Beyond the strategy deck: How HR can turn sustainability promises into action
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
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
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
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.
Culture is the strategy: Why the most innovative leaders are rewriting the rulebook
A good culture is your competitive edge in a world of disruption. But how do you get there? Learn from leaders who know what works, and what doesn’t, at our 2025 Culture Pioneers Leadership Forum on 16th October, in London.
Money versus people, the conflict ChatGPT cannot resolve
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.
Three ways to boost workplace connection: No mandates required
Workplace leaders are discovering that forcing in-person social connection through mandates often destroys the very culture they’re trying to build. Here, Jacqueline Towers of Hubstar explores what to do instead.
From cricket fields to coaching wisdom: Roland Butcher on what makes great leaders
As the first Black cricketer to play for England, Roland Butcher has learned a thing or two about leadership, coaching, and personal growth. Translating these lessons from the pitch to the workplace, Debra Corey of Step It Up HR shares five standout tips from Roland’s inspirational journey.
Assemble your inner hero: Leadership lessons from Marvel’s Fantastic Four
What can superheroes teach us about leadership? Following Marvel’s latest release, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Mark Leisegang of Insights reveals how to unlock your inner powers of self-awareness, fluidity, and collaboration.
Dangerous HR liaisons: Threats, knives and throuples
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?
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.
Here comes the Sun: How to boost productivity and wellbeing this summer
The UK has already hit it’s third heatwave of the summer. How can employers keep productivity flowing while also allowing extra flexibility? Five HR experts share their tips.
Have better impact: Three imperatives for thoughtful leaders
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.
What’s the conversation you’re avoiding?
It’s natural to want to avoid a tough conversation, but silence has a cost. By choosing Catalytic Conversations, you can learn to spark change that matters.
Don’t let culture derail your merger and acquisition (M&A): Five steps for HR leaders
Culture clashes are one of the top reasons M&As fail – yet many leaders still overlook this critical factor. Ella Overshott, Partner at Pecan Partnership, shares five practical steps HR leaders can take to ensure cultural integration drives, rather than derails, deal success.
AI layoffs pose risk: Build strength, not weakness
Last week the chief executive of BT Allison Kirkby said the group’s ambitions to harness the “full potential of AI” may involve more layoffs than her predecessor had outlined in 2023. Here, Quentin Millington of Marble Brook considers four ways leaders can ensure artificial intelligence strengthens – rather than weakens – their team’s value.
Healthy CEOs, hurting workforces: What’s behind the 48% wellbeing gap?
New global research finds that CEOs report positive wellbeing at a rate nearly 48% higher than employees. In this piece, HRZone’s managing editor Becky Norman explores the stark imbalance, the barriers undermining employee wellbeing, and how HR can help remove them.
Pride amid DEI pushback: Why HR must show what allyship really means
Pride flags are flying this month, as they are every June. But in this period of anti-DEI rhetoric, your team is watching – now more than ever – how your organisation responds. Kerry Nicholson, Chief of Operations for Brand Champions, explores the feelings of exclusion and exhaustion felt by the LGBTQ+ community today, and how organisations can be genuine allies amid increasing DEI resistance.
The authenticity trap: When authentic leadership goes too far
Authentic leadership is often treated as a non-negotiable ideal, praised as a hallmark of trustworthiness, courage and clarity. But what happens when it crosses the line into self-indulgence? Lisa Stone, head of coaching at Right Management, brings a pragmatic, values-driven lens to a pressing question: can being “authentic” go too far?
Is giving an opinion no longer acceptable?
If nearly a third of people don’t feel safe taking risks or sharing thoughts with colleagues, are different viewpoints and ideas outside of the box truly valued anymore?