News: employers show increasing appetite for tech to improve staff health engagement

Employers are committed to using new technologies to promote health engagement and encourage positive behaviour among employees. The study, Emerging Technology in Health Engagement, was released by employee benefits firm Buck Consultants and WorldatWork. It examined the current use and future potential for three major technologies: gamification, social media and mobile applications. Of the three, […]

Four damaging mistakes that HR professionals continue to make

HR continually evolves – practices that work one year may be ineffective the next as the workforce evolves and peoples’ needs change. External culture can also influence what is and what isn’t effective in the workplace. These four common scenarios are commonplace in today’s HR function – a few of the examples are seen as […]

Lowdown on PAYE umbrella companies for HR managers

This article was written by Phil McDonald, Managing Director of PAYE umbrella firm Paraplus. An umbrella company is a organisation that acts as an employer to contractors who work under a fixed term contract. With a pay as you earn (PAYE) umbrella company, contractors become an employee of that umbrella organisation. It issues invoices to […]

News: MPs back Government plans for ‘shares-for-rights’ scheme

MPs have shown support for Government plans to allow businesses to offer company shares to employees in exchange for reduced employment rights. The initiative was initially rejected in the House of Lords before MPs voted to reinstate it on April 16. Michael Fallon, Business Minister, said the shares-for-rights scheme was a good deal, particularly for […]

News: almost half of UK workers feel ‘threatened by their boss’

Close to half (47 percent) of UK employees feel actively threatened by their boss, according to new research from leadership development consultancy Head Heart + Brain. Broken down by sector, civil servants (72 percent) felt the most threatened – unsurprising considering the changes that have run through the civil service over the last three years. […]

10 myths that pervade the HR industry

This article was written by Millie Sarin, Deputy Knowledge Manager at the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas). If you’ve been in HR for years or are just learning the ropes, there are a number of common workplace misunderstandings that seem to crop up again and again. The Acas advice helpline receives around a million calls a year, […]

What makes a collaborative leader?

David Archer and Alex Cameron are co-directors of consultancy Socia and authors of ‘Collaborative Leadership – Building relationships, handling conflict and sharing control.’ It’s a common experience for many leaders these days: many of the people who are crucial to their success don’t report to them – directly or indirectly. And, increasingly, these people are often […]

News: Female workers in UK call for ‘inspiration and leadership’

Female workers in Britain are looking for inspiration in the workplace which will allow them to break from traditional expectations, according to new research from telecommunications provider O2. The research, around flexible working, reveals differences in the working styles of men and women and the things that promote wellbeing and job satisfaction. Broadly, women place […]

News: workplace remains key driver of UK companies’ reputation

The state of the workplace remains one of the key drivers of reputation among the UK’s largest companies, according to new research from global business consultancy Reputation Institute. The UK RepTrak™ 2013 study saw John Lewis emerge with the highest workplace reputation, followed by Selfridges and Marks and Spencer. Engineering company Dyson came fourth and […]

Developing resilience to enhance personal effectiveness

This article was written by stress management consultant Graham W Price, who is a trainer with Body Mind Training. Graham is a chartered member of the British Psychological Society (BPS). We’re all crazy! Every time we’re having a negative thought, we’re having a crazy thought. 25 years ago I witnessed a senior executive, Stuart McGill, […]

Legal insight: what employers should know after the Stella English case

This article was written by Mandy Laurie, partner in the employment team at national law firm Dundas & Wilson. There has been much interest about the recent employment case involving the previous winner of The Apprentice, Stella English, and her claim for constructive dismissal against Lord Sugar. However, in a case held to be largely unfounded, […]

News: education system failing next generation of workers, say CEOs

Over half of UK CEOs (54 percent) responding to a new survey believe the current education system is failing future workers, and that degrees and A levels are no longer a guarantee of career success. The research, commissioned by Skillsoft and conducted by Opinion Matters, found that while 63 percent of CEOs valued qualifications in […]

The decline of flexible working – has the bubble burst?

This aticle was written by Naomi Oppenheim, Solicitor at Fladgate LLP. Marissa Mayer’s announcement that all flexible arrangements at Yahoo! will end this June has been widely reported in the press recently. Ms Mayer is not the only leading business figure of late to view flexible working as a barrier, rather than a bridge, to […]

News: onboarding requires radical shake-up

Organisations must radically rethink their onboarding approaches to reap new benefits, according to a leading academic from the London Business School. Dan Cable, Professor of Organisational Behaviour, studied the onboarding procedures of various organisations – including Oracle and Disney – with colleagues at the LBS. The team found that onboarding processes share a common goal […]

Five reasons companies fail at talent management

This article was written by Lucinda Carney, founder of Actus performance management software and MD of Advance Change Ltd organisational development consultancy. Ok, I admit it, I disagree with talent management – or certainly the way it is currently bandied about as if there is some mysterious secret that only the chosen few have the answer […]

10 common email errors HR Professionals don’t want to make

Alison Kemp runs Switch Vision, where she and her team give training and coaching to technical teams and individuals on interpersonal communications. When looking at improving communications in organisations, ignoring how we use email is like driving with flat tyres and wondering why the ride’s bumpy. So that Human Resources professionals are seen as, well, […]

News: survey points to increased appetite for partnering among finance functions

The majority of UK executives (81 percent) want to form stronger partnerships between the finance department and other parts of the business, according to new research from recruiter Robert Half UK. However, a third of executives (33 percent) say they find it difficult to source candidates with the necessary skills and experience to implement a […]

News: companies must ‘increase transparency of engagement and wellbeing’

FTSE100 companies must increase organisational transparency to measure and improve the long-term successes of their employee engagement initiatives. This is according to the results of the Workwell FTSE100 benchmark, which scored the level of publicly available information provided by organisations across 25 engagement and wellbeing indicators. The research, which was issued by Business in the […]

Top five mistakes to avoid when introducing change

This article was written by Stephen Archer, director of business consultancy Spring Partnerships. Like strategy, ‘change’ is a rather overused word but in truth it is overused because flux is a better word. Change is permanent and so I suggest that ‘perma-flux’ maybe a better way to look at business today. But if change is […]

Making flexible working win-win for both employee and employer

This article was written by Richard Peers, Head of Human Resources, Vodafone Global Enterprise. Flexible working is arguably the way forward for businesses to increase productivity and attract and retain the best talent – a win-win for employees and employers. So why aren’t all businesses doing it? Because despite the well cited benefits, many questions and […]