Blog: Is HR really out of touch?
The study by Kenexa reported on HRZone last week has some interesting findings but I doubt it comes as a huge shock to HR. HR has a massive role to play in building a high-performing culture and contributing to the bottom line – but at the moment so many HR professionals are managing the nuts […]
UK employment trends see more self-employed
Almost 4.2 million people were registered as self-employed over the three months to April, the highest figure since records began in 1992, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). That number also represents a rise of 84,000 over the previous three month, a surge which appears to reflect the difficulty of gaining permanent roles […]
Blog: who holds the real keys to the organisation anyway?
What is the narrative of your movie reel? The rank-and-file workforce had weathered layoffs, had their commissions slashed, and on top of that, their salaries had been frozen over the past five years. However, the chief executive’s decision was this — let’s have the senior management team take a lavish trip down to Bermuda and […]
Expert voice: reaping the value of soft benefits
It’s a basic fact of human nature that we all like to feel valued and nurtured. But with tight budgets making it increasingly difficult to reward staff with big pay rises, organisations are, in many instances, looking at offering so-called soft benefits instead. And office perks such as sporting activities, gym membership and in-house […]
Beecroft fire at will proposals stung by dismissal
Fire at will proposals proposed by the Beecroft review look to be dismissed themselves following a ‘call for evidence’ by the government. Venture Capitalist Adrian Beecroft had proposed allowing employers to fire staff without explanation in return for a basic pay-off. Out of 135 responses by businesses, 38% called for the plan to […]
In a Nutshell: Five ways to structure your presentation effectively
How many dull presentations have you sat through – or worse still, delivered? To ensure that this awful situation doesn’t become a reality, it’s very important to structure your argument so that it has every chance of really engaging the audience, regardless of topic. Therefore, in order to prepare an effective presentation, it’s useful to […]
In a Nutshell: Five considerations to help boost staff innovation
Although a much over-used term, ‘innovation’ means to invent or apply new ideas, methods, approaches and the like. Although it sounds simple enough, creating an environment in which employees feel empowered, engaged and trusting enough to let their creative juices flow freely is easier said than done. So here Joris Luijke, vice president of […]
Cable’s plan to pay off unwanted employees must carry a duty of care, warn experts
Employers will be able to offer settlement agreements before a formal dispute arises and will be legally protected from this offer being used as evidence in an unfair dismissal tribunal case, under new legislation proposed by Business Secretary Vince Cable. In his opening speech at the second reading of the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill, […]
Employee engagement on the rise?
Employee engagement is back on the up and up after years of decline, according to a new study from consultancy firm Aon Hewitt. The consultancy’s 2012 Global Engagement report analysed the engagement trends of more than 3,100 organisations representing 9.7 million employees worldwide. It found that 58% of employees were engaged in 2011, up from […]
How to communicate effectively with hard-to-reach workers
In tricky economic times, effective internal communications can have a vital role to play in helping to keep staff morale up and anxiety down. All too often these days, however, communication activity can end up being focused almost exclusively online, creating the risk that workers without access to the latest social media tool or even […]
Blog: How to wear someone down when applying for your job vacancy
In the last post, we described how jobs are often reserved for someone who is a friend of an executive. In the case described, the post of communications chief was reserved for a crony of the Mayor of London. Some of you might have qualms about this. You might feel it’s wrong to waste […]
In a Nutshell: Five top tips for staying stress-free
Stress is now the leading cause of long-term sickness absence in the workplace. A survey published recently by the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development and private health insurance company, Simplyhealth, revealed that nearly two-fifths of the 592 UK employers questioned had seen an increase in stress-related absence among their employees over the last year. […]
Heathrow: Ensuring staff actions line up with corporate values
I think it was Napoleon who said that Britain was a nation of shopkeepers. It’s certainly true that we know a thing or two about queuing – it’s pretty much a national past time. So it seems strange that we could get it so wrong at Heathrow Airport. It’s not as if it’s something […]
Christina’s Counsel: How can I make my workplace more family-friendly?
The challenge If you are struggling to get the best people to come and work for you, have a high rate of unexplained absence or believe that your employees aren’t giving their best, not least due to stress because their work and domestic lives conflict, it may be worth reviewing how family-friendly your workplace culture […]
Blog: The employee impact of a recognition desert – survey
Recognise This! – The only qualifier for needing recognition in the workplace is being a member of the human race. Last week I had the pleasure of co-presenting with Thad Peterson the results of the Globoforce Spring 2012 Mood Tracker survey (which tracks the perceptions of full-time, currently employed U.S. workers). Now available on […]
Five reasons why HR should adopt social media
Over recent years, social media has crept into the workings of many a business department, and HR is no exception. Some HR professionals have been using social media as part of their day-to-day activities for a while, but those that haven’t are likely to need to do so in the near future in order to […]
News: Lessons from IBM in going social
With the latest IDC figures predicting that the social enterprise market will reach $200 billion by 2013, it looks like social is set to become an increasingly important part of your business, according to IBM‘s vice president of social business evangelism and sales. Speaking at the Social Business Strategy Summit in London yesterday, Sandy Carter […]
In a Nutshell: Five tips for doing an MBA while working full-time
Stephanie Murphy, currently an interim HR business partner at EDF Energy, has just graduated from the Open University with an MBA. She acknowledges that the things she learned while undertaking the course have proved invaluable in her work as an HR and business professional. But completing a qualification like this while in full-time employment […]
Blog: Three steps to help you improve your work-life balance
When I am coaching clients in the corporate world, I often come across a common complaint: “I have lots of good intentions, but I just can’t seem to find the time to create a better work/life balance”. Unfortunately, this is a result of working in a fast paced career environment. We know we need […]
News: Workplace disenchantment hits “crisis” levels
With disenchantment in the workplace hitting “crisis” levels, it is incumbent on HR professionals to find new ways to engage staff and compensate for below-inflation wage increases that are continuing to squeeze household incomes. According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s Labour Market Outlook survey of more than 1,000 employers, some 51% were […]
