support services, and who adopt best policies, practices and procedures. Many Employers can recall various horror stories where they have received without any sense of expectation an Employment Tribunal claim in […]
Interview: Josh Bersin, Bersin by Deloitte

Josh Bersin is Principal & Founder of Bersin by Deloitte, who provide consultancy on people strategies based on research. More than 5,000 organizations worldwide use their research and consulting to guide their HR, talent and learning strategies. The company was founded by Josh in 2001 and acquired by professional services firm Deloitte in early 2013. We […]
Fifty top tweets from HR Tech Europe 2013

If you're interested in HR technology, download our latest HR technology toolkit, with contributions on social media, big data, self-service and more from academics across the world. It's an in-depth, 55 page document with everything based on top research from the best business universities. HR Tech Europe 2013 took place on October 24th and 25th […]
Round up: HR Tech Europe 2013

Amsterdam is a capital city but doesn’t feel like one. Trams snake lazily, picking up passengers here and there, while free-moving cyclists form informal clusters to chat and share fresh, clean air. The city centre itself, steeped in history and a colourful feast for the eyes, doesn’t stress the soul like London or New York. […]
Auto-enrolment pensions: An update

One year after automatic enrolment was introduced, the lessons and experiences of organisations that have already auto-enrolled are coming to light. This article looks at some of the more common pitfalls that can occur when introducing an auto-enrolment scheme. Planning too late: Auto-enrolment is a complicated process and it can take between six to twelve […]
31Practices: what are they and why are they important?

The IBM CEO Study (2012), Leading through Connections, outlined three imperatives essential for outperformance. The first was empowering employees through values. Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges (2003) estimate that fewer than 10% of organizations have clear, written values and many take the work on values no further than words. To impact, core values need to […]
How to change habitual behaviour by remodelling your brain

This article was adapted by Amy Brann from her book '‘Make your brain work' and offers insights on how to alter negative behavioural habits which can impact the morale, engagement and trust of the people you work with. This article originally appeared on our sister site TrainingZone. As professionals, do we fully appreciate how tiny differences […]
Paradise Lost? Trust and big business

Trust, like love, makes the world go round. Academic writers and practitioners alike believe that it has significant benefits. Trust can lower costs, as it removes the need for significant monitoring and controls. It encourages customers to return and can give companies 'the benefit of the doubt' – and often precious additional time – when […]
After Condé Nast ends its internship programme, what do companies need to know?

Last week there were reports that Condé Nast, whose titles include Vogue and GQ, would be ending its internship programme in the US after being sued by two former interns. In the UK, the fashion industry was given a sharp warning last year when HMRC cracked down on unpaid schemes, and in June 2013 it […]
The talent retention war is real – and you’re losing

The war for talent is a hot, hot game — and your current policies may be leading top professionals to say sayonara to you and your organization. According to recent studies, the average employee turnover rate is predicted to rise from 20.6 percent in 2012 to 23.4 percent by 2018. This represents 192 million separations. […]
Doing business in Germany – cultural considerations for HR

The Federal Republic of Germany is the European Union’s most populous country, the EU’s largest economy and the world’s fourth largest economy. According to the IMF, Germany has achieved a GDP of $US3.4 trillion in 2011, and enjoys a relatively low unemployment rate of 5.7% which is significantly lower than most EU countries. Germany’s economy […]
Finding the X Factor – the neuroscience of presence

You will have experienced the feeling of a person, maybe a leader, shop assistant or friend who is completely focused on you and your needs. Their level of connection is palatable. For me it is best summed up in the words of a West African greeting, ‘Sawa bona,’ which translates to ‘I see you.’ The […]