A trend emerging inside the workplace, but outside of current HR best practice, is unlimited annual leave. The Guardian recently reported that communications group STW is offering its consultants unlimited paid annual leave, stirring interest in the business community, although it’s not the first company to do so. Consulting firm CEB Global estimates that about 9% of companies around the world offer similar arrangements. Netflix does it and so does LinkedIn. And Virgin Management, the parent company of Virgin’s worldwide operations, has offered its top layer of management in the US and the UK extended paid leave since 2014. So how does an unlimited annual leave policy look in practice?

One of our most popular ever blog posts dates way back to 2013, and we've decided it is time to provide an update because the world of work is constantly evolving. In the world of work and HR best practice, a lot has changed in the last five years. The key risk areas for HR change through time, and the risk areas we identified almost 5 years ago are a little different to those HR Professionals face today. Whilst it is true that there are certain risks that remain a constant in HR operations, it is also fair to say that the changing nature of work introduces new risks all the time. The current pace of change makes it hard for HR to keep up. Outlined below are the 5 key risk areas we believe HR needs to pay attention to right now.

Our last post about the Digital Transformation of HR made it clear that no organisation, business, government or NGO, will be able to realise a successful digital HR transformation without putting people first and having those people onboard and committed to the process. Many of you know from experience that when things change too fast, or the change management process doesn't take into account the individuals impacted by change, (as well as their concerns), this can be a recipe for failure. From a broader perspective, a poorly executed change management process can potentially result in organisation-wide resistance, which is a disastrous outcome for the business. As the way we work makes it more possible for the HR department to make the transition from an overhead towards being a revenue generator, and as HR best practice continues to transform, we pose the question: 'Can technology transform HR from cost centre to profit centre'?

Digital transformation isn't just ubiquitous, it is ultimately unavoidable and quickly being absorbed into HR best practice. Twenty years from now, few aspects of the world of work will have escaped the digital revolution. But what exactly does it mean for HR, and how can such transformation be successfully implemented, both within the HR department and organisation wide? What we're really talking about here is a change management process. A process which HR Professionals and business leaders are often being called on to execute in a new and constantly shifting context. Not since the third Industrial Revolution has there been such a significant change in the way we work, meaning that lived experience of this type of quantum leap in workplace practices simply don't exist in boardrooms and leadership teams. That's why resources such as i-Scoop's 'Online Guide To Digital Business Transformation' are so valuable. The guide offers a highly educational deep dive into what digital transformation is, what it requires of businesses, and how to implement such transformation successfully. 

If you've heard any of the news about the Financial Services Royal Commission, it is pretty clear that these businesses don't do a very good job of conveying and embedding mission-critical concepts (like ethical behaviour) into their organisation. Communicating the values of your business, and illustrating the culture of your organisation to both potential and actual employees is one thing. Ensuring that those values aren't just paid lip service, but become lived experiences at ALL levels within your organisation, is definitely business-critical in today's marketplace. If the interrogations and admissions of the Royal Commission are anything to go by, it is clear that there is such a wide gap between words and actions in business that something needs to be done. But what? Our last couple of Blog posts have focused on the importance of getting Onboarding right, and the untapped benefits of storytelling for HR. In this Blog, we will explore how you can use the power of story as part of your Onboarding process to set the right tone for the expectations your business has about 'how we do things around here.'

Despite decades of work with clients large and small, Murray Nossel, founder of Narativ, understands through experience that there might always be skepticism in the corporate world about anything that seems 'touchy-feely.' And yet, if ever there was an organisational department that deserves a 'get out of jail free' pass on the touchy-feely front, it should be HR. However, HR Professionals tend to shy away from being seen as touchy-feely in an effort to gain more legitimacy within the business. In a world increasingly driven by data and metrics, soft skills like the touchy-feely art of storytelling go A LONG way to balancing the technologically driven environment workplaces have become (and will become more so going forward). To all the HR Professionals out there reading this post, consider this your opportunity to get all touchy-feely AND to drive positive change in your organisation through storytelling.

One of the great things about providing a service for so many organisations (and the employees of those organisations) is that we get to hear first-hand feedback about what HR Professionals and the teams they serve want and need to make work better. What has become abundantly clear, and increasingly critical in the world of work, is the importance of the onboarding process in setting up new or transferring employees to understand, enjoy and succeed in their new role. We recently proposed that 'how you do onboarding is how you do everything,' and that got us thinking... What would be the best way for us to walk our talk, to put our money where our mouth is and to really make a difference in the world of work? The answer is that we have created a fantastic new Employee Onboarding Software Solution and made it FREE (for a limited time). That means that it is easier than ever for HR Professionals and the organisations they serve to harness the power of Digital HR to transform onboarding from good to great. If you're still not convinced that the onboarding process is probably THE most important aspect of the employee lifecycle, let's dive a little deeper.

Even though each organisation is unique, with its own individual needs, it is fair to say that there is a standard blueprint that forms the foundation of all HR software implementation projects. To get implementation right, it is critical that your business approaches the entire process with a willingness to work methodically from beginning to end, putting in place a detailed plan that your team then executes with diligence and a high attention to detail. If you want to avoid the pitfalls that many businesses experience during the implementation process, here's what you need to know.