Opinion: A checklist for leadership
The debate over what makes a good leader is a long, controversial and passionate one. In this week’s opinion piece Claudine McClean, of Structured Training, offers her view. The leadership imperative is increasing. Organisations that don’t have a clear strategy for leadership development are putting themselves at a competitive disadvantage. Unfortunately, it doesn’t develop naturally […]
HR Tip: Publishing discipline and grievance procedures
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: How should we publish our discipline and grievance procedures? HR Tip: The contractual statement that you give to new employees must contain, among other things: Details of the rules, and discipline and […]
Soundbite: Minimum W-ageism
Perhaps it will come as a surprise to some employers, but the new age discrimination laws – due to come into force in October 2006 – are not just about protecting older people. Unlike age discrimination legislation in the US, the UK Regulations will protect younger workers from ageist discrimination too. It’s the hard knock […]
Extracts of a Life Coach: Raising the bar on self esteem
Emma Ranson Bellamy looks at the causes of low and high self esteem and sets a five minute test to evaluate levels of self-worth revealing just what can be done to raise the bar when needed. I have spoken to a number of coaches about the role of self esteem. Not one of them had […]
Hard(y) Law Talk: Illegal workers
Illegality at work! It sounds most odd … but it does happen. The day when the Department of Work and Pensions fraud officers arrive at dawn to check your employees’ status or the Criminal records Bureau checks return to haunt you, the cry of ‘oops! We did not have time to check that prevails but […]
News in Brief: The week in HR – It’s s’no’w fun for workers
Catch up on the week in HR including: apprenticeship figures exceed target, UK lags Europe in ‘engagement’ stakes, Scrooge traits rub off on the big boys, why it’s s’no’w fun for workers and why Brown is in the spotlight for rejecting the long-awaited Turner report on pensions. W/C 21/11/05Chancellor rejects long-awaited pension planGordon Brown has […]
Editor’s Comment: This calls for some genuinely expensive fancy dress
Grass skirts and ‘goody-two-shoes’ gongs are designed to kick-start workers’ days with some genial bonhomie; Editor’s Comment looks at the utter humiliation of a new suite of motivation tools. M&S declined to comment on the successes or otherwise of their new motivation programme. Mary Gober, an American motivational guru was tasked this summer with delivering […]
The Couch?! Takes a shower
Boardrooms are not the only places for brilliant ideas it seems. Alex Hart, the president of ATP Solutions tells Business 2.0 Nov [reported in the Times]: “My best ideas come to me in the shower. There’s always been something about dousing myself with hot water that calms the senses and gets those mental juices flowing.”So […]
Case Study: Driving productivity with mobile working
Implementing a mobile email solution has taken the Commission for Rural Communities out of the sticks and into the modern world; read on to find out why they did it and the benefits they’ve reaped since switching. About the Commission for Rural CommunitiesSet up on 1 April 2005, as an operating division of the Countryside […]
Communicate, communicate, communicate – but how?
Choosing the right method of communication is especially crucial for HR professionals who often have to deal with sensitive and delicate information. In any HR department, communicating important business information to employees can be a challenge. Firstly, the correct method of communication has to be selected: face-to-face, internal mail, fax, email or telephone? Then there […]
What’s the answer? Seasonal excesses
Jenny Hart gets expert advice this week on how to manage employment law problems associated with seasonal excesses. The question:Christmas is approaching and both formal and informal social events during the festive season offer abundant opportunities for alcohol misuse. I’d really like to hear colleagues’ views on whether this is a common problem and about […]
Man Friday wanted: Managing the recruitment game
Navigating the paths of recruitment advert ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ can be tricky with harsh punishments in store for those that stray; Peter Done, managing director of employment consultancy Peninsula explains. Employment law within the UK has developed so much that people in Britain have at least five rights which they could pursue to an Employment […]
CSR and beyond: When I’m 65 or will that be 67?
Leo Martin and Lisa Buchan of the GoodCorporation investigate the response to impending Age Discrimination legislation and find that bosses are forgetting birthdays left, right and centre. As the UK labour force lives and works longer, employers face a staggering range of age-related issues. A quarter of the UK population is already over 50 years […]
Review: Impro Learning
Title: Impro LearningAuthor: Paul Z JacksonPublisher: Gower ISBN: 0 566 0928 3Price: £45.00Reviewer: Claudine McCleanStructured Training LimitedImpro Learning takes an unusual approach to creating learning events. Paul Jackson draws on his experience as a journalist, radio producer and actor to pull together a training programme from getting through the door through design and development to […]
HR Zone Members Newswire #126 Innocent? Handling Reaction to An Employee On Bail
================================================================ HR Zone Members Newswire Issue 126 22 November 2005 http://www.hrzone.co.uk ================================================================ SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** 1. News in Brief: The week in HR – Why say ‘pay’ on Wednesday 2. The Couch?! Writes its festive wish list 3. What’s the answer? Constructive dismissal? 4. Any Answers answered: Changing bank […]
Ambitious living: Bouncing back
This article looks at steps you can take when a crisis hits. It is also aimed at those who, in their professional capacity, particularly within HR, may find themselves providing support to others facing a crisis in their life. Make sure you are living the life you want to live, instead of tolerating mediocrity that […]
Employers and tax credits – The end of the story – almost
Employers are now in their final months of paying tax credits for claimants, and by 5 April 2006 this sorry episode will be over, subject to resolving arithmetical problems when finalising the form P35. However, the termination of the obligation by employers seems to have brought problems of its own, as I found in my […]
HR Tip: Banning alcohol in the workplace
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: Can we ban alcohol from the workplace? If so, how? HR Tip: You can do so simply by making and publishing a rule. However consider the following points before rushing to print: […]
Feature: How to avoid burn-out
Under constant scrutiny and pressure to stay one step ahead, how do trainers stay fresh and avoid the all-too familiar burn-out? Mandy Green of The Matchett Group has developed some coping strategies to prevent burn-out and the resulting delegate apathy. When the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) asked its members whether they were […]
Bite-size learning: Age discrimination
Kick-starting a five-part, bite-sized series, Lucy Lewis, associate in the employment and incentives department of Lewis Silkin spells out just what employers can and cannot say in recruitment advertisements. Age Discrimination legislation comes into force on 1 October 2006. Following the introduction of the legislation it will be unlawful to discriminate against employees on the […]
