Life Coach at Large: Going round in circles with work/life balance
Life coach Emma Ranson Bellamy explores how to achieve true work/life balance by evaluating the roles you play and setting intentional goals for your personal life, not just your career. She argues that neglecting personal commitments like family time and self-care can lead to resentment and burnout, making a personal audit essential for sustainable wellbeing.
How Did I Get Here? Cathy Wilcher, HR Director, CFS…continued
CFS Executive HR Director Cathy Wilcher discusses whether HR can survive outsourcing, how the profession’s skill set has evolved since 1986, and why continuous learning is essential for HR career success.
How Did I Get Here? Cathy Wilcher, HR Director, CFS
Cathy Wilcher, former Abbey HR Director, joins CFS as HR Director and Executive Committee member. She discusses how strategic HR linked to business strategy, strong leadership, and four core people practices—attracting talent, providing vision, encouraging learning, and recognizing excellence—create competitive advantage and employer of choice status.
News in Brief: Motor-mouths lose out at interview … continued
Poor health significantly impacts UK workplace productivity, with over half of managers admitting to being unproductive for at least 20% of their working time due to illness. Research reveals 38% struggle to concentrate, yet most managers fail to report symptoms or implement adequate occupational health policies despite recognizing the importance of employee wellness.
News in Brief: Motor-mouths lose out at interview
Employers are increasingly turned off by overly talkative job candidates, according to new research. This week’s HR news roundup also covers the government’s further education White Paper emphasizing employer-focused skills training, industrial unrest at the Learning and Skills Council over planned job cuts, and findings on workplace web misuse.
Comment: The DC pensions risk … continued
Many employers lack adequate governance and monitoring of their defined contribution pension plans, failing to assess benefit adequacy or identify which workforce segments face the greatest risks. Successful DC management requires clear strategic objectives, regular performance measurement, and recognition that DC plans need active oversight to function effectively.
Comment: The DC pensions risk
Defined contribution pension schemes shift investment risk entirely to employees, but most lack the knowledge and resources to manage adequate retirement savings. Without proper support and strategies like automatic enrolment and higher contributions, employers risk facing workforce retention problems and union backlash when employees cannot afford to retire.
HR Happy, HR Horror
This week’s HR roundup celebrates left-handed men earning significantly more over their lifetimes and highlights new workplace noise protection regulations, while cautioning about the dangers of clock changes on road safety and crime rates.
CIPD qualification: Is it necessary?
CIPD qualification is increasingly preferred by HR employers but not strictly necessary. While it offers theoretical knowledge and more job opportunities, practical experience and industry background may be equally valuable, and the qualification requires significant time and cost investment.
What’s the answer? Confidentiality – Controlling the office gossip (continued)
Managing office gossip about confidential information requires reinforcing obligations through staff reminders and, if informal approaches fail, pursuing formal disciplinary action. Employers should follow proper procedures, issuing formal warnings for breaches while documenting concerns clearly.
What’s the answer? Confidentiality – Controlling the office gossip
Employers concerned about office gossip and confidentiality breaches should focus on disciplinary action rather than new agreements. Legal experts recommend reminding employees of existing confidentiality clauses and warning that further violations could result in written warnings or termination, following proper procedures.
CIPD qualification: Is it necessary? … continued
CIPD qualifications can be obtained through university-accredited courses or professional assessment of competence for experienced professionals. While CIPD membership provides a competitive advantage for HR careers, its necessity depends on individual experience level and career goals.
Colborn’s Corner: Budgeting for success? … continued
HR teams should proactively review employee benefits annually to ensure they align with business needs and maximize their value. Rather than waiting for management questions, scheduling a dedicated HR budget review helps identify which benefits deserve continued investment and how to communicate them effectively to employees.
Colborn’s Corner: Budgeting for success?
Gordon Brown’s recent budget reveals lessons for HR teams managing employee benefits. Tax-dependent benefits strategies risk vulnerability when tax regimes change, making it crucial to evaluate whether benefits provide genuine value beyond tax relief, while annual benefit reviews can help organizations identify which offerings truly support workforce priorities.
HRD 2006: Why go?
HRD 2006 is the largest and most influential learning and development conference, featuring keynote speakers like Sir Bob Geldof and expert sessions on coaching, leadership, and training trends. The event brings together professionals from across sectors to explore how organizations are evolving their approach to people development.
The Changing Role of the Trainer
Modern trainers must evolve from classroom instructors to collaborative learning facilitators who support knowledge development across the organization. Success now requires building relationships, influencing skills, and understanding business needs rather than relying solely on traditional training delivery methods.
Linking Training to Business Needs: The Secrets of HMRC Revealed…continued
Learn how HMRC aligns staff training with business strategy and manages learning transfer in the workplace. Discover key insights on upskilling employees during organizational change and supporting continuous development through manager-led coaching.
Linking Training to Business Needs: The Secrets of HMRC Revealed. By Sarah Fletcher
HMRC’s Head of Learning explains how the organization aligns its training strategy directly with business needs, measures training success through performance indicators, and tackles challenges from departmental mergers and changing service delivery requirements.
Modelling Excellence: With NLP
NLP modelling reveals how high achievers manage their thinking and attention to achieve excellence. By observing successful people’s mental strategies—rather than asking them to explain—we can discover and replicate their winning approaches in sports, professional life, and relationships.
HR Tip: Re-engagement following redundancy
When re-employing a redundant employee, you cannot recover their previous redundancy payment and must treat them as a new hire. Their continuity of service restarts from the date of re-employment, not their original start date.
