CEO Insight: Stinkyink’s John Sollars on staff motivation and development
Stinkyink CEO John Sollars prioritizes staff development over rigid performance goals, allowing employees to grow through varied responsibilities and mentoring. He emphasizes pushing team members beyond their comfort zones, citing success stories of employees advancing into management roles and discovering new career directions.
Blog: How to offer a benefits package that staff actually want
Creating an effective employee benefits package requires understanding what your staff actually values. While employers often prioritize pensions, younger employees prioritize bonuses and flexibility, while older workers focus on retirement savings. Tailoring benefits to your workforce’s age and preferences improves retention and engagement.
Let the Games commence – But make sure you plan for them
As the Olympics approach, businesses face significant challenges from travel disruption, staffing shortages, and holiday requests. Planning ahead is essential to minimize impact, with research showing companies that prepare effectively can boost revenues and employee morale.
News: Pay and promotion not based on merit, believe UK staff
Two-thirds of UK employees doubt that pay and promotion are merit-based, according to a Towers Watson survey of 2,628 workers. The study found that 66% see no clear link between performance and pay, while only 32% believe their employer promotes the most qualified staff, leaving many feeling stuck in their roles.
In a Nutshell: Five tips to motivate yourself and others
An HR director shares five practical tips for boosting motivation at work, inspired by a children’s book about a dog who can fly when happy. Her advice emphasizes finding joy in your role, building authentic relationships, and inspiring others through storytelling and engagement.
Blog: The importance of seeing the why in what we do
Understanding the “why” behind tasks is crucial for accountability and performance. When people see purpose in their work, they’re more motivated to meet deadlines and deliver quality results, rather than remaining resistant and making excuses about capability or capacity.
Blog: Fact – Improve management practice by 1% or hire 25% more staff
Research shows that improving management practices by just one point is worth as much as hiring 25% more staff or increasing capital investment by 65%. The key isn’t knowing what good management looks like—it’s actually implementing performance planning, coaching, and evaluation consistently.
Blog: How to boost employee engagement
Boost employee engagement by focusing on recognition, organizational reputation, and performance management. Aon Hewitt research shows that positive reinforcement, employer branding, and clear performance objectives are key drivers that increase employee motivation to go above and beyond.
Talent Spot: Gill Crowther, HR director at Nominet
Gill Crowther, HR director at Nominet, built her career across Ford, GlaxoSmithKline, and Microsoft before launching her own management consultancy. She joined the .uk domain registry operator in 2007, focusing on creating an engaging workplace where employees feel both challenged and valued.
Blog: The Olympics – Learning lessons in flexible working
RBS and UK government agencies are allowing flexible working during the Olympics to boost productivity amid transport disruptions. Despite criticism, the policy highlights a crucial lesson: organizational success depends on trust between managers and employees, whether working remotely or in-office.
Book review: Engaged: Unleashing your organization’s potential through employee engagement
Employee engagement is a shared responsibility between employer and employee, according to this comprehensive review of a book that explores the four key elements driving engagement while emphasizing trust and treating workers as human beings rather than production units.
Blog: Making the abstract real – Living workplace values
Company values only matter when employees understand how to apply them in their daily work. Many organizations display their values on badges and materials, but fail to help staff actually live them through concrete behaviors and recognition, leaving abstract ideals meaningless without practical application.
Blog: Why a balanced boardroom is a better boardroom
Research shows that diverse boardrooms with balanced male and female leadership improve business performance. Studies reveal that women bring distinct leadership strengths like empathy and authentic engagement, which complement traditional styles and enhance organizational decision-making and outcomes.
In a Nutshell: Five considerations when creating a welcome pack for new hires
Creating an effective welcome pack for new hires requires clear objectives, input from across your organization, and messaging that reflects your brand’s true culture. Separate essential information from nice-to-know content, prioritize what matters most to new starters, and ensure your tone authentically represents your company’s values and personality.
Blog: An anti-engagement manifesto
Discover why traditional management tactics like threats, micromanagement, and withholding support actively destroy employee engagement and motivation. This anti-engagement guide reveals what NOT to do if you want a committed, empowered workforce.
Editor’s Letter: The art of engagement
UK workforce engagement remains concerningly low, with only 43% reporting positive relationships with managers. Research shows engaged employees are significantly more productive and take less sick leave, making manager support critical for HR professionals seeking to boost staff performance and organizational results.
Blog: 5 ways to get creative with fundraising in the workplace
Discover five creative workplace fundraising ideas beyond traditional bake sales, from office boot fairs and product sales to special events and walk-a-thons. These strategies boost morale while raising money for charity.
Talking Point: Do HR pros need to get back to basics?
HR professionals may have lost sight of their core mission by over-processing employee engagement models and outsourcing human instinct to technology. Rather than being seen as talent developers, HR experts are now viewed as regulation administrators and redundancy specialists, requiring a return to relationship-focused basics.
Blog: Is HR really out of touch?
A Kenexa study reveals HR professionals often lack time to deeply connect with employees due to managing operational demands. To rebuild trust and impact performance, HR must be more visible and intentional about engaging with staff through regular interactions and floor presence.
UK employment trends see more self-employed
The UK recorded 4.2 million self-employed workers in April 2012, the highest since records began in 1992. The rise reflects difficulty finding permanent roles, with more people taking short-term work as nannies and cleaners rather than launching new enterprises.
