How PAYE changes (RTI) will affect HR professionals

Real Time Information (RTI) is coming into play from next month and will change the way employers report PAYE information. Naturally, this will have large implications on the day-to-day role of HR professionals in both small and large organisations. Olivia Hill, Head of HR at AAT (Association of Accounting Technicians) discusses how to prepare for […]

An introduction to mobile learning environments

David Marshall, Founder and CEO of e-learning specialists Marshall ACM, looks to the next phase of e-learning and the use of apps in learning and development. Mobile learning has been a trend in the L&D industry for some time, but it is only recently that the combination of workforce demographics, mobile device capabilities and organisational […]

Elephants and crocodiles: the real challenge of corporate teamwork

This article was written by Clive Hyland, CEO of Think Feel Know. Few people who have worked in business would doubt the importance of effective teamwork, especially the leadership team, but all too often top teams serve mainly as a compromise of personal agendas and the notion of real team commitment disappears into the ether […]

How do we get senior leaders engaged with development training?

This article was written by Emma Littmoden, a partner at leadership programme provider The Living Leader. "We have an excellent programme of development training for all our managers throughout the company. Generally attendance is widespread and the feedback is really positive, but we are having a real struggle to get any of our senior managers involved […]

News: senior leaders must engage with social media to foster open culture

Organisations are being held back from building cultures of openness, collaboration and innovation due to a resistance to change and a lack of social media knowledge among senior leaders. This is according to new research from the CIPD on the landscape of social media and employee voice, launched today at the annual Voice and Value […]

News: Firms predict pay increases of 2.5 percent

Private sector employers are expecting minimal pay increases in the near future, according to new research from XpertHR. The survey questioned 127 private employers, employing 86,164 people, about their pay intentions for the 12 months to the end of February 2014. The median pay increase prediction for the next year was found to be 2.5 […]

Pros and cons of leasing office furniture

In this article Jorgen Josefsson, Managing Director at Scandinavian Business Seating UK, looks at the pros and cons of leasing. Leasing your office furniture and equipment could be a cost effective option as long as you are aware of both the advantages and disadvantages. Consider your office equipment needs, financial situation and your line of […]

News: House of Lords blocks ‘shares for rights’ scheme

The House of Lords has blocked an initiative that would have allowed employees to surrender certain employment rights in return for company shares. The scheme would have allowed business owners to give shares worth between £2000 and £5000 to employees. In return the employee would have to give up certain employment rights, including redundancy and […]

Workplace conflict – challenge or opportunity?

This article was written by Sue Hook of Sapience HR. You know what it’s like, the atmosphere in the team is prickly and ‘those two have obviously had words again’. They clearly don’t get on or it’s a case of the notorious ‘clash of personalities’. But do you have to just continue to accept this poor […]

News: inaccurate mileage claims could open firms to HMRC fines

Close to half of UK business drivers surveyed in a new study admit to submitting false mileage claims. This is according to new research from TomTom Business Solutions, which found 46 percent of drivers have over-estimated their mileage when claiming expenses. Over a third (35 percent) do so regularly. This is despite the fact that […]

Talent spot: Paul Ethell, HR Director for BAE Systems’ Combat Aircraft business unit

“I started getting interested in HR when I was at university. I thought it would be useful to do a business elective as part of my course and out of naivety thought HR sounded interesting,” remembers Paul Ethell, HR director for BAE Systems’ Combat Aircraft business unit. Ethell’s hunch proved correct and he did find […]

Smart office furniture decisions to improve employee wellbeing

This article was written by Mark Foster, Head of Furniture and Interiors at Office Depot. On the average day, the two things people spend most time doing are working and sleeping, generally for about eight hours each. As a result, it is no surprise that people devote a large amount of time to buying the […]

Retirement courses – value for money or flirting with age discrimination?

This article was written by Lee Coles, Head of Money After Work at Jelf Employment Benefits. Funding spaces on courses for those approaching retirement can be a wise investment, but there are good, bad and ugly courses out there. I would like to state the financial case for the ‘good’ specimens of what is arguably […]

News: European clock-watchers ‘here to stay’

New research suggests European workers are clocking in – then zoning out. One in three employees globally (32.7 percent) has no intention of leaving their current job in the next 12 months. European employees are most set on staying put at 37.8 percent, compared to one in five (21.7 percent) employees in Asia. CEB’s latest […]

Budget 2013 – what it means for HR

Chancellor George Osborne has announced his 2013 Budget to Parliament – referred to by the chancellor as one for an ‘aspiration nation.’ Read on for our analysis of how new measures introduced could impact the HR function. You can keep up with comments on the budget by following hashtag #Budget2013 on Twitter. Tax incentives for […]

News: skills gap dragging down leading economic powers

Many of the world’s strongest economies are suffering losses in productivity revenue due to a skills gap, according to new research from CareerBuilder. Employers in economically strong countries said that extended job vacancies have resulted in an inability to grow their business. Those in China were most likely to report the negative effects of open […]

‘The Cloud’ leaves HR & learning’s traditional relationship up in the air

Gerry Griffin, director of Skill Pill M-Learning, looks at how the cloud environment is set to shape the face of learning in the workplace and asks where HR will sit in the aftermath? Cloud computing, a relatively new addition to the workplace, has already managed to establish itself as an indispensable asset for organisations. The […]

Facilitating the cultural shift to remote working

This article was written by Jane Kirk, director at search and intelligence consultancy Armstrong Craven. The news that Marissa Mayer banned Yahoo!’s entire workforce from home-working sparked an immediate surge of protest. The move seemed to fly in the face of growing evidence to support flexible working. Engagement and well-being are cited as key benefits, as […]

That sinking feeling – handling difficult conversations

This article was written by Kate Russell, MD of Russell HR Consulting. Managing difficult people and helping managers to manage difficult employees comes with the HR turf. The question is how can HR professionals best grasp the nettle when trying to manage difficult people/scenarios, either their own team or the wider workforce? For the purposes […]

News: sickness a major issue affecting service delivery

Sickness and absence is a major issue affecting service delivery and the customer experience, according to new research. The research, conducted by Redshift Research on behalf of Cognito, surveyed 200 business managers responsible for mobile workers across the UK to examine the key hurdles to delivering service excellence. Sickness was ranked as the most common […]