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Why 2024 should be the year we stop saying ‘Human Resources’
By Katie Jacobs For all the value it delivers to organisations, is there a more poorly named function than HR? In an era where people crave more than ever to be seen and treated as individuals, to describe them as merely ‘Resources’, working to maximise the fortunes of the company, can leave a bad taste.
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Why human leadership is good for people and the planet
By Katie Jacobs From extreme weather events to the cost-of-living crisis, the case for business leaders to take environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues seriously has never been clearer. But with so many competing priorities on the table – global economic and political instability for one – it can be tempting to let ESG slip
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How human leaders create more inclusive cultures
By Katie Jacobs Wherever you live and work in the world, it’s likely the society around you is becoming more diverse, driven by factors like globalisation, immigration and the increasing accessibility of travel. But while our communities and workplaces may be becoming more diverse, that doesn’t automatically play out into greater levels of inclusion. People
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Embracing change and challenge: Building a growth mindset
By Katie Jacobs Without meaning to get anyone reading this too depressed, there’s a lot going on in the world right now that can make it hard to remain mentally strong. Financial insecurities for many, the destablishing speed to technological change (will I be replaced by a robot?), and a barrage of worrying headlines, from
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Banking in the age of uncertainty: how can human leaders make a difference?
By Richard Nicholson In the ever-changing world of banking, leaders have a crucial role to play. By prioritising their teams and fostering a people-first culture, they can drive productivity and help navigate uncertainty. But can it really be that easy? We all know the challenges faced by leaders are plentiful: reducing costs, preparing for long-term
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Five ways to balance performance and wellbeing
By Katie Jacobs It would be hard to find an organisation today that doesn’t at least ‘talk the talk’ on the importance of wellbeing. After all, there’s no shortage of evidence that wellbeing IS a business issue. Take research from Deloitte, for instance, that found for every £1 employers invest in supporting their people’s mental
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Creating the conditions for inclusive conversations
By Katie Jacobs What do leaders need to focus on to succeed in today’s challenging work environment? According to 90% of HR leaders surveyed by Gartner, it’s not finances, strategy or operational excellence – although we aren’t for a moment suggesting you completely forget about these. It’s the more human aspects of leadership that make
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Keep your ‘human’ switched on throughout the employee life cycle
By Emily Murton I’m sure most of you have heard of the ‘employee life cycle’, otherwise known as the ELC. Every interaction, every touch point, and every stage of this cycle contributes to an employee’s perception of the organisation, and as leaders, we must consider how to humanise each stage to ensure continued motivation, performance
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The future of leadership? It’s human
Are human skills becoming obsolete? With the increasing pace of technological advancement through AI tools such as ChatGPT, it’s not an outlandish question to ask. AI can now write essays on almost any topic, unpack complex ideas, solve tricky maths problems… and even construct jokes (admittedly, not very good ones). Despite these innovations, many of
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Finding team flow: It’s all about positive human connection
How much time do you spend online? If you’re the average ‘global internet user’, then it’s almost seven hours per day, according to 2022 research. And for people who spend the majority of their working days looking at a screen, that might even seem like a conservative estimate. While technology is undoubtedly a force for
