Unleash your strengths with Marcus Buckingham
Help yourself and your employees think about your strengths rather than focus on your weaknesses with these mind-opening tests from Marcus Buckingham. These exercises are simple ones which you can do yourself and send to others as the first steps in understanding and developing your strengths. Who’s on your board? Draw an oval on a […]
Uncertainty taking toll on morale
Four out of five senior managers believe that the current unsettled economic outlook is more difficult to deal with than outright recession, not least because they are finding it increasingly difficult to win staff buy-in for difficult decisions. Just under half acknowledged that employees now had a jaundiced view of the sincerity of the leadership […]
SMEs recognise value of social media
While just over half of small-to-medium businesses regularly use social media in their day-today activities, the number jumps to four out of five among engineering and technical firms. According to a survey of 269 companies undertaken by Darryl Willcox Publishing, some 35% of SMBs updated social networking sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter on […]
Bosses confident growth is around the corner: podcast
Is growth in business or hiring just around the corner? A study of European business leaders has revealed nearly 40% are planning to invest in existing talent, while a quarter claim they will invest in training as this long awaited confidence makes a welcome return to the market with over half of all companies across […]
Influencing engagement: the role of the line manager
John Pope offers advice on how managers can work with their teams to maximise engagement, supported by the HR function. I thought that the subject of engagement had had enough debate; we have read about its importance and its measurement by engagement surveys; we have heard about the importance of bringing new staff into an […]
From the top to the tip – Undercover Boss with Colin Drummond, CEO of Viridor
Colin Drummond, CEO of Viridor, the recycling, renewable energy and waste management company went undercover to discover more about his business. Before the programme aired, we got a sneak peek at Colin’s Undercover Boss experience. Undercover Boss is one of those rare programmes which highlights relationships between bosses, employees and organisational culture to a mass […]
Ask the expert: Poorly performing line manager
This week the experts, Martin Brewer and Esther Smith advise on how to handle a poorly performing manager. The question: I have inherited a poor performing line manager in my team, the issues are: There is no team motivation in his department He is not spending anytime training & developing his new team members […]
UK managers ‘deluded’
More than half of UK managers delude themselves as to their strengths and weaknesses due to a heady mix of inadequate training and development and being pushed into roles they had no desire to take. According to a survey undertaken among 2,158 bosses by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), about 44% defined themselves as excellent […]
Unions may coordinate action against cuts
The prospect of a general strike moved a step closer yesterday after the RMT union tabled a motion calling for co-ordinated industrial action in protest at the coalition government’s proposed public sector jobs and pension cuts. The transport union’s motion will be heard at umbrella organisation the TUC’s Congress, which takes place from 13 to […]
Ask the expert: Change to rate of bank holiday pay
This week the experts, Adam Partington and Esther Smith advise on how to change a rate of pay. The question: Change to rate of bank holiday pay I am thinking of reducing the premium we pay to staff for working on a bank holiday from double time to time and a half. We have […]
The end of team bonding down the boozer?
Although nearly three out of five managers take staff to the pub for team-building purposes, just over half of employees are unenthusiastic about going out with their colleagues and one in five actively dislike it. These are the findings of study entitled ‘Health of the Workplace’ undertaken by insurance firm Aviva. The research also revealed […]
20% claim they are bullied by boss
In somewhat of an indictment of UK business leadership, just over one in five UK workers claim to be bullied by their boss, while almost a third believe their manager is incompetent. A study among 1,298 staff commissioned by HR consultancy Reabur.com also revealed that a further 22% of respondents felt their manager was ‘under-qualified’ […]
Leadership matters: Disruptive team member
This column answers your questions on leadership, talent management, performance improvement and the employee behavioural issues that can cause even the best leadership techniques to go awry. This time a disruptive team member is causing a management headache for a team leader. The dilemma A team leader in a government organisation has inherited a new […]
Managing remotely – hands on, but hands on what?
The principles of leadership are no different whether you are co-located or virtual: the challenge – apart from adopting and practising appropriate principles, of course, is making them work in the virtual context. Robert Terry of ASK gives his tips on managing disparate teams in the first of a two-part series. What changes in the […]
No break for SME bosses
Three out of five bosses in small-to-medium enterprises plan to remain in daily contact with staff during their summer break this year, a situation fuelled by concern over increasingly complex HR and payroll issues. According to a poll of 293 owners of small-to-medium businesses undertaken by internet service provider Eclipse Internet, while 73% plan to […]
Leadership Matters: Affair between director and her direct report
This column answers your questions on leadership, talent management, performance improvement and the employee behavioural issues that can cause even the best leadership techniques to go awry. This time an affair between a director and a person reporting to them is making life awkward. The dilemma My manager (a director) has been having an affair […]
The management world is still turning
In days long ago we recruited people as managers because of their character, as shown by their attitude and achievements. It was at the end of WWII when there was much to be done; the view was that well proven leadership and a good strong character were the qualities most needed for responsible jobs. That […]
Most want end of DRA – but don’t have other plans
While almost two thirds of adults would like to see the default retirement age abolished, few are sure what the right age for quitting work should be and most are failing to plan for the future. According to a survey undertaken among 1,011 people by Age UK, which was formed out of the merger of […]
Duck! Handling your human capital in a crisis
When a crisis hits, organisations instinctively prioritise their physical assets such as data and premises as they rally to continue ‘business as usual’. But when it comes to planning for the worst, making sure staff are looked after should be just as important, argues Graham Whitehouse, of HR and payroll provider Selima. With volcanic ash, […]
Social media still ‘misunderstood by management’
Even though social media can be useful as an internal tool to encourage staff to network and share information among themselves, management fears over loss of control, reputational damage and legal issues are holding back adoption. According to a ‘Social Media Survey’ undertaken among 2,600 internal communications professionals from 1,800 organisations by research and training […]