Hr Network Volume 14 Issue 5

RECOGNISE

ACKNOWLEDGE

REWARD

SAVE THE DATE! NATIONAL AWARDS 2019

in partnership with

Gala Dinner, Glasgow Hilton, Thursday 14th November 2019 For further details contact the Awards Planning Team on Tel: 0131 625 3267 or email: awards@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk www.hrnetworkjobs.com

A R R I V A L S

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D E P A R T U R E S

CONTRIBUTORS

LOUISE ROGERS

Founder and Publisher:

Feature: Are you ready to fly with AI? p. 16

Lee Turner lee@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk

Louise is the Director of Human Resources Intelligence.

Senior Associate Editor: Andy Moore editor@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk

Deputy-Editor: Teresa Flannigan editor@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk

NEIL ARCHIBALD Editor At Large: The Boss.

Who’s the boss around here? p. 38

Editor-at-large:

Neil is a freelance business journalist who has previously held senior HR positions.

Neil Archibald editor@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk

Editor’s Assistant/Admin: Marion Robertson editor@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk LILY SOUTTER Insight: Managing stress related weight gain p. 42 Lily is known as London’s leading nutritionist.

Advertising/Sponsorship: Donna Turner advertising@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk

Design: Mann Communications Hr NETWORK now available on: RICHARD B. SMITH Insight: Relationship Breakdown p. 43 Richard is a partner at Brodies LLP and Family Law specialist provides some useful insight for HR professionals when supporting employees through a relationship breakdown.

LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/hrnetwork1 Twitter: www.twitter.com/HrNETWORKNews YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/hrnetworkscotland

Media Avenue Limited 2 West Maitland Street Edinburgh EH12 5DS 0131 625 3267 www.hrnetworkjobs.com www.mediaavenue.co.uk

The views expressed in Hr NETWORK (SCOTLAND) are those of invited contributors and not necessarily those of Media Avenue Ltd. Media Avenue Ltd does not endorse any goods or services advertised, or any claims or representations made in any advertisement in Hr NETWORK (SCOTLAND) magazine and accepts no liability to any person for loss or damage suffered as a consequence of their responding to, or placing reliance upon any claim or representation made in any advertisement appearing in Hr NETWORK (SCOTLAND) magazine. Readers should make appropriate enquiries and satisfy themselves before responding to any such advertisement or placing reliance upon any such claim or representation. By so responding or placing reliance readers accept that they do so at their own risk. © Media Avenue Ltd. 2018

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WELCOME

May 2019 including: relationship breakdown and stress related weight gain.

Our special features include a focus on the work being done by Carer Positive, a Scottish Government funded initiative, which has been developed with the support of a strong partnership of private, public and voluntary sector organisatons in Scotland. Also getting a special feature is Paths For All, a partnership of organisations committed to promoting walking for health and the development of multi-use path networks in Scotland.

I hope you continue to enjoy your latest copy of Hr NETWORK Magazine and if you would like to see some specific topics covered in the magazine, please just get in touch.

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elcome to the May issue of Hr NETWORK magazine.

It’s an extremely busy time for us all just now at Hr NETWORK with our exciting plans for the forthcoming Hr NETWORK ‘Smart Culture’ Conference & Exhibition, which takes place in Edinburgh on Thursday 9th May.

Preparations for our inaugural Leaders Dinner, which takes place on the evening before the Conference are also in the final stage of planning.

The Leaders Dinner will feature a ‘in conversation’ interview with Pam August, Director of Culture Activation at Westjet, hosted by Hr NETWORK’s trusted associate and founder of The Culture Builders, Jane Sparrow.

This Issue Andy Moore has spent some time with experts in the world of artificial intelligence and tries to dispel some of the myths and fears around this unknown phenomenon, which he discovers, can be a really powerful resource, especially for recruitment and talent attraction professionals.

Nominations for the hugely anticipated Hr NETWORK National Awards 2019 are open for another month with the deadline for nominations on Thursday 31st May. This is your chance to nominate your HR superstars and ensure they get the recognition they deserve. A full list of all the categories and full criteria is available from page 24 to page 29.

Editor At Large Neil Archibald looks at the changing role of ‘The Boss and asks: “Who is in charge around here?”

The regular sections of the magazine include: Five Fab…, Stats and Bookshop and the ‘Insights’ section features first class comment from those in the know on a range of subjects

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Lee Turner Publisher

We continue to bring the HR community in Scotland even closer together and build on our huge efforts to support the profession since we began in 2005.

Contributors: Neil Archibald; Louise Rogers; Lily Soutter and Richard B. Smith.

Hr NETWORK also available on: LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/hrnetwork1 Twitter: www.twitter.com/HrNETWORKNews YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/ hrnetworkscotland

NEWS

Majority of working women experiencing the menopause say it has a negative impact on them at work Three out of five (59%) working women between the ages of 45 and 55 who are experiencing menopause symptoms say it has a negative impact on them at work.

This is according to new research from the CIPD.

To break the stigma associated with the menopause, the CIPD is recommending that employers educate and train line managers so they are knowledgeable and confident to have sensitive conversations with staff about their symptoms and any adjustments that might be needed.

In response, the CIPD recently launched free guidance on managing the menopause at work to help break the silence surrounding the topic. It emphasises that even small changes like having a fan or access to flexible working can make a big difference to how women manage their symptoms and thrive in their jobs. Women over the age of 50 are the fastest growing group in the workforce and the average age for the menopause transition is 51. As more women go through the menopause during their working lives, it’s vital that employers encourage open discussions to ensure they get the right support.

The most common symptoms reported by women in the CIPD’s survey are hot flushes (72%), sleep disturbances (64%) and night sweats (58%). Psychological issues (56%), such as mood swings, anxiety and memory loss, were also widely reported.

To support women experiencing these symptoms, the CIPD’s guide suggests: • Giving women a later start time if their sleep pattern is disturbed.

• Providing a desk fan to help with hot flushes

The need for better support is further highlighted by the fact that more women say they feel supported by their colleagues (48%) when going through the menopause than by their managers (32%).

• Making sure women can take regular comfort breaks and allowing them to adapt their uniform to improve comfort levels

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NEWS

Hr NETWORK partner with Roffey Park Institute for three years in continuing quest to discover Scotland’s HR champions Hr NETWORK magazine has recently announced that Roffey Park Institute, the world-class executive education and research institute, has become the key sponsor for the Hr NETWORK National Awards, which starts this year and will run for three NATIONAL AWARDS 2019 consecutive years. in partnership with

“ We share the same energy, passion for action and belief in the human value of work and of all employees.”

The partnership, which will run from May 2019 encompassing all the build-up to this years’ awards gala dinner, which takes place on Thursday 14th November, will run until November 2021. During that period, both organisations will constantly seek input as to the value and difference their partnership brings, and how it may continue thereafter.

Based in the UK, Singapore and Ireland, Roffey Park Institute delivers high impact Leadership and Management Development, and Organisational Development programmes and qualifications, as well as development and coaching for HR and HRD leaders and business partners.

Dr Robert Coles, CEO of Roffey Park Institute, commented: “Roffey Park Institute is delighted to be joining its efforts to the community of the Hr NETWORK. We share the same energy, passion for action and belief in the human value of work and of all employees. We look forward to recognising, championing and partnering with great HR leaders and their organisations in Scotland”.

Commenting on behalf of Hr NETWORK, founder Lee Turner said: “Hr NETWORK is honoured that such a prestigious educational institution such as Roffey Park Institute has agreed to become our key sponsor of the Awards, and for three years which is even better.”

Nominations for the Hr NETWORK Awards 2019 will close on Friday 31st May 2019.

Leaders struggle to evolve businesses as 60% of staff lack critical skills for the digital age A study conducted by The Oxford Group, a City & Guilds Group business, has uncovered that companies are struggling to adapt to a digital workplace as leaders lack critical digital skills to transform and staff fear change.

transformation, whether that’s the challenge of managing security and the risk of data leaks (45 percent are concerned), tackling the fear of change to roles and routines (42 percent), or reskilling the workforce (31 percent).

Whilst 96 percent of respondents said the onus is on leaders to drive the adoption of new technologies and 94 percent believe it’s important for leaders to challenge traditional ways of thinking, only a third (33 percent) of leaders feel well prepared to lead their business.

Commenting on the findings, John Yates, MD Corporate Learning of City & Guilds Group, said: “Digital transformation is seeding itself in all aspects of our lives as we continue even further into the fourth revolution.

Businesses, C-suites, and employees need to adapt their attitudes and behaviours to meet the changing demands of the workplace. The critical skills of today are much different to those that were needed a decade and even a few years ago, and will differ from those needed tomorrow and into the future. New technologies and learning tools can make it far easier to adapt, but only where there is consistency and buy-in from employees across organisations.”

Gaps in leaders’ digital skill-sets are having a major impact on their ability to transform; 41 percent say that a lack of digital expertise makes decision-making more difficult, and 30 percent say it has prevented their team from innovating.

The challenge goes beyond leadership. 60 percent of employees at all levels say that staff at different levels of their organisation lack the skills needed to propel their business into the digital age. Respondents outlined how their organisational infrastructure is also limiting digital

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NEWS

Half of UK workers uncomfortable with employer getting involved in personal lifestyle choices

Employers underestimating the impact of poor employee financial wellbeing Working with renowned corporate wellbeing expert Dr Cary Cooper, new research from Close Brothers reveals that employers are underestimating the impact of poor employee financial wellbeing in the workplace.

While 88% of employers think that their employees worry about money, just a third (30%) think money worries impact their staff while at work. However, the reality on the ground is very different. Three quarters (73%) of employees say that money worries impact them at work.

Fifty-two per cent of UK workers say they are uncomfortable with their employer getting involved in their personal lifestyle choices, research has revealed.

Employers don’t just underestimate how many employees are affected by poor financial wellbeing in the workplace, they also underestimate the scale of the problem.

The study of 2,000 UK workers by Willis Towers Watson found that more than half (56%) of UK workers view lifestyle choices, such as diet, exercise, and alcohol consumption, as a strictly personal matter.

This reality gap isn’t helpful for employee understanding and engagement, but it’s also restricting maximising their people strategies and impacting business performance.

48% of businesses do not have a financial wellbeing strategy, and of those that do, just 18% describe it as comprehensive. There are signs this is improving, however; 27% of employees plan to implement one within the next three years.

Seventy-one per cent of respondents who said they felt uncomfortable wanted to keep a boundary between their personal and work lives, 37% said they didn’t understand why their employer should be involved in their lifestyle choices, and 34% said they feared it would create a ‘Big Brother’ culture.

Employers confirm that poor employee financial wellbeing is damaging their business revealing it has led to reduced productivity (22%), loss of talent (22%), and higher absences (19). Poor retirement planning is of particular concern with half of employers (48%) stating that fewer people are retiring from their organisation than they would like, and the same proportion saying the rate of retirement in their organisation is increasing their people costs. A further 45% say that the rate of retirement in their organisation is negatively impacting their succession plans.

Despite this, almost one in three (30%) workers see their employers as having a moral responsibility to help them lead a fit and healthy lifestyle.

“Health and wellbeing is a sensitive area and companies must tread carefully if they are to adequately support their workers, whilst also ensuring their privacy is respected,” said Mike Blake, wellbeing lead at Willis Towers Watson.

“Although a healthy workforce benefits business, driving down presenteeism and absenteeism, and boosting productivity and retention, employees don’t always appreciate their employer intervening on matters of personal wellbeing.

Conversely, the benefits of improving employee financial wellbeing are clear. Of those organisations that are already tackling the issue, nearly a third (30%) say that it helps improve employee productivity, a quarter (24%) say it assists in talent acquisition and retention, and 22% say that it helps to fulfil their strategic business objectives.

“However, there is a growing expectation for employers to step up and help – but getting the approach right is key.

“Companies should essentially equip their workers with the tools to live a fit and healthy lifestyle but let workers decide the level of involvement from their company in pursuit of this.”

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NEWS

Millennials are a double-edged sword for HR: The most common and the hardest employees to engage!

It’s predicted that, by 2020, millennials will make up 35 percent of the global workforce. Clearly, they are an important demographic for businesses to recruit, motivate, engage and retain.

But according to the “Technology’s Role in Managing & Retaining Employees” research study released by Speakap, millennials are a double-edged sword for HR professionals – they are the most common and the hardest generation of employees to engage. In fact, 48 percent of the surveyed HR professionals in the US and UK reported that millennials make up the majority of their non-desk workforces. On top of that, 32 percent said millennials are the hardest group of employees to engage – more so than Gen Z, Gen X and baby boomers.

According to Erwin Van Der Vlist, Co-Founder & CEO of Speakap, there are specific ways companies can better communicate and engage with these younger generations of employees. “First and foremost, companies should tap into millennials’ intrinsic desire for personal fulfilment and a sense of purpose. A smart and secure way to do this is to take advantage of the socially intuitive experience (and user interface) provided by enterprise social networks and use these platforms to provide ongoing learning and development content. This will help your millennial workforce not only improve their job-related skills, productivity and performance, but it will also make them feel personally fulfilled in their roles and more satisfied with the company.”

As a generation, millennials value meaningful experiences over products. are more idealistic than pragmatic, are continuously in search of personal fulfilment (rather than ‘just another job’) and aren’t tolerant of subpar experiences – whether it’s the customer experience delivered by brands or the employee experience delivered by employers.

Scottish businesses face Brexit skills time bomb, experts warn

businesses were adopting a ‘wait and see’ mentality because of a perceived lack of information. However, he said that immigration was one of areas within Brexit for which there was a rough direction of travel to follow, which made taking action imperative.

With a further extension set for October until the UK leaves the EU, immigration law and recruitment experts have warned that Scottish businesses face a Brexit ‘skills time bomb’ as the supply of skilled labour from European countries is cut off.

His comments were echoed by Paul Steven, a director at independent consultancy HRC Recruitment, who urged companies to identify the key roles within their organisations likely to be affected by skills shortages.

Jamie Kerr, a partner and specialist in immigration law at Burness Paull, said that not enough businesses are taking steps to address the potential mediumto long-term consequences of Britain’s departure from the EU. Despite Brexit being a matter of months away, Jamie warned that too many

In January 2019, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that unemployment in Scotland had fallen below the 100,000 mark for the first time. This meant the jobless rate fell to a record low of 3.6%, underlining the challenges many businesses already face in attracting candidates.

Jamie said: “Saying ‘we’ll just wait and see because we’re all in the same boat’

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is the wrong approach for businesses to take on Brexit. By doing nothing they face a skills time bomb, as the talent pool dries up. The truth is that we already know quite a lot about what immigration will look like when the UK leaves the EU and, broadly speaking, there are two aspects to it.

“In the short-term, there are issues around existing staff. EU nationals in the UK will have to register with the government and, while it’s incumbent on the individual to do that now, that will flip from either December 2020 or June 2021, when employers will become responsible for checking whether staff have the right to work in the UK. Then, there are considerations for businesses with British nationals living in Europe and even those, which have employees with partners from the EU.

NEWS

Forth Ports celebrates Skills Development Scotland award win from CeeD Forth Ports scooped an award at the inaugural CeeD (Centre for Engineering Education and Development) Industry Awards 2019 recently at the Hilton in Glasgow.

world of work and develop the skills, understanding and confidence to support their ongoing career choices and development.

The port group, which operates eight ports across the UK and employs over 1100 people, won the Skills Development Award for the first time. These inaugural awards recognise and celebrate the achievements of some of the bestestablished businesses in Scotland, along with the rising stars in the industry.

Celebrating the CeeD award success, Jackie Anderson, Group HR Manager said: “We are thrilled to win this CeeD award for the first time. We are committed to the learning and development of all our employees, to help them succeed in their current roles and achieve the personal and professional growth to help maximise their potential.”

The judges were impressed with the commitment that Forth Ports places on the development and the investment in its people. Through a bespoke Logistics Academy in Tilbury and a newly built Skills and Business Centre in Grangemouth, the company delivers an e nd to end employment lifecycle of training and skills development opportunities for its employees.

Forth Ports has embraced Modern Apprenticeships across a full suite of disciplines and is the only recognised provider for the Port Operations Modern Apprenticeship in Scotland recently partnering with CalMac ferries to support the training of their new Port Operator apprentices.

The business also focuses on opportunities for young people through Schools Discovery Weeks and placements that are recognised at Scottish National 4/5 level within the curriculum along with undergraduate internship programmes.

These provide opportunities for young people to explore the

Over half of UK workers trust HR to serve their interests A major new study by leading HR software provider delivers the HR industry a rather well-deserved pat on the back.

CIPHR conducted the study of over 1,400 full-time employees to delve

into their experiences, satisfaction and levels of trust between employees and HR departments across the UK. The study reveals that HR departments are winning the battle, with employee experience rating highly for almost all questions asked.

56% of respondents say they regard HR as a trusted partner in staff and employer issues whereas only 23% said they did not trust HR. When asked about who HR is there to serve the most, employers or employees, 57% of employees said they feel HR are there to support them rather than their employers.

Furthermore, the latest data reveals the overall level of satisfaction among employees dealing with HR teams is

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high, with just over 60% describing their experience as great or good.

Reassuringly for the industry, only 9% of those responded said their experience of HR in the workplace was poor.

Claire Williams, director of people and services at CIPHR, commented: “This is a really welcome outcome for the HR industry as a whole. The majority of employees have responded with positivity towards HR staff and levels of trust are clearly high. However, the data also shows there are still a large number of employees who have not been won over yet. There is ongoing work needed to encourage employee engagement and improve the overall experience employees have when dealing with HR, whatever the reason.”

NEWS

Scotland’s most flexible employers announced Scotland’s best employers for flexible working have been announced by leading work life balance charity, Family Friendly Working Scotland. Now in its fifth year, the Top Employers Awards celebrate forwardthinking employers who understand how flexibility is good for people – helping them successfully balance work and home life – as well as for business growth.

Figures from Family Friendly Working Scotland show Scots are almost unanimous (95%) in their belief that work life balance is at least as important as salary. This includes nearly a third (32%) of the population who feel it is more important. More than half (55%) of Scottish workers say they already work flexibly.

The winners were announced to an audience of 150 Scottish business leaders at a springthemed Brewery Bash at WEST Brewery in Glasgow on 21st March.

The 2019 Top Employers were: • Best Large Employer: Deloitte • Best Medium Employer: SST Sensing • Best Small Employer: Previse • Best Public Sector Employer: Highlands and Islands Enterprise • Best Third Sector Employer: PKAVS • Best Early Adopter: Arnold Clark • Best for Flexible Recruitment: LUC The following organisations were presented with Outstanding Achievement Awards: • Kindred Advocacy • Aviva • Cairngorms National Park Authority Nikki Slowey, Co-Director of Family Friendly Working Scotland, said: “Congratulations to all the award-winning organisations, who are nurturing a new way of working in Scotland.

New legislation to help women at risk of being underpaid Women are more likely not to notice if their employer underpays them. This is according to new research by ADP, that revealed that almost one in three women (30%) do not always check or even understand their payslips, and subsequently wouldn’t realise if they were paid incorrectly.

The ADP Workforce View research surveyed over 10,000 employees throughout Europe, to investigate how employees feel about current issues in the workplace and the future of work.

The Workforce View research reveals that industries generally dominated by women, such as Healthcare and Retail, Catering & Leisure, are the sectors where employees are least likely to realise if they were paid incorrectly. Around a third of people in the healthcare sector (35%) and retail, catering and leisure sector (32%) said they wouldn’t realise if they were paid incorrectly.

When comparing unpaid overtime, the survey finds that 18% of women work up to five hours a week for free in contrast to only 10% of men.

Simultaneously, both men (29%) and women (30%) work six to ten hours unpaid, while men (4%) tend to do more free work than women (2%) when looking at those that work an extra 21 – 25 hours.

Speaking about The Workforce View research, Jeff Phipps, Managing Director at ADP says: “With one in three women saying they find their payslips confusing, the report highlights that there are still gaps when it comes to pay, equality and transparency in the workplace. This is mostly true in women heavy industries where there are holes in understanding pay. Sectors such as Healthcare and Retail, Catering & Leisure, tend to focus on shift work where employees often work different hours each month that vary in pay rates. This means that workers in these industries are likely not to know if they have been underpaid.”

“ With one in three women saying they find their payslips confusing, the report highlights that there are still gaps when it comes to pay, equality and transparency in the workplace.”

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STATS

Absenteeism vs. presenteeism – which is worse?

W hen someone is absent from work, the remaining staff may take on the extra load. AXA PPP healthcare has produced information on both presenteeism and absenteeism, deliberating between which is actually worse for employees and businesses. But when they come in to work sick, everyone is at risk of catching a cold – which is worse?

Absenteeism

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t comes as no surprise to business owners that an employee’s absence from work can be a disruption. According to a report by ERS Research and Consultancy, sickness absence costs UK businesses an estimated £29bn annually with the average worker taking 6.6 days off each year. It can cause a range of problems: work doesn’t get done or remaining employees can get over-worked, there can be a drop-off in productivity, things can fall through the cracks. Despite the severity of the problem, only 91 per cent of firms track staff absences, with 39 per cent logging them on paper or in a spreadsheet, leaving it open to human error, according research commissioned by HR and payroll specialist Moorepay.

This means businesses are failing to track the true picture of absenteeism.

Presenteeism isn’t any better

M

eanwhile, presenteeism can be almost as bad. This is when an employee comes in to work despite being too ill to be productive – this often goes hand in hand with high-pressure workplaces where employees are stressed and feel obligated to come in. More than three-in-ten organisations reported an increase in people coming in to work ill in the past 12 months, according to ERS. Those who had noticed an increase in presenteeism are nearly twice as likely to report an increase in stress-related absence than those who hadn’t (64 per cent versus 35 per cent). Presenteeism is also much more likely to happen when workloads are piled high or if job security is threatened, and can be cut down with improved management practices.

This can be bad news for the remaining employees as well – even though they may not be asked to take on an extra share of the workload. Working in close conditions can mean your office becomes a petri dish for disease if the illness is contagious – before you know if, half your staff could be struck ill. To make matters worse, presenteeism denies the employee time to recover meaning the period of ill health is generally stretched out. Working conditions can even exacerbate illnesses; according to research from Fellowes, UK employees are regularly suffering from backache (34 per cent), neck ache (25 per cent) and headaches (23 per cent) as a direct result of how they are working.

Productivity takes a hit.

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verall, due to ill health, it is estimated that UK employers are losing 27.5 days of productive work per employee each health, according to research from Britain’s Healthiest Workplace (BHW).

ommenting on the findings, Adrian Lewis, director of Activ Absence said: “In our experience, absenteeism is exacerbated by poor absence management practices. People spend a great deal of time at work and employers are in a unique position to tackle these risk factors and develop appropriate wellbeing strategies that will encourage employees to become healthier, happier and more engaged.”

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TEXT HERE

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FEATURE

SESSION SPEAKER AND TOPICS Session 1: Employee Experience: Delighting your employees the same way as your customers

Session 2: Smart Culture, Smart Workplaces, Smart Conversations…Smart Employment Law

Session 3: Transformational HR: How HR can thrive in a world of disruption

Session 4: Talent Foundations: Transforming talent at Tennent’s

Speakers: Laura Anderson & Claire MacDonald, People’s Postcode Lottery

Speaker: Ronald Mackay, Burness Paull LLP

Speaker: Tricia Nelson, EY

Speakers: Alison Gowen, Lauren McLeod and Katie MacNab

Not only is People’s Postcode Lottery dedicated to their charitable efforts, the organisation aims to promote a great working environment for all staff.

They have achieved a ‘Top Ten’ place in the UK for the Best Companies’ engagement index and in doing so are the highest ranked Scottish headquartered company in the same index. In this lighthearted interactive session, Laura Anderson, Head of HR and Clare MacDonald, Head of Customer Experience will outline the employee journey and how this is mirrored to the lottery player journey. With the experience for employees clearly aligned to that of the customer experience, the company strive for sustainability in everything they do, from the way employees act to the way they work and their core values are a promise of how they treat the earth, nature and other people.

In this session, Ronald Mackay from leading commercial law firm Burness Paull LLP will take a look at the latest developments in employment law facing HR. The pace of change continues and culture sets the tone for how employment laws are applied in practice. Be smart. Be valued. Be ahead of the curve. Be aware.

The business environment continues to change as a result of developments in globalisation, politics, demographics, technology and regulation. These disruptive forces require organisations to change rapidly – and they need their people to be agile and adaptable to that change.

HR and the People agenda is front and centre of successful business strategy.

HR led organisations are leading the way forward and delivering competitive advantage. In this session, Tricia Nelson, a Partner with EY based in Glasgow, will discuss the disruptive trends impacting the People agenda, and how embracing a digital era in HR can support your business in the ever-growing war on talent.

Tricia will also discuss the simple but effective steps HR/People leaders can take to transform their business, and she will share her views on how the HR function can thrive in a world of disruption.

Tennents’ recruitment transformation delivered huge results in just one year.

Starting from a position of costly recruitment and over reliance on agencies, the team overhauled processes, implemented an internal recruitment system and took steps to improve employer branding. The result in Year One was a 37% reduction in time to hire, savings of £200K, improvements in candidate attraction and the resourcing approach becoming a critical element of the overall business talent strategy, all culminating in winning the Hr NETWORK Award in 2018 for Attraction and Resourcing. The team will share their journey of taking control, utilising technology and putting the spotlight back on talent.

Sponsored by:

Sponsored by:

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Roffey Park Institute UK · Europe · Asia Pacific

Roffey Park Institute UK · Europe · Asia Pacific

EDITOR-AT-LARGE

T

he award-winning programme utilises hidden cameras to provide an authentic view of the boss’s journey as they are immersed in the day-to-day operations of their organisations and in the process learning how things can get done better and maybe learning a little something about themselves in terms of their impact as a boss.

Entertainment value yes and while there are other, more orthodox ways to learn about being a boss, what it means in practice and how to be a successful one, there are interesting parallels between the popular reality show and the day-today life of what being a boss is all about. Asking questions of staff about how a business can be improved, seeking feedback on how the boss can do better are all activities that take place in any workplace but it’s how it’s done that is important and how to ensure that being the boss isn’t seen as a negative or something to be apprehensive of – whether you’re the boss or you report into one!

So, what does it mean to be a boss and are they necessary?

The textbook definitions of being a boss are ‘being a person who is in charge of a worker or organisation’ to ‘someone issuing orders’ is a little reminiscent perhaps of the times when HR was referred to as Personnel but the fact remains, bosses are aplenty but how to make it into a magic formula?

Edinburgh-based Stan McKinlay has been a boss most of his working life in various working environments. The hospitality business owner has a clear-cut view of what a boss is all about borne from his own experiences. He said: “A boss assigns tasks, directs the efforts of employees and makes decisions but the way this operates in practice depends on many factors such as individual relationships in the workplace,the size of the workforce and the type of business you’re in.”

He views the notion of the growth of flat structures and members of the workforce having their say in decisions normally taken higher up the hierarchy as relevant in some cases and not others but still feels someone needs to be clearly identified as being in charge.

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EDITOR-AT-LARGE

A different take on the concept of having a boss is that of Lindsey Pollak, author of ‘Becoming the Boss: New Rules for the Next Generation of Leaders’. She focuses on the millennials who, as it’s well known and documented, what different things from the workplace than the generations that came before them but who still make up a sizeable chunk of the salaried population. Pollak promotes the fact that millennials, in particular, have constantly evolving views of hierarchies (aka The Boss) in terms of what they’re for as well as how they influence the workplace. Challenges to such long-established practices of decisions being foisted upon workers without any explanation etc are slowly disappearing due to the demands of a workforce who want to be heard and involved. These pushes for change are all very well and laudable but as Pollak points out in her book, it’ll take concerted actions by organisations to ensure that bosses, whatever level they may be, are seen to be collaborative if they want to have any credence.

The easy answer to this riddle is in the negative but who knows what is around the corner as industry grapples with many conflicts which, even half a generation ago, we wouldn’t have seen. No matter what transpires about the notion of being or having a boss, the concept is surely here to stay in one form or another if not just to achieve the likes of being able to influence and inspire others, make the best of people, lead by example, have a vision, stay committed to stated goals and the like.

Call it what you will but someone has to be in charge at the end of the day but maybe the real issue is what that person is known as – boss, manager, leader but isn’t it all just the same thing at the end of the day?

On a somewhat lighter note and providing an interesting paradox to the whole debate, it is worth noting that there is more than the one meaning to the ‘boss’ term. As well as describing a position in an organisation’s hierarchy it is also slang for ‘excellent.’ Do the two interpretations of the word necessarily go together, are they complementary or completely devoid of one another? There’s no right or wrong answer to that conundrum as it’ll be wholly dependent on our individual experiences of being or having a boss.

The very notion of someone being referred to or seen as ‘the boss’ might seem outdated to some in this world of equal rights for all. While some of the more progressive, liberal and enlightened organisations are putting in place initiatives such as flat structures to minimise the numbers of people seen to be in charge, will the notion of bosses ever completely disappear from the workplace?

Neil is a freelance business journalist who has previously held senior HR positions.

Correction: In the January 2019 issue of Hr NETWORK magazine, the article on mentoring erroneously attributed an example in the workplace to Dunfermlinebased Technip-FMC and the author would like apologise for any inconvenience caused. In publishing this correction, Hr NETWORK magazine wishes to set the record straight.

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RECOGNISE

ACKNOWLEDGE

REWARD

SAVE THE DATE! NATIONAL AWARDS 2019

in partnership with

Gala Dinner, Glasgow Hilton, Thursday 14th November 2019 For further details contact the Awards Planning Team on Tel: 0131 625 3267 or email: awards@hrnetworkscotland.co.uk www.hrnetworkjobs.com