Get the most out of your First Line Managers!
Considered as one of the most effective routes to driving up employee engagement, First Line Manager development provides immediate business payback by impacting performance, customer service, innovation, commitment and quality. It is thought to be vital to assist First Line Managers (FLM’s) in developing good habits during the first stages of their career in order […]
Passwords aren’t going anywhere: How to stay safe
With so much in the news about hacking disasters – it's time that we all got clued up on what is and what isn't a safe online password. I had a chat with one of QA's cyber security trainers to find out what he knows. In a nutshell, passwords are not going away just yet, so it's […]
Thinking Strategically Team Day
I am planning a workshop for a group of senior managers focusing on how their work and the work they delegate to their team members feeds into the team strategy and bigger picture of the organisation. Any activities around ensuring objectives are totally inclusive of the strategy and mutually exclusive (I. e. understanding their individual role and how it […]
Return to Work Interviews: what HR is doing right (and wrong)
Records indicate that the greater completion of Return to Work Interviews (RTWIs), the lower overall absence rates are. But many organisations fail to achieve a high RTWI compliance because their line managers are either: A) poor at the process or B) lack the confidence to talk to their staff about sensitive health issues. You could […]
Book Review: The Step-Up Mindset for New Managers
This self development guide for new managers has been written by Margo Manning asnd will prove very helpful not only to the new manager but as a reminder or refresher to any manager. It is well strucutured and can be used as a self development tool working methodically from Chapter one through to Chapter 11, […]
Why employee autonomy means giving up control
"Why would I want to do that?" He’s the CEO of a venerable Canadian institution and right now he’s not impressed by my suggestion. By the tone of his voice you’d think I’d said he should give all his employees a 100% pay rise and six months paid holiday a year. In fact, I’ve suggested allowing […]
How can feedback affect reward & recognition?
An active and positive feedback culture is integral to modern businesses; I covered the basics of why and how to boost a feedback culture based on praise in my last article. Once your company has started giving more frequent feedback, you may be wondering how this new system will impact reward and career progression decisions. You may […]
Running a Team
One of my favourite things about my job is that there is no end to the experiences that demonstrate ways that I can do it better. Last weekend was no exception. That said, I would prefer it if these experiences did not often involve a 6am alarm call on a Sunday morning… So why did […]
What’s your opinion?
What are the five "must have" skills for an L&D professional to exhibit in order to:- >maintain credibility with customers/line managers, >build credibility with learners >facilitate learning? You don't have to give five…just your persoanl top ones. Rus What are the five "must have" skills for an L&D professional to exhibit in order to:->maintain credibility […]
4 effective applications of HR analytics for the L&D manager
The new HRM gold is called HR analytics. However, basing decisions on valuable insights from ‘big data’ has already been growing in mostly larger organizations for years. For HR and more specifically Learning and Development, lots of opportunities still exist, though. How can a L&D manager derive a strategic advantage from HR analytics? After a […]
Coffee briefing: Design thinking, leadership training and the bad side to getting a PhD
Welcome to another of our weekly round-ups of news and opinion from across the L&D industry. We'd love to know what you think of the articles we've shared, or let us know what you've found interesting this week in the comments below. Strategy – Looking ahead to #LearningLive 2016 (Kate Graham blog) – In praise of […]
Costing Training design & development after conducting Training Needs Analysis
There are many ways to decide on the cost of training design & development, for example; Chapman, B. (2010). How Long Does it Take to Create Learning? [Research Study]. Published by Chapman Alliance LLC. www.chapmanalliance.com But that assumes that you are starting from scratch. If however, you have completed a full Training Needs Analysis (TNA) […]
Why employees resign: recognising disengagement, and what to do about it
Martin Baker is the Chief Executive of the Corporate eLearning Consortium. He’s recognised as being one of the top ten most influential people working in learning technologies in the UK. Here he shares an analysis from the Toolkit for Managers on the work of Leigh Branham – a key contributor to the debate on employee […]
How Toyota Trained GM: An Example of the Value of Company Culture
Company culture is difficult to define, but it can make a massive difference in how competitive a company can be and whether they can remain dominant for an extended period of time. When a company can survive varying economic environments, expand into new markets, replace its leading officers, and still thrive, it is likely because […]
The Dreaded Weekly Meeting
Have you ever attended a meeting and wondered why? Worse, have you ever attended a regular weekly meeting and wondered why every week? I have. When I was a young manager, I used to attend a ‘Section Heads’ meeting every Monday. They were time consuming (they’d take the entire morning). They were boring. And they were […]
What does it take to motivate a TZ reader?
797 people have read the post about the survey into what makes a job boring…. but only 18 people could be bothered to fill in a three minute survey….https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/L55T2LH what do I have to offer to get a half-decent number of people to answer one single question? 797 people have read the post about the […]
Book Review: Designing The Purposeful Organisation
Clive Wilson’s Designing the Purposeful Organisation is a striking and compelling argument for placing ‘purpose’ at the heart of every organisation. Told in an almost personal narrative style, the author’s voice resonates throughout, embedding the key message that ‘for organisations to be successful, they must be purpose-driven’. Although arguably a simple enough premise, Wilson guides […]
Should onboarding be like a travel guide?
When we go on holidays to a different country, we usually take a travel guide with us. We want to know the basics like business hours, tips on restaurants, common expressions, but we also want to learn something about that country. Attractions, events, what people usually do there, its culture! And when we are able […]
Is YOUR job boring?
This article from the BBC raises the spectre of boredom becoming a formally recognised cause of stress – it got me thinking- What is it that makes a job boring for any one particular person? Bearing in mind that we are all different and that some people love doing what others would pay good money […]
The Learning Strategy Story – Introduction
Learning and development is a crucial part of medium to large organisations as there is a core belief that the most important resource in an organisation is the people. The aim of learning and development is to ensure people have the required skills and knowledge to do their jobs. This also ensures that if people […]
