Modern leadership: is neuroscience the solution to toxic leadership?
A toxic work environment is detrimental to workers’ mental health and productivity, so how can you recognise the signs and reform your office culture into a healthy and happy one? It’s all too easy to ignore a toxic culture and dismiss low level grumbling as the unfounded complaints of an insignificant minority. It’s also common […]
Three ways to help solve the HR productivity problem
How can HR professionals improve their technology use, workflow and communications to enhance their productivity? Recent research has revealed that HR workers spend seven hours a week manually checking, responding to and keeping up with different HR applications – the equivalent of 367 hours a year. With these workflow interruptions, it comes as no surprise […]
AI for recruitment: can robots really offer HR teams complete bias-free hiring?
While AI offers many possibilities for the HR sector, it is problematic when it comes to bias-free recruitment. Artificial intelligence (AI) is seemingly ubiquitous these days, with potential uses for it rearing their head in pretty much every business sector, and talent management is no exception. The latest development in this regard has been an […]
Mental health awareness: spotting the signs and starting the conversation
Two in three managers feel confident promoting wellbeing, but less than half of staff think managers would spot their mental health problems. For the last three years, we’ve been delivering our Workplace Wellbeing Index, a benchmark of best policy and practice when it comes to employers promoting good mental health among their employees. This year, […]
Wellbeing at work: why we need a culture shift, not just a policy change
Wellbeing isn’t just a ‘nice to have’ – it should be a core part of your employee strategy. Here, we look at the business drivers for this and how to implement good wellbeing practices in your organisation. Bereavement, sleep loss, relationship issues, stress, anxiety and depression – these are just some of the common mental […]
Nudging: what HR professionals should understand about behavioural science
Getting people to change their behaviour or make certain choices requires a ‘nudge’ – but how can HR teams make sure that they are not only nudging effectively, but ethically too? You may have noticed that there is a buzz around ‘nudging’, or behavioural economics as it is more formally called. You will doubtless have […]
Employee benefits: why annual leave is an untapped rewards opportunity
Annual leave is seen as a ‘given’, and yet increasing numbers of employees are not making the best use of it. By taking a fresh look at standard leave, employers can help turn it into a benefit that will inspire and motivate employees. Recently Ernst & Young Australia announced it was offering its employees six […]
The death of hierarchy: why open source leadership is key to business success
A new era of open source leadership has arisen and businesses would be wise to take a leaf from the book of the Silicon Valley technology hub in its approach to humble, transparent leadership that nurtures creativity. The old-fashioned, ‘stick management’ style of management is dead. For decades, companies have been founded upon rigid, hierarchical […]
Behavioural excellence: an essential quality in high performance leaders?
How do certain behavioural qualities set top leaders apart? Charlotte Dennis and Sarah Wall, of leadership development training company, LeadEQ, explore… Technical excellence is a given for all senior leaders, yet when it comes to soft skills many reach a tipping point in their career when they find that they do not have the capabilities […]
Why data will underpin the transformation of modern leadership
Most business processes rely on a certain amount of data to operate efficiently, but increasingly it’s the leadership function that is being transformed by a more data-driven approach – and this can only be a good thing. Organisations have become hugely data driven around their finances and operations and more recently around their customer processes. Data […]
The problem with modern leadership: diversity, inclusion and the ‘hero’ complex
The world is facing a leadership crisis. We need to radically refocus the way we think about leadership to focus less on the individual and more on collective responsibility. Only a diverse and inclusive approach to leadership can solve the mess we’re in. How many times have you heard someone say, “diversity and inclusion are […]
Three trends gleaned from gender pay gap reporting round two
We’re all aware by now that the second round of gender pay gap reporting has brought disappointing results. But by investigating the data a bit deeper, useful insights have emerged as to how employers can put their best foot forward as we head into the third year of reporting. April 1st marked the second annual […]
Wellbeing initiatives: are employers expected to be life coaches?
Workplace wellbeing initiatives have boomed in recent years, but are employers going too far in what they are offering? Organisations are not responsible for managing every aspect of each employee’s life, yet the move towards nanny territory is fast approaching. Employee wellbeing is becoming a more prominent feature on organisations’ agendas. What used to be […]
Wellbeing at work: how self-care and success work hand-in-hand
It is undeniable that our outlook on life and our interaction with those around us has a direct effect on our experience at work. We so often hear of the importance of taking better care of ourselves, both physically and mentally, and yet putting this into practice at work might seem unfeasible. Faced with the […]
How can HR meet challenges along the many routes to future work?
If, as an HR professional, you believe the often used quip ‘one size does not fit all’, then accepting the need for multiple paths, bridges and contingencies to future work should not be that difficult. In part three of this series on crossing the chasms to future work, Mike Hammer – aka ‘The Gig Doctor’ – […]
Talent retention: giving employees what they want (part two)
In the race to attract and retain talent, employers need to consider their company culture and how others perceive it. Here’s how to read their responses and make the changes needed to make your organisation a great place to work. My last article looked at some of the aspects of working environments that put off prospective […]
Talent attraction and retention: what employees want, what they really, really want (part one)
UK employers are facing a talent shortage, which is making it harder to attract and retain employees. If your employee turnover is concerning, here’s what you need to consider to make positive changes. Most of us don’t start a job thinking that it or the company we will work for sucks. Despite this, the overall […]
Soft skills: how to increase empathy in business
Greater empathy within organisations has been linked to improved business performance, so isn’t it time we all injected a bit more empathy into our day-to-day business practices? Digital transformation is a bandwagon many companies continue to try and jump on. Last year alone, a purported $1.3 trillion was spent globally on digital projects. Despite this, […]
HR technology: how smart feedback transforms employee engagement and retention
The traditional approach to gathering employee feedback is no longer fit for purpose in today’s ‘always on’ work culture. It’s time we reinvented this process for the modern world. With a strengthening global economy and unemployment at record lows, today’s employees have abundant options when it comes to where they want to work and why […]
The future of HR: three things companies must do to attract and retain top talent
As more and more elements of our everyday working lives become automated, nurturing the ‘human’ element in the workplace has become increasingly important. The way we work has changed, putting a greater emphasis on how organisations interact with their employees than ever before. With rapid developments in technology such as AI, and an increase in […]
