The stability paradox: When good retention hides disengagement
While retention is up, engagement isn’t. With a new workforce behaviour called ‘job hugging’ taking hold, Adrian Seligman says HR leaders need to ask if people are staying because they want to, or because they’re scared to leave.
Age is more than just a number: It’s your greatest untapped asset
While most organisations say they value experience, their hiring decisions, development programmes and redundancy data tell a different story. Psychologist Lucy Standing explains how challenging the status quo will open up value and innovation.
What the OECD reveals about a world moving beyond pay secrecy
The latest OECD evidence confirms what Gethin Nadin has argued for years: pay transparency is not a regulatory imposition, it’s a cultural shift that legislation is only now catching up with.
Rethinking menopause support: Moving beyond policy to deliver real workplace impact
As more employers look to support women across longer and more varied careers, Sarah Taylor shares how to move beyond awareness and towards meaningful healthcare support.
Psychological safety across the employee journey: Where HR shapes the conditions that matter
Psychological safety is widely discussed yet remains unevenly experienced. Kirsten Buck and Perry Timms introduce a new 10-part series from Helen Sanderson on deliberately building safety across every stage of the employee journey.
Shaping the future: Your guide to the CIPD Festival of Work 2026
Ahead of the event next month, read how, through seven stages of strategic insight, the 2026 Festival is delivering on its mission to equip people professionals and organisations with the tools to increase productivity and improve business outcomes.
Who is the fairest of them all?: Defining and delivering fairness in a fragmented workforce
Fairness is no longer about treating everyone the same, argues Jenny Hinde. It’s about balancing equality, equity and affordability, and communicating the reasoning behind every people decision with transparency and data.
Code red: What leaders can do about the great employee engagement crisis
With Gallup’s new research finding that employee engagement in the UK is at an all-time low of 10 per cent, Mark Griffith explores the employee engagement crisis and how strategies driving in-person experiences and connection could be the solution.
Promotion burnout: Are women less motivated to pursue promotions than two years ago?
A recent survey found that 54 per cent of women experience ‘promotion burnout’ due to workplace inequality. Hannah Cooper outlines what better HR practice looks like and how this can be effectively implemented to ensure ambition has a much better chance of showing itself.
Why change fails: The hidden games your organisation is playing
The failure rate for organisational transformation hasn’t shifted in 20 years. It’s not due to poor strategy or resistant employees, writes Zhanna Zhuravleva. It’s because most change efforts are designed for how an organisation looks on paper, not the reality.
The ‘midlife money squeeze’ is affecting your best people
Financial stress in UK workplaces is at crisis levels, risking retention and productivity. Gethin Nadin advocates for treating financial wellbeing with the same institutional seriousness as mental health.
Holiday compliance and travel disruption: What HR needs to do now
Employers face a dual challenge this spring: new legal requirements to keep detailed records of annual leave and holiday pay, alongside rising employee travel disruption amid global instability. Phil Pepper advises HR teams to act quickly and coordinate carefully to ensure both legal compliance and consistent, fair support for employees.
Check your blind spot: Financial stress, mental health and suicide risk at work
The link between financial stress, mental health and suicide risk is well evidenced. Yet most employees won’t tell you they are struggling. Jane Vivier, Independent reward professional and FinWELL advocate, and Alice Hendy MBE highlight what the data shows and what needs to urgently change.
The gender pay gap: Why C-suite accountability matters more than ever
Addressing the pay gap is not just about policy; it’s about leadership credibility and trust. Sandi Wassmer explores what genuine C-suite ownership looks like.
Before the breakdown: How to spot burnout before crisis
Burnout can sometimes look like high performance, commitment and resilience. For Stress Awareness Month, PQ Coach Lisa Hammett explains the five stages of burnout and how to ensure you pay attention early enough to act.
Leaders are burning out: Stop fixing people and start fixing the system
With 77 per cent of leaders showing signs of exhaustion, Carole Gaskell explains how to begin redesigning the conditions that are creating burnout.
Your wellbeing scores look great. That might be the problem
While 64 per cent of organisations are actively working to reduce workplace stress, only half think it’s making a difference. Parental coach Giulia Galli examines the gap and advises on meaningful ways to close it.
Gallup’s 2026 workplace report: How do we fix the manager engagement collapse?
Manager engagement is declining because the role itself is broken. HR transformation leader Cristina Mihai says it’s time to rebuild the role around what only humans can do.
Sickfluencers: Why this tabloid narrative is bad for business
Another term is doing the rounds and how we respond to the narrative it carries will have huge impacts on psychological safety and belonging. Deborah Hartung warns against letting the ‘sickfluencer’ rhetoric infiltrate your culture.
When AI adoption becomes performance theatre: Inside the new kind of employee disengagement
Mandating AI without a clear purpose or strategy is creating distrust. Stephanie Davis Neill delves into the new form of employee disengagement that’s emerging and what organisations are getting wrong about change management.
