We recently received a question from an employer who needed to respond to an employee requesting flexible work arrangements (to change from full time to part time and also do some work from home).Q: Can anyone request flexible work arrangements and can I say no?First of all, let's be clear about what we mean by flexible working arrangements. A requ...

Have you ever had the experience where you've been working or otherwise interacting with someone and they've responded to something that's happened in a way that is surprising to you? Perhaps their reaction has been so different to what you anticipated that you've asked yourself what planet they've come from!I've seen this a lot over my career, wit...

​We all get knock-backs occasionally. As the old saying goes, life is not all wine and roses (or beer and skittles for that matter).At these times, it can be a natural tendency for some to slip into a negative mode of thinking and self-talk: "Why does bad stuff always happen to me?", "I made a mess of that", "My life sucks", "I'm a failure/imposter...

​I've spent a lot of time over the years in the leadership development space - as a learner, facilitator, coach, avid reader and observer. One of the things I've learned along the way is that much of the literature and research in this area is focused on seeking answers to questions such as "What is it that constructive leaders DO?", and "How ...

We've been providing our clients with a fair bit of recruitment support lately, so an article by John Wilson and Kieran Pender of Bradley Allen Love in the current edition of HRM (the official magazine of the Australian Human Resources Institute – yes, exciting stuff!), caught my attention.The authors make the valid point that, while most employers...

One of my coaching clients mentioned to me the other day that he was working on some "anti-goals". Rather than focusing on what he wants to achieve in his personal and professional life, he's finding it more helpful to make a list of what he doesn't want (eg. "a job where I have no time for family", "a job with pay that doesn't give me enough incom...

On at least three separate occasions over the last couple of weeks I've had clients make comments to me along those lines, and it's frankly getting annoying.Please don't tell me "She's great at her job [Finance Manager by the way], but terrible at managing people".Please don't tell me "He's great at his job [Business Development Manager], but is in...

One of the key challenges for small business owners engaging others in the business is to understand and comply with legislative requirements. Here's the essential "HR stuff" you need to know:National Employment Standards:The National Employment Standards (NES) prescribe minimum terms and conditions of employment for those covered by the Fair Work ...

​We frequently find ourselves helping business owners or managers distinguish between employees and contractors. While it might seem a matter of little consequence, there's much more than semantics at play. It's important to clearly understand the difference as the result goes a long way to determining the applicability of legislation and the right...

While it's good to have a compliant workplace, it's even better to have a safe workplace. Apart from the risk of fines of up to $3m for corporations and $600k and/or 5 years gaol for individuals found to have breached the Work Health & Safety Act, work-related accidents and illnesses can result in lost productivity, time, reputation, not to men...

'TIS THE SEASON TO BE…..CAUTIOUS! "'Twas a few weeks before Christmas, when all through the workplace, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse" …. that's not entirely correct. One creature that does traditionally stir at this time of year in many workplaces is the HR Manager, who plays the role of Scrooge as he or she proceeds to advise their...

We've had some good feedback on our recent blog article which helps businesses manage the risks associated with staff terminations (refer here). In response, we've gone a step further and produced an infographic which provides a useful summary of key information – click on the image below for access.

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team model (above) was developed by Patrick Lencioni, author of the best-selling book of the same name and founder and president of The Table Group, a US-based management consulting firm. The model, drawn from Lencioni's experiences in executive team development, identifies those attributes that tend to be apparent i...

​I don't know if it's something in the winter air, but we have in recent weeks received an unusual number of requests from business owners and managers seeking assistance to manage the risks associated with terminating employees after sustained poor performance, or in cases of misconduct.And it appears that they are right to be wary - recent statis...

​Just as it's critical to business success to measure and analyse revenue and profit, investment performance, and monitor the costs of production or service delivery, so it is critical to measure the outcomes and processes associated with managing people. This applies regardless of the size of the business. After all, employment-related costs ...

In a previous article, we introduced the Human Synergistics Circumplex™, a proven framework to measure, report, discuss and better understand individual and collective human behaviours, and their impact upon business and organisation performance (refer: Catching Smoke: A Proven Framework for Addressing Culture and Leadership). This latest and final...

In a previous article, we introduced the Human Synergistics Circumplex™, a proven framework to measure, report, discuss and better understand individual and collective human behaviours, and their impact upon business and organisation performance (refer: Catching Smoke: A Proven Framework for Addressing Culture and Leadership). This latest article f...

In a previous article, we introduced the Human Synergistics Circumplex™, a proven framework to measure, report, discuss and better understand individual and collective human behaviour, and their impact upon business and organisational performance (refer: Catching Smoke: A Proven Framework for Addressing Culture and Leadership). This latest article ...

In a previous article, we introduced the Human Synergistics Circumplex™, a proven framework to measure, report, discuss and better understand individual and collective human behaviour, and their impact upon business and organisational performance (refer: Catching Smoke: A Proven Framework for Addressing Culture and Leadership). This latest article ...

We are sometimes asked about "the evidence" to support our exclusive 8 Elements to Success through People(c) Model (fair enough too!), so if you need some more information on Recruiting Right and having the best people work within your business then check out our latest infographic. Click on the image to view.