Web-based reporting takes drudgery out of 360-degree appraisals
Until recently, the level of paperwork required has dampened enthusiasm for 360-degree appraisals; but web-based data collection and reporting tools are overcoming this hurdle, according to specialist web company Element 78. John Stokdyk reports“The challenge for anyone doing 360-degree appraisals is that you have to take feedback from several people and pull it into one […]
Bullying, behaviours and ethics: How can we improve the culture?
Management consultant John Pope discusses the problem of bullying and bad behaviours amongst organisations, and questions what we can do about unacceptable failures to ensure consistent and correct ethical standards. Bad behavioursA senior manager was allowed to retire early with an enhancement to his pension and the explanation that he was leaving ‘to pursue other […]
Strategic planning: Top 10 tips to create a winning strategy
‘Strategy’ is a word that sometimes seems to be used very lightly at work, but a winning strategy is often hard to create. HR Zone member Jeremy Thorn offers some helpful tips on strategic planning. 1. Strategy implementation is much harder than strategy developmentSome boards work really hard to develop excellent strategies and then wonder […]
Ask the expert: Disciplinary hearing on return from maternity leave
Esther Smith, partner at Thomas Eggar, and Martin Brewer, partner and employment law specialist at Mills & Reeve, advise on the correct procedures to follow when an employee, on return from maternity leave, has allegations made against her and must attend a disciplinary hearing. The question:I have a colleague who has just returned from maternity […]
Benefits while training for young people
Under 25s will be able to claim unemployment benefits while on training courses, Work and Pensions secretary Peter Hain has announced.Young people taking part in Get Into courses, run by the Prince’s Trust, will be eligible for Jobseekers Allowance.The short intensive courses cover a variety of sectors and aim to help unemployed 16-25s get the […]
Employers ‘positive’ about older workers
Most employers say they have positive attitudes to older workers, although they are more reluctant to recruit the over-50s and training seems to tail off for this group. These are the headline findings of a qualitative study looking at how employers are responding to an ageing workforce carried out by the Centre for Research into […]
Give us a break
Around one in four full-time UK office workers never take a break when at work, with seven per cent even forgoing a holiday due to high workloads, according to new research.The report, by Legal and General, reveals the impact that the long working hours culture is having on the UK’s workforce. Further findings showed that […]
Ageism still “endemic” in the workplace
Sixteen million workers have claimed to have witnessed ageist behaviour in the workplace in the last 12 months since new age discrimination laws came into force, research has revealed.The study, by the Employers Forum on Age (EFA), has been released as the UK marks the first anniversary of the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 on […]
Leavers and litigators: How do you measure up?
Organisations that fail to gather and analyse people data intelligently are leaving themselves open to lawsuits and losing talented staff, argues Chris Sands, corporate analytics platform manager at COA Solutions Ltd. In the modern working world, organisations face high absenteeism, staff churn, equal pay claims and accusations of discrimination on a regular basis. The CBI’s […]
HCM: A passing fad or a worthwhile concept?
Human capital management (HCM) has been a much discussed topic over the last few years with numerous articles and books published on the subject. Bettina Pickering, of PA Consulting Group, asks whether it is worth the HR directors’ attention. Various definitions of HCM have emerged over the last few years and almost overnight hardly any […]
Commission for Racial Equality breaches race equality employment laws
There have been “serious race equality related employment problems” within the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE), a report has found.The report, published today, 28 September, by research charity the Public Interest Research Unit (PIRU), questions CRE compliance with its race equality duties under the Race Relations Act, and whether these duties have generally proved an […]
Switched on to e-recruiting. By Rob Lewis
Online recruiting is now commonplace in the job market but have companies got past the basics to access its full potential? Rob Lewis finds out. As the online recruitment market matures and evolves, more and more companies are bringing their e-recruitment in-house. But rising costs-per-click mean it’s more important than ever that HR knows how […]
HR technology: Don’t fear the report writer. By John Stokdyk
It’s accepted that HR should act as a strategic partner to the business, but day-to-day reality falls short of this ideal for many organisations. John Stokdyk investigates why HR has been slow on the uptake and hears why HR reporting may soon be rising up the executive agenda. Strategic HR has become a mantra for […]
HR tip: Notifying the JobCentre of redundancies
These questions are being answered by Learn HR, a market leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications. Question: "Do I have to notify the JobCentre if I make someone redundant?" HR Tip:It is not necessary to do so but much better if you do because it gives the JobCentre opportunity to […]
Dipping your toe in the global talent pool
Record numbers of Brits are leaving our shores every year for warmer climes, and UK companies will need to become more adept at recruiting overseas talent in accordance with this. Kate Farrell, associate director at Hudson, looks at the potential rewards and challenges of looking beyond our borders. The reported talent shortage in the UK […]
The human face of mobile working
Now that mobile working is becoming increasingly common, Professor Graham Jones, research and diagnostics director at Lane4 Management Group Ltd, discusses how managers can cope when they’re available 24/7. Mobile working is a particularly fashionable word in the world of business right now. Thanks to wireless technology, laptops, PDAs and the good old Blackberry, thousands […]
Job weighing heavily for UK workers
Half of the UK’s workforce has gained weight in their current job, recent research has revealed.A study into the eating habits of workers, by CareerBuilder.co.uk, has shown a slight difference in terms of gender, with 53 per cent of females and 47 per cent of males admitting to putting on weight whilst in their current […]
Paid holiday extension fails to grip workers
From 1 October 2007 the minimum paid holiday allowance rises from 20 to 24 days, including the eight bank holidays, yet over half of workers say that the extension will do nothing for productivity levels.This is according to a new study by market research outfit TNS. Shockingly, just 21 per cent are actually aware of […]
Bosses tighten dress codes with mini-skirts and flip-flop ban
Eighty-three per cent of businesses agree that flip-flops are not suitable work attire, following a recent ban on this type of footware at the White House.These are the findings of a survey into dress codes at work, which also found that 70 per cent of UK businesses would not allow shorts, while 88 per cent […]
Midwife demand soars as birthrate rises
The Royal College of Midwives believes that the NHS needs 5,000 more midwives to cope with demand over the next five years.Speaking at the Labour party conference, health secretary Alan Johnson gave a heavy hint that thousands more midwives are to be recruited after a review of the NHS to be published next month.Reported by […]