CMI Insights • 24th June 2015

How NOT to manage an internship programme

A new website that enables parents to swap around their children’s internships has been slammed for potentially excluding underprivileged applicants from sought-after slots. Marketed as the “The New Old Boys’ Network”, myInternSwap.com enables each parent member to list an internship they have to offer, and the type of job they

CMI Insights • 22nd June 2015

FTSE boards "recruit in their own image", says diversity guru

A narrow approach to hiring is stagnating the talent pool at the top of UK industry, says a leading board diversity expert. Speaking to Insights, CMI Fellow Joy Maitland – chief executive of leadership development specialists Inemmo – criticised the pace of change within Britain’s

CMI Insights • 19th June 2015

10 companies worth more than $1bn that you've never heard of

Far above the minutiae of management and leadership are the masters of the business universe – and they hide in plain sight. This week, it emerged that a $45 billion valuation had been awarded to one Ant Financial. With a single, booming voice, you ask: “Who are they?” And with good reason.

CMI Insights • 17th June 2015

"Make or buy" dilemma haunts bosses amid skills scramble

Bosses are facing increasingly tough HR issues in their quest to hire specialist managers and take full advantage of economic growth. A report published today by CIPD has shown that more than three out of four (78%) organisations have faced recruitment difficulties in the past year, with

CMI Insights • 15th June 2015

Are apprenticeships failing to connect with young people?

Ambitious government plans to create a further 3 million UK apprenticeships by 2020 have been unveiled today by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. According to BIS, the programme will be enshrined in the forthcoming Enterprise Bill, and set goals for public-sector bodies

CMI Insights • 9th June 2015

Poaching: a definitive guide for bosses and employees

Following months of speculation since DJ Zane Lowe was poached from Radio 1 for an unidentified role at Apple, the tech giant has now unveiled him as leader of its new online radio service, Beats 1. Launched with a fanfare at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, the new music platform will

CMI Insights • 21st May 2015

Hairdryer treatment: four workplace bust-ups that went viral

Of all the HR issues linked to talent management, disciplinary proceedings are relished on neither side of the bargain. In an ideal world, a stern talking to or invitation to take the exit would be handed down well behind closed doors, remaining largely invisible to the other employees

CMI Insights • 8th May 2015

Undignified resignations: six of the best

By any standards, General Election 2015 was a bloodbath. In the space of a single night, the UK’s political landscape has been decisively re-drawn in the Conservatives’ favour, and big beasts of Westminster have been forced off into the wilderness. Already today, we have seen Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg, UKIP spearhead Nigel Farage and

CMI Insights • 10th April 2015

Cameron pledges annual volunteering leave for 15m staffers

Some 15 million workers – including every public-sector employee and anyone based at a firm with at least 250 staff – would be granted three days’ annual volunteering leave if the Conservatives win the General Election. David Cameron has announced that the measure would boost uptake of

CMI Insights • 24th March 2015

FA kicks off ambitious talent management reforms

Football Association bosses have proposed a series of measures to boost the number of home-grown players working in UK teams, in efforts to provide managers of British clubs – and the England squad – with better access to domestic talent. The governing body has worked behind the

CMI Insights • 17th March 2015

Are you paranoid enough about your staff's technology?

“Just because you’re paranoid,” the old adage goes, “doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you.” Typically, that saying has been the preserve of anxious employees who are concerned that their bosses are about to put them on the chopping block. But now it has emerged that the sentiment should be

CMI Insights • 27th February 2015

Shared parental leave and your staff: what you need to know

As we have shown in our recent articles here and here, Shared Parental Leave (SPL) is one of the hottest topics in the management field – and the game is about to change in a matter of weeks. From 5 April, SPL will be available to parents of babies due (or adopted) on, or after, that

CMI Insights • 18th February 2015

Columnist Peter Oborne slams Telegraph management ethics

Ethical lapses at the Telegraph newspaper group – spurred by closer ties between the sales and editorial teams – have stemmed from bad management, according to respected columnist Peter Oborne. In a hard-hitting announcement of his decision to quit the group, published on the Open

CMI Insights • 11th February 2015

"Whistleblower guardians" to monitor NHS bullying

NHS trusts are set to appoint “guardians” who will promote the ability of staff to flag up poor working practices, following today’s long-awaited publication of the Freedom to Speak Up review. Sir Robert Francis QC’s wide-ranging assessment of reporting culture in the NHS follows a run of recent scandals within the organisation – such as a

CMI Insights • 10th February 2015

CMI book awards celebrate the power of Not Knowing

A book urging managers to tap the hidden potential of being in the dark scooped the Overall Winner gong at last night’s Chartered Management Institute (CMI) Management Book of the Year Awards. Penned by experienced consultants Steven D’Souza and Diana Renner, Not Knowing

CMI Insights • 27th January 2015

Challenges of upskilling line managers "face every type of firm"

Senior leaders throughout the UK have expressed mounting concerns about how they will develop the skills and talents of their line managers. According to a study published this week by business consultancy the Involvement and Participation Association (IPA), 70% of HR

CMI Insights • 23rd January 2015

Why it is vital for firms to measure their human capital

It is vital for bosses to increase their focus on human capital management (HCM) if they are to boost performance and avoid further economic crises: that is the key message from a report published today by the Valuing your Talent (VyT) initiative. According to the report – titled Human

CMI Insights • 16th December 2014

Labour goes to war on unpaid internships

Bosses should not be allowed to employ interns on an unpaid basis for longer than a month, according to Labour MP Liam Byrne. In a speech at his old school Burnt Mill in Essex, the shadow minister for Universities, Science and Skills blasted the trend for firms to recruit young, wage-free graduates who are kept hanging on in temp

CMI Insights • 9th December 2014

Isn’t nepotism nuts? Korean Air VP quits over plane outburst

Korean Air vice president Heather Cho has quit the company following a widely publicised incident in which she berated the crew on one of her own planes for serving macadamia nuts in a bag – rather than her preferred receptacle of a bowl. The plane was preparing to fly from JFK to

CMI Insights • 4th December 2014

Keeping strong management in supply and demand

Following its call last week for greater collaborative efforts to boost staffers’ talents, the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) has turned to its next goal: honing management techniques in the critical business area of supply chains. Today, the government