July 9, 2018
Quarter of British workers have a side hustle as well as their main job
Academics at Henley Business School have revealed a growing trend in ‘side hustles’ which shows that as many as 1 in 4 people in the UK are running at least one business project alongside their main day job, contributing an estimated £72 billion to the UK economy. Henley has published a white paper on the emerging side hustle economy. Its study of over 500 business leaders and 1,100 UK adults found the trend is now happening at an unprecedented pace across the UK. A side hustle is defined as a secondary business or job that brings in, or has potential to bring in, extra income. 73 of people who start a side hustle do so to follow a passion or explore a new challenge, but there are financial benefits too, with side businesses contributing 20 percent to side hustlers’ income.
The majority (82 percent) of employees have ideas about how their company can help improve the business claims a new survey, but over a third (34 percent) say their ideas are being ignored by their employers. The findings were announced alongside the launch of Sideways 6’s inaugural State of Employee Ideas report, which explores how employees at all levels, at businesses of all sizes, all over the world feel their company treats their ideas also reveals that 39 percent of females felt that their ideas are not being listened to, compared to 30 percent of males. Interestingly, despite the number of ideas they have, many employees remain fearful of voicing them. According to the findings, one fifth (18 percent) of those same ideas are never heard because employees are afraid to put them forward. The results also identified a clear disparity in levels of confidence to put forward ideas between younger and older employees. When surveyed, 64 percent of senior level employees strongly agreed that they have ideas and aren’t afraid to voice them, compared to 42 percent junior level employees.
The majority of employees are disappointed with their company’s lack of investment in technology, and despite the fact three quarters (76 percent) want to request flexible working – almost half still don’t have the option of working more flexibly, a new report from a technology company claims. According to the survey by technology company Ingram Micro Cloud UK, in collaboration with technology company Microsoft, despite the fact that Millennials and Centennials are often thought to be the driving force behind changing workplace practices – and are often derided in popular discourse for having unreasonable and unrealistic expectations – the calls for change are coming from all segments of the workforce. However, 85 percent of Millennials admit to procuring their own workplace technologies such as instant messaging, Skype, file hosting and sharing tools (all available from Ingram Micro Cloud) that aren’t supported or provided by their employer, which raises major security issues, acco.
Employers with over 250 employees are more likely to have a significant absence issue among staff says new research from Group Risk Development (GRiD). According to HR decision makers companies with over 250 employees have the highest absence rates – averaging 7.5 days per year yet micro businesses with between 1-9 staff only see their staff take an average of 2.8 days absence per year. Five per cent of HR decision makers also admitted to not recording or monitoring absence at all, although this is more prevalent amongst SMEs (6 percent) than those with over 250 employees (1 percent). 
A major global report has revealed a lack of confidence in data is limiting corporate success in the emerging era of robotics and automation. The global research launched by Qlik, has revealed an escalating skills gap preventing business decision-makers asking the right questions of data and machines. Despite 
Nearly half of UK managers (45.1 percent) are ill-prepared for the role, and a quarter (25 percent) of employees say their manager does not have the right skills for effective management, claims new research by Bridge by Instructure. The study, based on interviews of 1,000 managers and employees across the UK on their attitudes towards both management and learning and development, revealed that more than half of those who responded (53.4 percent) think managers need more training to perform as a manager and, almost half (45 percent) think managers need to be given time to operate as a manager rather than having those responsibilities ‘bolted on’ to their existing role. 
The way to measure an employer’s speed of innovation includes how they find talent, their appraisal process, how employees recommend the organisation they work for to others, and how much employees collaborate, claims a new European study by Cornerstone OnDemand and IDC. “Future Culture: Building a Culture of Innovation in the Age of Digital Transformation” explores the relationship between European organisations’ speed of innovation and talent management, with the research showing that firms with a steady stream of new products and services are more likely to have an ongoing feedback process with employees, rather than an annual performance review, while organisations with a slower rate of innovation often use coaching and mentoring to develop employees.
The digital era, ageing populations, skills shortages, and unpredictable political and economic contexts are persuading multinationals to focus more on mobile talent, new ways of working and assessing the cost of expatriate packages for international employees that are critical to the future of work. This is according to Mercer’s 24th annual Cost of Living Survey which reveals that factors such as instability of housing markets and fluctuating inflation, currencies and prices for goods and services, are impacting the cost of doing business in various cities around the world. UK cities have significantly risen in the ranking this year. 
Almost 60 percent of UK employees are unable to identify key symptoms of the most common mental health conditions resulting in treatment delays for millions of workers. A new study from Bupa examined employees’ understanding of key psychological and behavioural symptoms of six of the most prevalent conditions in the UK, as well as identifying widely-held misconceptions. The research reveals that inaccurate assumptions have caused almost seven million people to delay seeking support for a mental health problem. Early diagnosis and treatment of conditions can improve recovery rates which is why medical experts at Bupa want to raise awareness of the accurate symptoms. 
June 25, 2018
Leading with purpose is the signature strength of a great leader
by Ben Renshaw • Comment, Workplace
Know your past to understand your future
Early in our relationship I asked him about his philosophy about leadership to learn why he did what he did and what he thought about the value of his role. It was a short conversation. David’s response was that he wasn’t a leader, he was a technocrat (although he was already accountable for over 3,000 people), and his role was to deliver the numbers. I realized that going head on into leadership was not the answer. I suggested that we step back and explore what had shaped his career so far and to explore implications for his future. He agreed and quickly told me that his life had been uneventful and therefore it would be a short conversation. Two hours later we were still in the middle of running through David’s life experience and we had to reschedule for the next day. Three more hours and David had painted a rich picture of his lifeline and the impact on his career and leadership.
There were three key values that stood out from his story – doing the right thing, setting high standards and getting the job done. These were paramount for David, strongly influenced by his father who had been a significant role model. When we looked at his purpose David was less clear. He knew that he thrived on change and challenging the status quo. He was at his best when required to achieve stretching targets. He was passionate about showing loyalty to others, including friends and family. We explored his purpose until he arrived at an end point, ”Being a creator of opportunity”. This resonated wholeheartedly and ignited his fire.
Leading leaders
I asked David what it would be like if rather than thinking traditionally about adopting a leadership role he committed to being purpose-led? He was unsure at first because it didn’t seem tangible enough. I followed up by challenging him to define what being purpose-led would look like if he was to follow being a creator of opportunity on a daily basis? He described the following:
• seek new horizons for the company to grow;
• encourage people to develop and succeed;
• embrace problems as a way to learn and continuously improve;
• build relationships to develop better outcomes;
• stay energized to be at the top of his game;
• leave a legacy for the company, products and people to be in a better place than when he arrived.
By connecting with the evidence of being purpose-led, David tapped into his own internal drive to be the best he could be. I then asked him to consider what would happen if these six factors became the backbone of his own leadership framework. He got it. For the first time David was able to make an authentic linkage between what was most important to him and leadership, rather than it appearing like a dry theoretical concept.
Next, we evolved his framework into a living and breathing way of leading. We created a map which gave him the clarity about what his leadership could look like:
David found that by putting his purpose at the heart of his leadership he was able to integrate what was most important for him and remove previous conflict about how to lead.
What is your purpose?
Purpose is the catalyst for personal meaning and reason for being. Your purpose is the glue that binds teams together and the inspiration that enables organizations to outperform. It is the meeting point between your passion and your talent. When you are on purpose you unlock the necessary skillset to thrive in today’s complex world.
So, what is your purpose? To discover your purpose requires an open mind and a genuine willingness focused on peak experiences in your life. Here are three steps to help you find your purpose:
1. Identify peak moments. Ask yourself, when have you been at your best? Most fulfilled? Happiest? For instance, playing sports, travelling the world, hitting goals.
2. Make meaning. What was it about these events that made them so significant? For example, unleashing passion, learning new things and achieving success.
3. Define your why. Reflect upon why your big themes inspire you and how you would describe your ultimate reason for existence.
Once you have found your purpose you are in a position to define what success would look like to be purpose-led. Translating your success measures into actions enables you to lead with purpose every-day. This will become what you are known for, what you are appreciated for and what will bring you ultimate fulfilment.
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