To get the best performance from people, they need to be treated as adults. Fear has no place in motivating staff, says Neville Aitchison. Heroic leaders know actions speak louder than words.

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.

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.

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 out whether or not your staff really love you … without sounding needy.

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.

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.

Philippa Youngman offers some advice for HR on spreadsheets and the headaches they can cause.

Wouldn’t dream of ending a relationship by email? Then why use it for critical employee communication, asks Philippa Youngman.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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”.