There’s no time to lose in making our businesses environmentally sustainable, but among the myriad of responsibilities falling on the shoulders of people professionals, what role can you play as agents of change within the environment agenda? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Dr Jan Maskell, Business Psychologist; Gilda Neiman, Board Director at Chapter Zero in Brussels; and Susannah Haan, Senior Corporate Governance Advisor, as we explore how people professionals can better...

The role of a people professional can often feel like an impossible task, being pulled from pillar to post in one of the most multi-faceted jobs in the organisation. Given the growing portfolio of responsibilities that people professionals need to manage, and the expectations around that, what does it take to thrive in this complex role? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Laura Callahan, Director at Willow HR; David Balls, Chief People Officer at Newcross Healthcare Solutions; and...

Learning professionals may not be asked to ‘show me the money’, but they will be expected to demonstrate value and return on investment. So, what can learning professionals do to best set themselves up for success? Could the answer lie in simply asking the right questions to properly diagnose an organisation’s real learning need? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Natalie Richer, Natalie Richer Consulting; Payal Gaglani-Bhatt, Chief People Officer at The Little Gurus; and Steve...

CIPD’s latest health and wellbeing at work report revealed that sickness absence is at a ten-year high and that wellbeing support for individuals at different life stages can be patchy. So, how can organisations offer sophisticated and nuanced wellbeing support without truly understanding the individual needs of their people? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Krystal Wilkinson, Associate Professor at Manchester Metropolitan University; Nick Pahl, CEO at Society of Occupational...

How are you balancing new working freedoms with post-Covid realities? For many organisations, remote working was a boon that enabled their businesses to carry on through the pandemic. All the while their people uncovered and experienced the benefits that working remotely had to offer. But as we unwind from the pandemic, some organisations that had seemingly settled on a balanced hybrid approach are making headlines for scaling back offering flexible remote working. Join Nigel Cassidy and...

Despite increased resources in most organisations, CIPD’s 2023 Learning at Work survey found that over half of L&D teams had intensified workloads over the last year. This has left L&D professionals battling with a lack of capacity, puzzling over business priorities and with a lack of insight about what is needed. So, what can learning professionals do about it? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Sonali Narendran, Talent and Learning Partner at Starbucks; Laura Overton,...

Is your cybersecurity training fit for purpose? There’s a common perception that cybersecurity is an issue for the IT function, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. The reality is that modern cyber-criminals have mastered the psychological techniques of manipulating their target to perform a specific action, making the issue of cyber-security a far more human issue than you may think. So, how can people professionals get on top of the issue, better understand their people and then...

Have we over-expanded the remit of people managers? As the world and the workplace have become increasingly complex, management requirements and expectations are expanding exponentially. So, what steps can People Professionals take to support managers, to relieve the risk of being overwhelmed, and equip them with the competencies and behaviours to thrive? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Zofia Bajorek, Research Fellow at Institute of Employment Studies; Wayne Clarke, Founding...

Do we need to start thinking differently, perhaps more creatively, to reengage your people with organisational learning? For many, a perception exists that traditional approaches to organisation training have become stale. It’s imperative for learning professionals to remain curious and open minded towards new techniques and methods, in order to get the best from their programmes. Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Andy Hoang, Founder of Beyond Blocks, Rita Isaac, Learning...

While Artificial Intelligence (AI) itself is not new – many organisations, knowingly or not, already use forms of AI technology within their businesses – we are now at the cusp of a major change. So just as the internet of things changed the way we work, connect, shop, spend our leisure time – and in turn how businesses operate – the AI revolution is set to usher in massive change affecting job design, workforce planning and organisational development. But is your organisation ready? Join...

If pay transparency is good for workplace fairness, why isn’t everyone doing it? The calls for pay transparency as a means to remedy existing inequalities and close gender and racial pay gaps are loud and many. But the reality of implementing it is not without complications. Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Karen Jackson, HR Director at Reed, Gemma Bullivant, HR Consultant at Gemma Bullivant HR & Coaching, and Charles Cotton, Senior Policy Advisor – Performance and Reward at...

Have we become too comfortable and over-reliant on digital learning? CIPD research suggests we are losing sight of the richness of varied learning experiences and their role in effective learning transfer. So do learning professionals need to think afresh about designing content that can meet the changing expectations and needs of both the organisation and learner? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: coaching and professional development specialist, Jilly Julian, and David Hayden,...

Is cultural intelligence (CQ) the ‘secret sauce’ to make your equality, diversity and inclusion initiatives bear fruit? In an increasingly global environment, working effectively with others across different boundaries is critical for a competitive advantage. It requires people who are sensitive to different cultures and perspectives, and can adapt their behaviour to built trust and collaborate effectively. Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Ritika Wadhwa, Chief Operating Officer at...

Do you know what’s really concerning your people as we enter a new year? As months of crippling industrial action continue, the growing struggle to make ends meet, a new period of recession in the UK and an increasingly tired and burnt-out workforce, what can people professionals – and organisations more broadly – do to support people through the challenges ahead? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Nebel Crowhurst, Chief People Officer at Reward Gateway; Emma Jacobs, Features...

It’s said that affording a little breathing space to reflect on workplace learning can vastly improve its effectiveness and likelihood of achieving behavioural change. But what’s the evidence for this? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests: Julie Drybrough, Founder and Chief Executive at Fuchsia Blue; Learning and Development Consultant, Fiona McBride; and Sue Murkin, Learning Delivery and Associate Lead at CIPD – as we explore why offering time to reflect can lead to more effective,...

Please be advised that parts of this podcast cover issues that may be emotionally sensitive. Statistics on men’s health are concerning: men account for three-quarters of premature deaths from heart disease, are twice as likely to die from drug or alcohol abuse and three times more likely to die from suicide. In part, due to unhelpful ideas about what masculinity is, and societal expectations for them to ‘man up’ and ‘keep it together’, men often face health challenges alone. So when it comes...

Offering a four-day week could give organisations a competitive edge, as employees seek a better work-life balance. But does it really have the potential to become the norm across a wide range of sectors and businesses? Our experts debate the pros and cons of working fewer days for the same pay.

In this month’s episode, CIPD Ireland HR Policy and Engagement Manager Meg Dunphy spoke to Ian Milton, Senior Director of Work & Rewards at WTW, where they discussed the cost-of-living crisis, and trends in reward and recognition. Hear how important financial wellbeing can be as a differentiating factor for employers wanting to support and alleviate financial distress.

Theories encouraging employee learning have evolved considerably over the past decade, most notably in the shift from venue-based learning (while still vitally important) to learning in the flow of work. But what value can ‘adjacent learning’ – off-the-job learning that takes place outside the workplace setting – bring to learning experiences? Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests – Carole Bower, Head of Learning at Best At Digital and Steve George, Learning Content Lead at CIPD – as we...

Trust is critical for functional relationships and not least when it comes to the case of organisational leaders and their people. With scandals and examples of failed leadership making daily headlines, it is little wonder that trust in organisations may already be at an all-time low. Throw in cases of actual leadership mistakes – does the situation then become unsalvageable? Or can you repair broken trust? Join Nigel Cassidy, and this month’s guests – Veronica Hope Hailey, Emeritus...

People professionals have stepped up through recent crises to support their organisations and their people. Yet, the perceived value of the profession remains under constant challenge. While some applaud these efforts to take the profession beyond form-filling and compliance, others say HR have exceeded their remit with their public agenda crusades. Join Nigel Cassidy, and this month’s guests – Cat Navarro, Talent Advisor and Consultant; Dr Washika Haak-Saheem, Associate Professor at Henley...

Accessible and inclusive experiences are critical to the success of organisational learning. Few would argue against the benefits an accelerated shift to – and adoption of – digital learning has brought to learners, particularly with greater flexibility in terms of access, delivery and coverage. But is the design of your learning drawing out the best from your workforce or a stumbling block to truly accessible learning? Join Nigel Cassidy, live from the CIPD Festival of Work 2022, and this...

The benefits of an inclusive and diverse workforce are inarguable – not just because it’s the right thing to do for social justice, but for the benefits it can bring to every business. But despite having the right policies in place, many organisations are still struggling to build inclusive workforces, and progress has been slow or stagnant. It may sound counterintuitive to use technology to address this very human issue, but using digital processes to identify biases and measure performance...

Dealing with stress can place immense demands on employees’ physical and mental health. Our Health and Wellbeing at Work 2022 report emphasises the negative impact stress can have on productivity, with 79% of organisations reporting some stress-related absence over the last year. So, the idea that organisations could purposely generate or allow pressure and stress to raise employee performance sounds counterintuitive, right? Well, not necessarily. Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests –...

Organisations often invest large sums of money in learning and development opportunities for their people, but CIPD research finds that only a small minority are evaluating the wider impact on business or society (8%). Learning transfer – applying newly acquired knowledge and skills to real-life situations in the workplace – should be an integral part of the L&D process. So how can organisations measure whether their L&D programmes are having the desired impact? Join Nigel Cassidy...