Nelson Mandela has passed away and we’ve lost a visionary leader
The sad news of Nelson Mandela’s passing came on Thursday 5th November, at about 10pm. As the world responds to the news, we take a look at his life and leadership and ask what lessons we can take away for personal success and leadership from the man who made history as the first black President of […]
HR technology toolkit, written by Professors
DOWNLOAD OUR ACADEMIC TOOLKIT TODAY In our latest toolkit you’ll find contributions from academics in Italy, Germany, UK, France and America on topics including: Social media and Web 2.0 Big data and analytics Employee use of self-service Generation Y and technology Technology in multinationals …all based on leading research from top business schools. As always, […]
Leadership development is not working. Here’s why…
If your reaction to my rather controversial title was to want to close the internet page and go do something else you are probably having an avoidance reaction! Your brain experienced the title as a threat. You probably felt you really don’t want to read about this but as a professional you decided to scan the […]
A guide to creating employment ads that stick to the rules
Recruitment can be a huge task, and when you’re looking for new candidates you want to be as pro-active as possible. Effective job ads are key to attracting the right candidates, and in a highly competitive market a good ad can make your job spec stand out from the crowd. It’s fine to use your […]
Financial services & manufacturing leaders ‘worst in UK’
The Financial Services and Manufacturing industries have the weakest leaders in the UK, according to a detailed study released this morning by Head Heart + Brain, a leadership development consultancy. To gauge the standard of leadership in different industries, Head Heart + Brain commissioned a poll of more than 2,000 people which asked UK workers […]
Interview: Brian Bowden, Director of HR Operations at Aer Lingus
1. On your LinkedIn you mention part of your role has been ‘re-positioning the HR function.’ Can you elaborate on this? Where was it before and where do you want it to be? Our transformation has sought to reposition the HR function so as to focus on strategic HR activity and standardise and systemise our HR […]
An iceberg sunk the Titanic, right? Wrong.
David Buchanan BA (Hons) PhD FRSE Chartered FCIPD is Professor of Organisational Behaviour at Cranfield School of Management. If you investigate why the Titanic sank, you’ll realise an iceberg was just the final straw. “There were a whole host of contributory factors,” says David Buchanan, a professor at Cranfield School of Management. “The lookouts in […]
Has BBC HR director Lucy Adams really ‘killed’ off the HR profession?
Louisa Peacock’s biting editorial in the Telegraph today questions whether disgraced BBC HRD Lucy Adams may be a ‘wicked witch’ figure that changes the face of HR forever. The backstory is this: Adams was severely criticised over excessive payments she made to departing BBC executives. When questioned why, she said "the overwhelming focus was to […]
Interview: Kathy Allison, Head of HR at boohoo.com
Kathy Allison is Head of HR at fashion retailer boohoo.com. 1. Tell us something we don’t know about employee engagement and how it works? There shouldn’t really be anything the profession doesn’t know about employee engagement, as it isn’t rocket science. My simple rules would be that employee engagement has to be bought into from […]
Why measuring the impact of training is absolutely essential
Our research recently found that only 28% of the 388 people we polled globally collect and use data within the Learning and Development department to monitor and measure the impact of training. Twenty-three percent collate information but find it a cumbersome process and fail to do anything with it afterwards. It's no surprise then to […]
Senior leader buy-in is fundamental to employee engagement
This piece was written by Gary Cattermole, co-founder and director of staff survey provider The Survey Initiative. It’s a common issue, organisations are eager to run an employee engagement programme but find it tricky to get their Chief Exec or members of the board to buy-in to employee engagement. Some board members may think it’s […]
Leadership for the Knowledge Worker Age
This article was written by Kevin Vaughan-Smith, managing director of leadership consultancy FranklinCovey UK & Ireland. The rise of the knowledge worker Mention the industrial age and many will think of the bustling factories and shipyards of the nineteenth or early twentieth centuries – more Brunel than Branson. Whilst the UK still remains an important […]
Is leadership development actually meeting the challenges faced by today’s leaders?
The Issue The nature and scale of the challenges currently facing leaders is captured in a recent survey, The Management Agenda 2013 by Roffey Park Management Institute, based on responses from 1460 managers. This shows that 20 percent rate the leadership in their organisation as poor, while 25 percent also report that culture change initiatives […]
The Emperor Ulrich’s new clothes: re-evaluating the role of HR Business Partners
This article was written by Roger Edwards, SVP and Principal Consultant, Pilat HR Solutions. Amazingly, it’s now over 15 years since Dave Ulrich launched the HR model or concept that would bear his name and the development of centres of excellence and HR Business Partners (HRBPs) have been largely at the centre of HR development […]
Beat burnout – seven ways to create an extra hour in the day
This article was written by Jeff Archer, Director of The Tonic Corporate Wellness. Someone said to me recently, ‘All I need is an extra hour each day and I’d get everything that I need to do done.’ Unfortunately, we’re all stuck with 24-hours in the day and 168 hours in the week so an extra hour […]
Book review: Beyond the Call by Marc Woods & Steve Coomber
Title: Beyond The Call: Why Some of Your Team Go the Extra Mile and Others Don’t ShowAuthors: Marc Woods & Steve CoomberISBN: 978-1119962588 This book was reviewed by David Evans of Burn Bridge Associates Ltd. Opening with the statement from the influential Edgar Schein “The only thing of real importance that leaders do is to […]
Book Review: Stretch: Leading Beyond Boundaries by James Brook & Dr Paul Brewerton
Title: Stretch: Leading Beyond BoundariesAuthors: James Brook & Dr Paul BrewertonISBN: 978-1780884189 This book was reviewed by Michael Farry, Human Resources Director at PhotoBox. There are numerous leadership books on the market today. What sets this one apart from others I have read is the fact that it is written as an engaging fable full of practical ideas, tips […]
Talent Spot: Mark Simmons, HR director at supply & logistics firm Norbert Dentressangle Logistics UK Ltd
Norbert Dentressangle may not be a household name in the UK, but this colossal international logistics and supply chain firm has major ambition and is growing fast. Mark Simmons, HR director of Norbert Dentressangle Logistics UK Ltd since 2007, is part of the team spearheading that growth. Today, the UK business employs 10,000 people across […]
News: failure to attract and develop talent is undermining business strategy
Executives’ priority to define business strategy is being seriously undermined by their failure to invest in attracting and developing the talent needed to deliver those plans. This is one of the main findings in a Harvard Business Publishing survey, which calls on organisations to urgently rethink their leadership development models. Over a third of the […]
HR and the CEO – not quite good enough yet…
CEOs and CFOs believe that the HR function’s expertise and experience in people issues can help companies make difficult but crucial staffing decisions in challenging economic times. According to a study the Economist Intelligence Unit, senior executives in Western Europe value their relationship with senior HR leaders, with 69 percent of respondents saying that […]