How to grow your own data scientists: a practical guide for the data-driven C-Suite
Demand for data and analytics skills is increasing, but existing leadership teams admit they often struggle with this. How can organisations upskill their existing teams while ensuring their future workforce is prepared? Data today is the fuel driving the modern business world. It therefore stands to reason that the ability to read and speak the […]
Employee engagement: how HR leaders can restore employees’ faith in career opportunities
The key to retaining talent is to offer continued career progression, but how can HR do this in the face of increased economic pressure and a volatile trading environment? Nearly half (45.6%) of UK employees who departed their jobs at the end of 2018 reported they left due to a lack of future career opportunities […]
Supporting the business isn’t strategic HR – people centricity is
HR practitioners sometimes report being conflicted about whether to align with the business to be more strategic or to better support their people. However, it is actually much more useful to see these poles as a paradox rather than a dilemma. That is, we need to do both – to focus on the business and […]
Taking communication offline to improve workplace relationships and productivity
Are you a slave to your inbox? Take part in the Miticom Friday challenge to uncover the value of putting your technology aside to have more genuine conversations. I have a challenge for you. Next Friday, while you’re at work, don’t send any emails. Not one. Every time you share some information, it has to […]
Recruitment: five problems with competency-based interviewing and a few solutions
It’s time to give traditional competency-based interviewing the sack. Here’s how to recruit better using more in-depth, conversational techniques. Most of us are familiar with competency-based interviewing, having either been on the receiving end of it as an interviewee, or as the person asking the questions. Questions like these are among the most common: […]
De-stressing the business: getting managers and workloads in check
Stressful working environments harm employee wellbeing and productivity. To get a handle on this, businesses need to address their management style and how they approach workloads. A recent CIPD study has revealed that poor management and heavy workloads are the biggest causes of workplace stress. These findings will raise some important questions for businesses, but […]
Feel the benefit: why it’s time to embrace the rewards and benefits technology sector
In the past, technology to support employee benefits initiatives has often fallen short. But today a new breed of reward platforms has emerged that frees up HR time and improves take-up. Is it therefore time for practitioners to renew their faith in modern benefits systems? Cast your mind back ten, even five, years ago and […]
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 […]
