Editorial
It’s up to you!
Alarm bells should be ringing in every boardroom and HR department across Australia and New Zealand, says Grant Sexton, managing director of Leadership Management Australasia (LMA). He was talking at the recent launch of the book A Decade of LEAD—Looking Forward, Looking Back, which, as the title suggests, looks back on ten years of research on the Australasian workplace and forward to what the future has in store.
Sexton says employers have done little to improve key workplace issues over the last decade and, where they have made progress, it hasn’t kept pace with the changing expectations and needs of employees. “Organisations not listening to the booming wake-up call emanating from this research do so at their peril,” he warns.
The research in question—the Leadership, Employment and Direction (LEAD) survey—involved thousands of organisations and more than 28,000 employees, managers and leaders. Its authors say the findings have set the benchmark for understanding and dealing with the ever-changing Australasian workplace.
There’s good news and bad—and some of the bad news is aimed squarely at HR. But first, let’s look at the good news. It’s seems our workplaces have made substantial progress in a number of areas, such as coping better with change, implementing family friendly policies and practices, becoming more flexible, improving work-life balance for leaders and managers, and better understanding the ageing workforce.
But is this sufficient to satisfy the changing needs of today’s modern employee? LMA thinks not. Over the last decade, it says, there’s been no progress on finding and retaining good people, providing the right environment for employees to further their careers, reassuring employees about their futures, communicating effectively with staff, and improving work-life balance for employees.
One of the key findings for Employment Today readers is that HR departments are not fulfilling their role. Around one-third of employees feel HR has a poor or very poor awareness of the issues that are important to them, and just half believe HR is doing anything to address their concerns.
Few other departments have the same potential to make or break an organisation like HR, says LMA. HR has a vital role to play in engaging people, and enabling them to grow, develop and fulfil their potential. It warns that the extent to which the HR department is attuned to staff issues and is working to address their needs will determine the degree to which employees want to stay with their organisation. The ball’s in your court!
—Lyndsey Swan
Feature articles
Change agent
Auckland’s new Super City will soon assume control of all council activities but, in the meantime, Manukau City Council’s Craig Morris is working hard to ease the transition for staff. He talks to Jackie Brown-Haysom.
It’s only normal
The cost to business of mental health problems among staff can be significant. Vero Insurance has taken a proactive approach to the issue with its Mental Health @ Work initiative. Glenys Barker explains why normalising the
discussion of mental wellbeing is important.
Rules of engagement
Why are companies spending more time and effort these days trying to work out whether they have engaged employees, and how can they get them if they don’t have them already? Gus McIntosh explains how to find if whether or not your staff really love you ... without sounding needy.
Managing people risk
Introducing a risk management approach directed at human resources makes sense, says Barbara Buckett. After all, people are the key to success and the sources of drive, production, and creativity.
Driving performance
Bernie Frey examines the clash between the need for individual performance management and organisational performance management. Don’t assume the first leads automatically to the second, or that the two should be tightly linked, he says.
Spreading the risk
Philippa Youngman offers some advice for HR on spreadsheets and the headaches they can cause, and why email doesn’t equal effective communication.
Screen savers
Around a quarter of all CVs are fabricated to some extent. So what can an employer do to protect their business? Carl Blake advocates carrying out a thorough pre-employment screening process.
Leopards don’t change their spots
CV fraud is an ever-present threat to business, and the consequences of not carrying out basic background checks can be dramatic. Don’t rely on your instinct, warns Dan Thompson—verify the facts and avoid trouble.
Getting to the heart
When organisational profit and growth outweigh morality, trust breaks down and organisations collapse. This sums up how Professor Roger Steare sees the economic ethos which led to global financial collapse. He talks to Alice Taylor about why we must change our thinking before our entire civilisation collapses. Read the full story here
Departments
The DOL Report: Difficult conversations
When it comes to sorting out behavioural problems in the workplace, it’s important everyone buys in to resolving the issue. Sarah Vintner explains how to make difficult conversations work for you.
Employer Branding: First impressions
We constantly create concrete beliefs, ideas and opinions of the world around us during the first milliseconds of any particular experience. First impressions really do count, says Kate Billing. And that means you do need to sweat the small stuff.
Sustainable Business: Fly-free week pays off
A commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent in 2010 led planning, environment and infrastructure firm Parsons Brinckerhoff to declare a week-long ban on air travel earlier this year. Elaine Hill outlines the steps the company took and the impact it had.
Workplace Dilemmas: A consistent stance
Whether it’s your remuneration and benefits policy or how you monitor staff taking time-in-lieu, it’s most important you take a consistent approach across the organisation, says Karen Boyte.
HRINZ News: A win-win with workplace wellness
Up to $940 million a year is drained from the profits of New Zealand businesses because of staff sickness, says Dr Simon Ryder-Lewis. Workplace wellness programmes provide an opportunity to change this and to benefit your people and your business, he says.
Leadership: Developing leaders
Smart businesses are measuring their professional development investment and looking at ways to ensure value for money. Ali Tocker says there’s an excellent opportunity for organisations to link leadership development with engagement to ensure their people are ready for the journey ahead.
Public Sector: Good process, wrong result
When an early childhood teacher was alleged to have smacked a child, her employer carried out a full investigation before dismissing her. Although the process was not faulted, says Paul Robertson, the Employment Relations Authority found the investigation was not ‘full and fair’. |
