Employers that want to keep pace with the rest of the world must adapt their organisations to welcome employees from different cultural backgrounds, but too many expect immigrants and foreign workers to simply 'fit in', says growth strategist and culture specialist Pamela Young.
Good managers are born, not made, but when people without this ability are promoted into management roles they use manipulation and politics to get by, often with devastating effects on employee engagement, says the CEO of global research company Gallup Consulting.
Traumatic experiences such as workplace bullying not only affect the employees who are directly involved, but also those who support them, and "vicarious trauma" can have a serious impact on a worker's health and productivity, according to employment lawyer Josh Bornstein.
As the Fair Work Commission's anti-bullying regime starts to take shape, an industrial barrister has compiled a list of 13 issues employers should consider when preparing to defend a claim.
Many organisations still fail to distinguish between the roles they should develop from within ('make'), those they should acquire from the market ('buy'), and those they should outsource, according to HR Daily blogger and workforce strategy expert Colin Beames.
Confusion about how long an organisation should retain a sick or injured employee who's unable to work could be stopping many employers from lawfully terminating absent staff, according to lawyers from Hicksons' workplace relations group.
Benefits such as flexi-time and time off in lieu are now so prevalent that they're no longer considered a significant competitive advantage - but this doesn't mean they're unimportant, says Mercer Pacific talent business leader Garry Adams.
Using a structure that separates hiring teams into "front" and "back" office services creates more strategic recruitment functions, while also reducing hiring costs and improving efficiency, says internal staffing specialist Trevor Vas.
Employees' alignment to a company's values drops before their performance does, so HR professionals who monitor core values adherence are well placed to heed the warning signs and minimise damage, according to The Ethics of Success managing director, Omer Soker.
"High-demand" employees sap their managers' energy and clog the organisation's complaints processes, often escalating situations "beyond logical comprehension", according to HR Daily Community blogger, Catherine Gillespie.
All employers should consider putting in place a workplace s-xual harassment prevention plan, even though such plans are only expressly prescribed in one jurisdiction, according to a risk management expert.
Recent events have shone a spotlight on whistleblowing, placing employers firmly on notice that their response to a protected disclosure could be subject to intense scrutiny. Watch this webcast to understand the role HR plays in this challenging space.
