Get comfortable with changing the world of work – now’s the time to act
The world of work needs to change and in a series of articles over the last few weeks, I’ve explained why and how. Change is always a challenge to introduce and implement, and the transformational change that I advocate, which really alters outcome for organisations and their stakeholders, can be a major undertaking. Why […]
Our journey towards Living Wage accreditation
The first week of November is Living Wage Week, a UK-wide celebration of the Living Wage and the employers that are committed to it. It’s also an opportunity to raise awareness; it’s a subject that’s featured prominently in the papers over the last few months, but only 1,700 business out of the UK’s 4.9 million […]
Is it time we treated candidates as consumers?
Much has been written on the subject of employer branding in recent years, especially in the context of its importance for successful talent attraction and acquisition. We know that acute competition for skills (particularly those in short supply) necessitates that HR and resourcing teams be ever more creative in their approach to finding and engaging […]
Engagement myth #2: engagement is only about emotional connection
While an engaged employee might have more of an emotional connection to their employer, this doesn’t necessarily mean that an employee who has that emotional connection is also engaged. In fact, if you only have an emotional connection with your employees, and you have failed to engage them, you are running a huge risk to your […]
First human capital standard sees value in people
People are the one asset every organization has, and the only asset which can make or break a business. In fact it is now more widely acknowledged that the best way to become a successful business is to have a successful workforce. By successful, we mean happy, fulfilled and valued enough to stay in their jobs and […]
Five lessons from Investors in People award winners
Many businesses benefit from investing in their people, but we believe that the best of the best should be publicly recognised for their efforts. That is why Investors in People (IIP) holds an annual awards ceremony that celebrates the companies who manage and develop their staff most effectively. Through these awards, we aim to create […]
How well do the FTSE100 report on their people?
Valuing the largest intangible asset, human capital, is at the forefront of most investors’ minds. It is the hardest asset to quantify yet is integral to corporate competitiveness, as it is something your competitors will find hard to replicate. At True North Analytics, we put the top 10 listed London Stock Exchange (LSE) companies to […]
Exploring employee engagement at money.co.uk
money.co.uk recently ranked #7 best small business on the Great Place to Work Best Workplaces list 2015. In this interview we ask their founder and MD Chris Morling some questions on their culture and why they think they ranked so highly. What’s the fundamental reason you ranked so highly on the Best Workplaces list this […]
Why a strong sense of purpose is good for business
Purpose has been defined as “a stable and generalised intention to accomplish something that is at once meaningful to the self and of consequence to the world beyond the self.”[1] For most of us, purpose in life has its own very personal significance but usually also involves a sense of our goals contributing something positive […]
Exploring employee engagement at Admiral
Admiral Group recently ranked #4 on the Great Place to Work Best Workplaces list 2015. In this interview we ask their Head of People Services Ceri Assiratti some questions on their culture and why they think they ranked so highly. What’s the fundamental reason you ranked so highly on the Best Workplaces list this year? […]
Can gamification enhance your attraction strategy?
The term ‘gamification’ is one which is widely misunderstood. Many associate it with gaming – conjuring up images of teenage boys playing ‘shoot em up’ on the latest console in their bedrooms. In fact recent research from Penna found that 89% of consumers didn’t know what gamification was. The actual definition is this: The concept […]
Why engaging the employee is great for the customer
It is well chronicled that the UK isn’t close to the top of international league tables on productivity and employee engagement. The Engage for Success website notes the sobering statistics: ninth out of the 12 largest economies for engagement; 15% below average for productivity. This is despite the research that demonstrates the fairly obvious and […]
“Purpose-driven organisations far outperform traditional for-profit businesses.”
Andrew Hewitt is the founder of GameChangers500, which profiles the world’s top For-Benefit businesses that focus on maximising benefit to people and planet rather than an all-encompassing focus on profit. Andrew was led to the creation of the GameChangers500 list when he asks himself the question, “Why is it that we define success in business through […]
What does it take to become an accredited Top Employer?
Achieving ‘Top Employer’ status for the third year running is something of a coup for a company, not least the HR team and wider business that helped make it happen. On the route to success however, the process is not always an easy one, yet through the challenges and the highs and lows, it is […]
“You often get change done to you. That never feels very engaging.”
This is an interview with Mark Henn, Head of Department, Asset Development, Transport for London and Drew Barritt, Lead Trainer, A2B Excellence. Transport for London won the Public Sector award at the 2014 Employee Engagement Awards. If you had to pick a reason why you think you won the award, what do you think it was? Mark […]
“Our next challenge is retaining new talent.”
Regine Buettner is EVP HR Global & Europe at DHL Express. She is an international HR executive with over 20 years of experience. Prior to joining DHL in 2007 she was Senior Vice President HR at Deutsche Telekom and, before that, Senior Vice President HR of T-Systems. 1) What are your biggest challenges now around attracting and retaining […]
“We are really big on continuous improvement,” says Las Iguanas’ Angela Da Silva
This is an interview with Angela Da Silva, HR Manager at restaurant chain Las Iguanas, who won the Reward & Recognition Award at the 2014 Employee Engagement Awards. In this interview we delve into the company’s approach to engagement and tease out key learnings to help others bring an evidence-based, joined-up approach to their engagement […]
The dark side of zero hours contracts
No names, no job titles, no companies. HR After Dark features totally anonymised opinion pieces from HR professionals, consultants and industry commentators. No holds barred, no censorship, nothing but raw opinions on issues that matter to HR. When the lights go down, HR After Dark comes out to play. See it all here first. Want […]
Make your technically competent staff more customer-focused
Having clearly defined roles, processes and procedures is great, but what happens when a focus on internal processes and procedures begins to impact the customer experience? ABB, the global power and automation company, discovered from its Net Promoter Score that although its customers continued to rate the company’s products and services as best in class […]
Are your employees your brand advocates?
Building and maintaining brand loyalty is the ‘Golden Chalice’ for businesses all over the world – without it, businesses lack identity; customers and staff feel no loyalty and trade is lost.If you are to succeed over time and avoid being a flash in the pan, it is absolutely essential that everyone who comes into contact […]
