Blog: how to comply with fire safety at work
In light of the recent news that Asda have been fined more than £55,000 for fire safety breaches they might have wanted to have a closer look at how to comply with fire safety. Having an affective fire action plan in place can help your company to evacuate quickly and safely and help to minimise […]
Blog: The followers guide to what your leaders want
Today, a search on Amazon.com showed 98,516 results for “leadership”. A further search for “followship” came back with a mere 39 results. I searched again for “team player” and received over 101,000 results, although “team player” wasn’t quite what I was looking for. I know sometimes part of great leadership is setting out what […]
Equal pay tribunals could lead to near £20k of audit and legal costs
A review of all staff wages must be carried out by a company after it has lost an employment tribunal claim over equal pay, according to equalities minister Lynne Featherstone If a tribunal rules that a worker has been discriminated against because of their gender, that firm would be compelled to examine employees’ salaries, an […]
Whistle while you work to keep the workplace spirits up
Whistle while you work still has resonance it seems, according to research from music licensing organisations PPL and PRS for Music. A study of 1,008 small and medium enterprise owners found that over three quarters (77%) reckon that playing music in the workplace increases staff morale, and creates a better atmosphere and working environment for staff […]
Enabling Technology: Renault drives off with SuccessFactors for global HCM
Car giant Renault will go live with a global, Cloud -based HR IT system next month in a bid to better equip HR with the tools needed to deliver business value. Renault signed the deal for SuccessFactor’s software-as-a-service (SaaS) business execution solution in November 2011, setting an ambitious six-month target for the worldwide launch. […]
Living Leader Learnings: The Redundancy Challenge
The Company: Insurance Company The Challenger: Group HR Director My company is in the process of introducing a series of job cuts across the workforce, and some of the members of my team will be involved. I want to communicate with them directly and prepare them, though I know other board members are not planning […]
Expert Voice: How to get your life balance right
When life is busy, or all your energy is focused on something, it’s all too easy to find yourself ‘off balance’ and not paying enough attention to the important areas of your life. Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling five balls in the air. You name them: work, family, health, friends and soul […]
Legal Commentary: Has dishonesty by an employee been sanctioned by the Court of Appeal?
The recent decision by the Court of Appeal – Cavenagh v William Evans [2012] EWCA Civ 697 – to come down on the side of the former director of a company who was made redundant after deliberately taking money from his employer, to which he knew he was not entitled, has set a precedent which […]
Social media trends: Moving into the mainstream
The opportunities and possibilities offered by social media are limitless – and that’s the problem for many HR professionals. The question is where exactly do you start and how do you know what will work for your business? The simple answer is: just start somewhere, for the beauty of social media is that […]
Ask the Expert: How do I end non-contractual arrangements?
The question I’m looking for advice on the steps to go through when ending non-contractual arrangements. I’m working on the basis that, for expediency’s sake, the safest approach is to follow the same process as for contractual terms, but any advice would be much appreciated. Esther Smith, partner at Thomas Eggar […]
Social Media Guide Part 3: How to use twitter lists and hashtags
Twitter is an invaluable online tool and has become the de facto way of spreading news and disseminating information to people across all walks of life. It has also become an important gauge by which public opinion is measured and has been used to predict all sorts of results, from stock market ups and downs […]
Blog: who are the best leaders – men or women?
As John Gray advocated in his 1992 bestseller Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, there are fundamental differences between the genders. According to a new study, these differences are evident when it comes to leadership behaviour. At Talent Innovations, we’ve analysed the 360° feedback results of nearly 14,000 UK leaders and managers, to […]
Blog: HR – also known as The A Team
Are you the Mr. T of your organisation? By that I don’t mean do you wear excessive amounts of gold bling, have a slightly dubious Mohican and yell “Quit your jibber-jabber!” in meetings. I mean if there is a problem, if no-one else can help, and if they can find you, maybe your staff can […]
News: Men v women or men + women?
Men and women have different leadership strengths, and organisations need a balance of both if they are to be truly effective. That’s the conclusion of a new study from Talent Innovations which analysed feedback results of nearly 14,000 managers to identify the differences in how men and women were rated against a set of 18 […]
Blog: what is charisma – and how do you get it?
Why is it that some people just seem to stand out? What is it about these people that leads us to describe them as ‘charismatic’? And just what do we mean by that? In other words … what is ‘charisma’? It seems to be a bit of an enigma. It’s a concept we […]
Book Review: Judgement Calls by Thomas Davenport and Brook Manville
“Judgement Calls” is a powerful book. It explores the way in which threatening situations for major organisations can be resolved successfully by using staff talents to a much higher degree than is usual. The writers examined how 12 important decisions were taken successfully due to team effort. Their work is in four parts and […]
Beecroft: A Dickensian charter for unscrupulous bosses
As an employer, you might expect me to welcome the Beecroft report on changes to employment law. But I don’t. There are some decent suggestions in the report but some of the recommendations, especially the idea of "no fault" terminations, are positively Dickensian. There’s an assumption that all business people think the Beecroft […]
Talent Spot: Joris Luijke, Atlassian’s vice president of HR
Joris Luijke, vice president of talent and HR at fast-growing Australian software company, Atlassian, has followed in his father’s footsteps by choosing HR as a career. “When I was young, my father tried to convince me not to do HR. So just to annoy him, I went to work in HR!” he laughs. Luijke did […]
A typical HRD: Part 4 – FTSE 250 companies
The focus and pressure on top HR directors in commerce and industry has never been greater than it is today. As a result, over recent years, their remit has evolved to require a far broader, more business-oriented background and set of skills than was previously the case. But this situation has, in turn, led […]
Blog: 3 Tips to Build and Sustain a Strong Company Culture
Recognise This! – Creating a strong culture requires careful focus and intention. What’s your ambition for the culture of your organisation? If you intend to create and preserve a strong company culture of recognition – one that drives engagement, productivity and performance – how do you that? 1) Focus on Your Culture If culture is […]