The games at play in your company’s culture – and how to stop them

white ceramic figurine on black table.

Since Eric Berne’s groundbreaking book Games People Play, leaders are more aware of the unconscious dynamics that influence the way people work together. In today’s context of hybrid working, multi-cultural teams and AI, are games still at play? If so, how do we spot them and what can we do about them? Ella Overshott, Partner at Pecan Partnership, examines these questions below.

Rethink performance: How overdone strengths cause teams to fail

lion lying on brown grass field during sunset

The usual narrative on performance fails to account for the contexts in which people work, and results in unnecessary conflict and blame. Quentin Millington of Marble Brook looks beyond ‘development areas’ toward ‘overdone strengths’, to reveal how HR can shift the conversation for the benefit of all.

Interview: How Tesla’s former DEI director, Kristen Kavanaugh, chose courage over fear

person skydiving on air during daytime, Tesla DEI director, courage over fear

Courageous leadership isn’t about saving the day. It’s about taking small steps to stand up for your beliefs, when retreating would be easier. In an interview with HRZone, Kristen Kavanaugh, former DEI director of Tesla, reveals her journey to resilience, her proudest moments at the automotive company, and how courageous leaders can respond to corporate pullbacks from DEI.

Five psychological safety challenges for hybrid workplaces

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Building psychological safety is a complex venture for any organisation. But the very nature of hybrid work makes it even more difficult to foster. Here, Jacqueline Towers of Hubstar presents five common barriers to speak-up cultures in hybrid settings – and how to remove these through small changes to everyday behaviours.

Beyond the strategy deck: How HR can turn sustainability promises into action

green plant

Your sustainability strategy looks impressive, but are your people systems actually delivering change? Professor Matthew Gitsham from Hult International Business School explores the critical disconnect between organisational promises and performance – and shows you exactly how HR can bridge that gap through culture, capability, and leadership transformation.

Return to office: How not to upset almost everyone

A woman appears stressed while working on laptop. Return to office.

With return-to-office (RTO) mandates back in the news, Quentin Millington of Marble Brook explains why there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ strategy for where to work. Here, he outlines eight questions HR leaders can pose to their organisations to encourage meaningful thinking, rapid decisions and practical action.

The science behind what makes or breaks a team

men rowing boat

Teams don’t fail because they lack talent – they fail because of invisible choices made every day. From the split-second decision to speak up or stay silent, to whether someone steps forward or holds back. Here, Perry Timms and Kirsten Buck of PTHR reveal the science behind what really drives team success.

Lessons from the depths: What OceanGate teaches us about toxic leadership

yellow and black gas lamp, OceanGate

The OceanGate investigation revealed that toxic leadership played a crucial role in a preventable tragedy. But these destructive patterns exist in workplaces everywhere. Here, occupational psychologist Fran Pestana explains how gaslighting and manipulation operate – and their profound psychological and commercial costs.

Money versus people, the conflict ChatGPT cannot resolve

ChatGPT, a cell phone sitting on top of a laptop computer

As OpenAI restructures to chase profits, raising doubts about the firm’s commitment to AI for the benefit of all, we see writ large the unremitting conflict between self-interest and stakeholder value. Quentin Millington of Marble Brook makes sense of the complex dynamic, offering ideas to quieten this near-universal distraction from good work.

Dangerous HR liaisons: Threats, knives and throuples

brown coated monkey on branch: shocked by Dangerous HR liaisons

There’s a common misconception that HR’s role is limited to hiring and firing, but there is so much more to it than that. And many of the situations that an HR professional finds themselves dealing with are things that you’d never consider, even in your wildest dreams.

Executive bonuses: Rewarding failure or failing to reward?

depth of field photography of man playing chess, representing the executive bonus debate

As scrutiny intensifies on executive bonuses in public service firms, Simon Cook of Innecto Reward Consulting unpacks the thorny debate. Using Thames Water as a case in point, he explores whether tighter regulation is the answer or if a more balanced approach to reward could protect both public trust and business competitiveness.

Have better impact: Three imperatives for thoughtful leaders

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Through work, we all have an impact on colleagues, customers or society. How can we ensure we use this power to good effect? Quentin Millington of Marble Brook looks at the value of being ’thoughtful’, and what three central imperatives of thoughtfulness mean in practice.