News: Whitehall must work “smarter” to deliver services post-jobs cull
In order to prevent civil service staff numbers creeping up again despite heavy job cuts, it will be crucial to revamp business processes and enable people to work “smarter”. This is one of the key findings of a report entitled ‘Managing early departures in Central Government’ published by the Commons Public Accounts Committee. The […]
News: September will be UK’s key holiday month this year
Even though August has traditionally been considered the UK’s key month for taking summer holidays, deserted workplaces will be more common in September this year, according to research. A survey conducted among 153 employees by the Chartered Institute of Payroll Professional revealed that just under a quarter would be taking their vacation next month compared […]
Blog: The art of mobile motivation
Gone are the days when managers wanting to motivate their staff simply had to call a team meeting in the office anytime and everyone would be there. As a result of remote working and flexible hours it is very rare for most of the team to be in one building at the same time, certainly […]
News: Half of HR departments will be restructured in next few years
Nearly half of all organisations intend to restructure their HR departments over the next few years in a bid to cater more effectively to the changing needs of the business. According to professional services firm Tower Watson’s HR service delivery survey conducted among HR and HR/IT executives working at 628 organisations across the world, just […]
Blog: Organisational values – Actions speak louder than words
“For us this lawsuit has always been about something much more important than patents or money. It’s about values. We value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on Earth. And we do this to delight our customers, not for competitors to flagrantly copy.” This was part of the missive […]
In a Nutshell: Four ways to ensure that HR serves the business better
The closer HR is to the business, the better it can serve the business, believes Karl Jolly, director of people at Welcome Break Group. He certainly considers himself to be an ‘ops’ man through and through rather than being one step removed from business. As a result, Jolly offers us advice based on his […]
Blog: Never underestimate the value of the great British tea break
Free tea and coffee facilities for employees cost businesses around £276 per year, per employee. If you have a large workforce that cost could soon add up, but hold fire before you commence a cull of this pretty basic benefit as it could end up costing you more money in the long term. Psychologists […]
Blog: How to build rapport during a job interview
Building rapport during a job interview. It’s not always the brightest and the best who get the job. Often it’s the person who interviews well. The bond you establish with an interviewer is a very important factor in doing well at interview. From their point of view, when they meet you they’re considering working […]
Blog: Back to basics – Getting to the essence of HR
Time and again we hear “if only HR could get the basics right?”. Everyone nods sagely and HR takes one on the chin! But what if we think differently about what the basics should be. There is the simple basic of “pay people correctly, on time”. Hear Hear! But is this really HR’s accountability? […]
Blog: What value do you bring to the table?
“Can we speak later? I have a big interview next week and I have some thoughts that I want to run by you. My response was that I would be more than glad to hear what is on her mind. When we spoke later that afternoon, she told me about the value that she […]
Analysis: IBM buys Kenexa to create ‘Smarter Workforce’
SuccessFactors, Rypple, Taleo, and now Kenexa. IBM has taken a leaf out of the respective books of SAP, Salesforce.com and Oracle to mount a takeover bid in the cloud human capital management applications space, by making a $1.3 billion punt for Kenexa. The acquisition target’s HR software is intended to help companies recruit and manage […]
Infographic: The impact of a misaligned HR and management team
Click on the image to view it at full size.
Diary of a misfit: Becoming a wildcard
On my own personal change curve, I appear to have progressed from misunderstood misfit to shortlist wildcard in just under a month. Result, right? So, I am in my second month of job hunting and the transformation has come about largely as a result of a new and improved CV, thanks to a panel of […]
News: HR remains “messenger” rather than co-creator of corporate strategy
A lack of involvement in devising corporate strategy means that HR continues to be the “messenger” rather the instigator, leading to a significant misalignment between employee and business objectives, according to research. A survey among 125 HR professionals and business managers conducted at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s HR Software Show earlier this […]
Blog: A final lesson from Olympians: Turning ideas into results
What fun it has been to ride the Olympics bandwagon! If we are to believe everything we read, the past weeks have been not only a world-class sporting event, but also one of the most educational fortnights in recent memory. David Cameron told the nation to use the Olympics as a springboard to even […]
Blog: One suggestion for tackling the workplace gender imbalance
Women form half the UK workforce but, according to new research from The Institution of Engineering and Technology, just six per cent of engineers are female. Change is called for as the strategically important sectors of manufacturing and engineering need to recruit 82,000 new scientists, engineers and technologists by 2016 and companies are reporting difficulties […]
Legal Insight: How to employ migrant workers legally
Tesco could reportedly be fined up to £200,000 by the UK Border Agency for employing staff illegally. The news came to light following the Agency’s arrest of 20 foreign students at one of Tesco’s warehouses, after they were found to have been working significantly longer hours than their visas permitted. But a key problem […]
News: UK workplace relationships hit new lows
Workplace relationships in the UK appear to have plumbed new depths, with large numbers of employees complaining about everything from abuse of power to nepotism and bullying. According to a survey conducted among 1,607 people by Canada Life Group Insurance, a huge 42% said that they had witnessed senior staff members abusing their power. […]
Blog: Humanising human resources
During our recent recession we’ve seen the demands on human resource increase massively through consolidation and downsizing. As our economies begin to regain speed this trend doesn’t seem to be bucking, but there is a choice on where to focus. To so many well performing corporations, numbers matter – I won’t argue with that. […]
The HRZone Interview: Best Companies’ Wayne Clarke on engagement
Wayne Clarke is managing partner at workplace engagement specialists, Best Companies, the firm behind the prestigious Sunday Times ‘Best Companies to Work For’ annual listing of high-performing organisations. It has identified eight key factors that are critical to be an employer that staff rate highly. They comprise: How employees feel about their leaders How […]
