By Neville Henderson, principal consultant at Pasfield Curran

Article was first published in HRZone.

As uncertainty over the Eurozone crisis continues to dampen confidence and fears of a double-dip recession continue to loom, it appears that UK organisations will need to keep on tightening their belts for some time to come.

And as downsizing strategies go, few measures ever seem to receive the same amount of airtime and column inches as job cuts, which have become the very public face of the economic downturn.

The rationale for redundancies is easy to understand when the workforce can account for anything up to 90% of a business’ total fixed costs. But are employers simply taking the easy way out?

There is mounting evidence to suggest that significant efficiencies – amounting to millions of pounds in cost savings – can be achieved just by managing the workforce more effectively. Cutting headcount is not a cheap proposition and it is an agonizing process in any organisation. Worse still, losing important knowledge and skills can come back to haunt you in the longer term. Read the rest of this entry »

Here are the top 10 stories of last month.

1. 6 competencies for a successful HR professional

According to “the largest global study ever on human resource professionals” there are 6 competencies you must have to become a successful HR professional. Read more to find out how to become one, and how to build an effective HR department. Read more

2. 13 ways Millennials view work differently

Young people who are entering the workforce have an entirely different view than their parents. According to a recent study by a Yale professor, starting to work in a recession creates attitudes that could last up to 20 years. Read more

3. What is your Employee Value Proposition?

Why would top talent in your industry want to work for you? The answer shouldn´t only be written in words, it should be a part of your company’s culture. New studies show that in the tough job market it’s the culture, and not a high salary, that is important for employees. Read more
Read the rest of this entry »

Please find below the top 5 articles of last week:

1. 5 habits of a great recruiter

Here is a list of 5 things most successful recruiters do. How to measure being successful can of course always be discussed, but if you have a proactive approach and are open to new influences you are already ahead of many others.

Read more

2. 10 tips when using social media for recruiting

The awareness of the commitment it takes to use social media for recruitment is increasing; nevertheless, there are still a lot of misconceptions and mistakes made. Do you know where to find your audience online? Moreover, do you have interesting and engaging content on your profiles?

Read more

3.What is your Employee Value Proposition?

Why would top talent in your industry want to work for you? The answer shouldn´t only be written in words, it should be a part of your company’s culture. New studies show that in the tough job market it’s the culture, and not a high salary, that is important for employees.

Read more

4. The onboarding process is becoming digital

An effective onboarding saves the employer a lot of money. New software, mobile apps and social media make the process more technical and transparent. “In many businesses, senior people are being given smartphones before they start, so they can hit the ground running and we expect to see more mobile apps relating to onboarding” says Ann Brown, vice president UK HR Capgemini.

Read more

5. HR at IBM

The HR department at IBM has taken a proactive role to drive operational improvement and change how the company is working. The focus is to develop innovative employees and the external branding is closely linked to the internal brand.

Read more

We introduce a new section every week of the most read articles from the Daily Buzz called “Best of the Buzz”. Here are the top 5:

1. 6 competencies for a successful HR professional

According to “the largest global study ever on human resource professionals” there are 6 competencies you must have to become a successful HR professional. Read more to find out how to become one, and how to build an effective HR department.
Read more

2. Recruitment in 2012

Over the past years, the way we think about work and recruitment has changed. Gone are the days when everyone was a regular employee, working all hours from the office and wanted the job that paid the most. Two of the reasons are of course the turbulent economy and new technical tools.
Read more

3. IKEA got thousands of applicants without spending money on media

In Australia, IKEA has been running a recruitment campaign, from which they got over 4000 quality applicants, without spending a dollar on media. By using their own specific channels and tone of voice, they successfully hired almost 300 staff to a new department store.
Click here to view video

4. How to recruit passive candidates

The best candidates are often the passive ones, and the process of recruiting them is completely different from how to recruit active job seekers. Does your company have a strategy for how to attract and hire the passive candidates?
Read more

5. HR 2012 forecasts

What are your predictions for 2012? “More Social, More Data, More Job Boards, More Acquisitions…” says John Sumser in HR Examiner. He presents 13 hot topics and explains how they will affect you this year.
Read more