[I]t has been a tough 12 months, but we've navigated it well because we planned well.

This is CIPD CEO Jackie Orme's assessment of the fortunes of the CIPD over its most recent accounting year (1 July 2009 to 30 June 2010), published by People Management.

FAQs providing information about the impact of the Government's announcement on the abolition of the default retirement age have been popular in the last month. In particular, employers have been looking at the expected timetable for the changes.

New questions on the Bribery Act 2010 and on using comments posted on employees' Facebook pages as evidence in disciplinary proceedings also feature in the list of top ten FAQs on XpertHR for August 2010.

Other popular FAQs deal with ending fixed-term contracts early, either for reasons of redundancy or poor performance.

The XpertHR conference on managing absence, sickness and stress, in London on 22 September 2010, is a one-day event aimed at any HR professional tasked with reducing absence rates and bringing employees on sick-leave back into productive work.

Replacing nine laws and more than 100 other measures, the Equality Act 2010 is set to bring about the greatest change to employment law this year and, with the bulk of the legislation being introduced in October, there’s no time like the present for employers to identify how the Act will impact their organisation.

Police officers in the West Midlands have been given strict instructions about the underwear they wear at work, according to the Daily Telegraph, and they’re not happy.

Our ongoing series of guest blog posts here on XpertHR Employment Intelligence brings together a diverse array of voices, each presenting their personal take on the following topic: "If I could change one thing about HR..."

Today we present the contribution of an anonymous UK HR Manager working in the public sector, who wants to see "HR finally get to grips with the idea of what it is really here for."

If you would like to contribute your own guest post to this series, please e-mail me, or contact me via Twitter.

Anonymous: If I could change one thing about HR...

It's unbelievable in the 21st Century, to me at least, that you can still find some people in HR who are confused about what our role is. I still hear people talking as if we were an offshoot of some nineteenth-century social welfare experiment. Let's change one thing about us at least - lets get clarity, focus and coherence of purpose.

XpertHR is inviting you to have your say on the following topic "If I could change one thing about HR...".

We're looking for guest blog posts (written, video or audio posts all welcome). If you would like to contribute your own guest post to this series, please e-mail me, or contact me via Twitter.

Alternatively, you can take part in the debate by posting comments on the blog posts comprising this series.

Read all the posts in this series:

• Kevin J Ball: If I could change one thing about HR...
• David Shepherd: If I could change one thing about HR...
• Bill Boorman: If I could change one thing about HR...
• Sukhvinder Pabial (aka @naturalgrump): If I could change one thing about HR...
• Glyn Lumley (The HR Maverick): If I could change one thing about HR...
• J Keith Dunbar: If I could change one thing about HR...
• Grant Mason: If I could change one thing about HR...
• Anonymous: If I could change one thing about HR...
• The HRD: If I could change one thing about HR...
• Paul Smith: If I could change one thing about HR...
  

The second instalment in XpertHR Employment Intelligence's ongoing series - exploring the topic "If I could change one thing about HR..." - comes from none other than XpertHR founding editor (and current group editor) David Shepherd. David's recorded a video blog post (and, as David points out in the video, this was filmed prior to the publication of the first instalment in this series, in which Kevin J Ball set out his views, sparking an in-depth discussion via the comments field).

Click play to hear what David has to say...

David Shepherd, XpertHR: If I could change one thing about HR...

Last week, we announced a new series of guest blog posts on XpertHR Employment Intelligence on the following topic: "If I could change one thing about HR...".

Today, it is my privilege to introduce the first instalment in this new series of guest blog posts. The inaugural offering comes from HR strategist and writer Kevin J Ball. Kevin here provides his own personal take on the following topic: "If I could change one thing about HR...". You can read further blog posts from Kevin at the People Matters site from West Consulting, and you are also well advised to follow him on Twitter.

And if you would like to contribute your own guest post to this series, please e-mail me, or contact me via Twitter.

Kevin J Ball: If I could change one thing about HR...

As I was sitting down to write this my computer tugged my sleeve to let me know I had a new e-mail.  It's from the CIPD. "Where will the HR function sit in the future?" it says. Guessing that the professional body is not concerned with re-arranging the furniture (dangerous assumption, I know, but stick with me) I realized that it is this, more than anything else, that I would change about HR: if I was King for a day, I would forever ban the profession from gazing anxiously at its own navel.

I'm delighted to be able to present the latest entry in our ongoing series of guest blog posts, in which the topic "If I could change one things about HR..." is addressed by a range of voices. Today's entry comes from one of the UK's best HR bloggers, Glyn Lumley. Glyn is author of the HR Maverick blog, and is also to be found on Twitter, as @glynlumley.

If you would like to contribute your own guest post to this series, please e-mail me, or contact me via Twitter.

Here is what Glyn has to say:

Glyn Lumley: 'If I could change one thing about HR, it would be the reason why.'

The barnyard rooster Chanticleer had a theory. He crowed every morning, putting forth all his energy, and flapped his wings. The sun came up. The connection was clear: his crowing caused the sun to come up. There was no question of his importance. Then came a snag. He forgot one morning to crow. The sun came up anyhow. Crestfallen, he was forced to revise his theory. Without his theory, he would have had nothing to revise, nothing to learn.

Grant Mason, Brisbane-based co-founder of networking platform Yackstar.com is the fifth guest blogger to contribute a post in our ongoing series, addressing the topic: "If I could change one thing about HR..."

If you would like to contribute your own guest post to this series, please e-mail me, or contact me via Twitter.

Grant Mason: If I could change one thing about HR...

I hate HR outsourcing. The kind that wraps up everything into neat packages and contracts the parts offshore. On a recent BPO project I researched best practice. In HP you can call a number anywhere in the world and get any HR question answered. In a financial institution all issues went to the centralised helpdesk. Something nagged at me. There was something missing.

Today's guest post in our series on the topic of "If I could change one thing about HR..." comes from Sukhvinder Pabial - a very experienced HR/L&D professional, author of an entertaining and insightful blog and an equally entertaining and insightful Twitter user under the name @naturalgrump.

If you would like to contribute your own guest post to this series, please e-mail me, or contact me via Twitter.

Sukhvinder, the XpertHR Employment Intelligence stage is yours...

Sukhvinder Pabial: 'If I could change one thing about HR...'

I've been in learning and development for seven years now. In that time I've had the fortune of being involved in a wide variety of initiatives involving HR, internal comms, OD and of course L&D. There's no doubt about it, L&D is my bread and butter and I love it. In that time, I've also come to realise there's one thing I've learned about HR. They're just not that well respected as a core business unit.

With the August Bank Holiday now behind us, our series of guest blog posts on the topic "If I could change on thing about HR..." continues today with a fascinating post from anonymous HR blogger and full-time HR director The HRD. The HRD is author of the excellent My Hell is Other People blog - one of the HR bloggers' blogs of choice, as revealed by our mini survey earlier this year, and maintains a strong Twitter presence. He describes himself as a "British HR Director caught in a Sartrian nightmare and trying to see the philosophical side of life." It is a particular honour therefore to have the HRD use his guest post to expand at length on these Sartrian themes.

If you would like to contribute your own guest post to this series, please e-mail me, or contact me via Twitter.

Over to you, the HRD:

The HRD: 'Existentialism is an HRism'

Existentialism addresses the purpose and existence of men. Having been in and observed the profession for the best part of two decades, it is my belief that HR is facing its own existential crisis. We can learn a lot from the existentialists about how HR can face up to this crisis, and take charge of its actions.

This month's top ten employers' questions on XpertHR include faqs on casual workers, the status of employees who act up to more senior roles, warnings for misconduct, and re-employing redundant employees.

With parts of the UK in the midst of what looks (and feels!) a lot like a heatwave (external website), and the Met Office issuing a hot weather health alert (external website), here's a timely reminder that XpertHR subscribers can access a wealth of resources on handling summer issues, including the following: workplace temperatures; dress codes; personal hygiene; holiday requests; absenteeism; and dealing with disciplinary situations arising out of summer issues.

How to cut employees' pay, service requirements for constructive dismissal claims, tape recording meetings, and withdrawing job offers are all issues that have been exercising HR professionals in the past month.

The top 10 HR questions show the most popular FAQs on XpertHR in June. As ever, the list includes a number of questions on redundancy payments and procedures.

It’s not that easy for newly-promoted employees to hit the ground running. While they may have been with the organisation for a while, so are familiar with its procedures and its people, there are new challenges to cope with, including managing colleagues and having additional responsibility.

Employers’ procedures on annual leave have been put to the test over the last few months. First we had the European Court of Justice decisions of Stringer and Pereda, which dealt with the interplay between sickness and annual leave. Then the snow arrived. Again and again. With schools on the cusp of the summer holidays, HR professionals will once again need to get their heads round annual leave matters, as employees make competing and last-minute holiday requests.

HR teams need to be prepared for what to do in the event of a tribunal claim being brought against their organisation. The time limits involved are tight and strictly applied, so employers need to be ready to respond.

The IRS workshop on preparing for tribunal, in London on 30 June 2010, is an interactive event for HR professionals to prepare them for effectively managing an employment tribunal case.

Have employers learnt any valuable lessons about how to manage change as a result of the recession? The XpertHR survey on change management will investigate this and find out what kind of approach organisations take when organising difficult change programmes, including redundancies. Survey participants will receive a complimentary copy of the report once it's completed.

We would like to hear from organisations that have experienced any kind of major change programme over the past two years. Does your organisation take a structured approach, who is involved in the process, and how do you, as a member of the HR profession, think the process could be improved?

All information will be reported anonymously.

Click here to complete the survey.

Taking part in this confidential research will also entitle you to a free copy of the IRS survey report HR roles and responsibilities, immediately after completing the questionnaire (normally available only to XpertHR subscribers).

The survey closes Friday 25 June 2010.

Over the last week or so, a fascinating discussion has been taking place on Personnel Today's HR Space forum, inspired by the following question: What does the CIPD mean to you?

You're an HR professional and you have decided to dip your toe in the Twitter stream. Where do you start? I would recommend this handy introduction posted yesterday by US HR blogger Mark Stelzner.

Employment tribunals present a range of challenges to employers, so it is always best to be prepared. Taking part in our confidential benchmarking survey of employment tribunal issues - which looks at employer practice when it comes to preparing for, and defending against, employment tribunal claims - will provide you with a wealth of up-to-date information to help you measure and monitor how your organisation deals with issues relating to employment tribunals.

New FAQs on the World Cup have been popular on XpertHR in the last month, as employers prepare for any HR-related issues that might arise when the tournament starts next week. The world cup FAQs cover issues such as attendance and potential disciplinary issues.

The top ten frequently asked questions on XpertHR in May also includes questions on fit notes, the calculation of redundancy pay and the retention of employees' personnel files.

With the 2010 World Cup set to kick off this Friday (11 June 2010), a majority of UK employers have plans in place to allow their employees to watch matches taking place during their working day. But rather than causing disruption, employers believe these arrangements will have a positive impact on business. These are among the key findings of benchmarking research on sporting policies undertaken by IRS for XpertHR.

The most popular working time arrangement put in place to allow employees to watch World Cup matches is flexible start and end times, while the most popular special facility to allow employees to watch matches is to make TVs available to staff.

This morning, anonymous HR blogger the HRD (author of the My Hell Is Other People blog (external website), one of the HR bloggers' blogs of choice, according to our informal 2010 survey) set out his controversial views on the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) (external website). While the HRD expresses his contentious views in typically forthright, combative style, I'm curious as to whether or not they resonate with the views of the UK HR profession at large, and to what extent.

The coalition government has now published its "programme for government" (PDF format, 475Kb on the Cabinet Office website) and Personnel Today has already pulled out the key implications for HR.

The document suggests that the coalition is happy to pick specific fights with some major public sector employee groups in seeking to cut spending.

During the first televised leaders' debate of the recent 2010 general election campaign, Conservative leader David Cameron described the Metropolitan Police HR department - and, by implication, all public sector HR professionals - as "form-fillers". It is therefore perhaps ironic that responsibility for enacting the post-election public spending cuts (the first £6 billion of which will be detailed by Chancellor George Osborne next Monday (24 May 2010)) will inevitably fall to public sector HR departments. The HR profession will consequently be expected by the incoming coalition Government to play an absolutely critical role in helping to secure the economic recovery.

Earlier this week Personnel Today ran a story about new research by Mori which demonstrates a link between employee wellbeing and shareholder value.   I was chairing a conference on the day the research was published, organised by employer-led Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) group BITC, who commissioned the MORI research. At the event there were a couple of interesting presentations on the relationship between investor decisions and employee wellbeing interventions. Although the speakers I refer to here were talking about wellbeing and CSR this could equally well apply to all HR issues as from an investor's point of view these are "a proxy for good management" and an indication that a business is sustainable and worth investing in.
It struck me that when HR thinkers and practitioners talk about HR strategy they tend to focus on the link between people management and profits/growth but investment is rarely mentioned.
At the conference Julie McDowell, head of socially responsible investment at pensions and insurance company Standard Life told delegates that the company was interested in seeing evidence in company reporting of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that went beyond minimum compliance and linked wellness with shareholder value. She told HR people that they needed to try to say what the KPIs mean in terms of profit and try to introduce more quantitative measures into reporting rather than, for example, only employee opinion surveys.
My-Linh Ngo, associate director of SRI Research at Henderson Global Investors, advised HR that for investors CSR was "a proxy for good management". She said reporting on wellness and other CSR indicators had "a long way to go". Companies are not using consistent KPIs which can be benchmarked against other organisations, they are not approaching CSR strategically and they are not being systematic. Benchmarking is a one of the services that XpertHR is offering so might want to check this out.  
Reporting on HR and CSR currently tends to express commitment and merely outline policy and interventions, what Ngo refers to as "input KPIs" or "process KPIs".
"What's lacking is output and outcomes. What's been the impact of all that?" asked Ngo.
Companies need to capture meaningful quantitative data over time so that they can indicate trends. "There is a bias towards risk management - I want to see more about opportunities, how you can leverage what you're doing. I want to see growth," said Ngo.
Another speaker at the event, Alan Walters, UK HR director of Unilever, pointed out that producing indicators for wellbeing is a "loose science". But Walters and the other HR professionals present acknowledged that it was a science that HR needs to get to grips with. 

Employees’ religion or beliefs don’t usually have an impact in their workplace, and actual claims are rarer still. Race and sex discrimination (to take two examples) are much more prevalent in society than discrimination based on religion or belief, but cases involving the latter provoke strong opinions and naturally get more publicity. The Times recently reported on the Pagan Police Association (external website), whose members have now (apparently) been given the right to take time off to celebrate their various festivals.

Benchmarking your organisation's performance is the first step to successfully managing absence and managing staff turnover at a comfortable level. If you want to access the very latest benchmarking information on labour turnover and costs you can take part in this year's IRS staff absence and turnover survey. This is a confidential survey that asks for information on your organisation's 2009 absence and turnover rates. Taking part not only guarantees you a complimentary copy of this year's report when it becomes available but also gives you instant access to our report on managing long-term absence.

HR has an important role in overseeing absence trends and putting forward policies to reduce absence across the whole organisation. This process starts with the collection of accurate and timely data. The quality of this data can determine the effectiveness of any strategy employed to manage absence.

IRS has found that few organisations are able to provide data on the cost of staff absence and labour turnover. So how can your organisation buck this trend? If you want to access the very latest benchmarking information on labour turnover and costs you can take part in this year's IRS labour turnover and absence rates survey.

Click here to take part in the survey.

It is common knowledge that employees are legally entitled to be accompanied at disciplinary hearings by a work colleague or union official. But most organisations' disciplinary procedures do not make mention of whether or not employees have the right to legal representation at internal disciplinary meetings. Two recent rulings may make some employers think again when next updating their disciplinary procedure.

"British HR executives are grossly overpaid, those in the public sector particularly so" (external website), according to an article in the Times written by business commentator Sathnam Sanghera.

Line managers who keep putting off that difficult conversation, in the hope that the issue that has been dragging on will just go away, could be creating further problems for themselves.

The statutory maximum unfair dismissal compensation award from 1 February 2010 is £65,300 - a high price to pay for not following a disciplinary procedure deemed to be fair and reasonable.

In Metrobus Ltd v Cook (EAT/0490/06) the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) ruled that an employment tribunal did not err in increasing the amount of unfair dismissal compensation by 40% where an employer had failed to follow the statutory disciplinary and dismissal procedure.

IRS is conducting research to look at how employers deal with grievances and disciplinaries. We also want to collect feedback on the reaction to the new Acas code, and whether it has helped or hindered in dealing with employee grievances and disciplinaries.

Taking part in this confidential survey will give you a unique opportunity to benchmark your organisation's procedures for dealing with individual disputes against other employers in your sector.

The 2010 general election is fast approaching, although the exact date is still not yet known. But what is certain is that its outcome will have major implications for the world of work and consequently for the work of HR professionals - no matter which party wins. Personnel Today has canvassed the views of a number of UK HR leaders and commentators, providing a fascinating insight into the HR profession's wishes and concerns for the next Government.

There's no surprise what the most popular HR question has been this month (note the restraint there in resisting the obvious "snow surprise" pun). Whether or not employers have to pay employees who can't get to work because of the snow tops the list of the most frequently accessed questions on XpertHR for January 2010.

HR professionals were also looking for other snow-related information such as minimum office temperatures and how to deal with lateness due to travel disruption.

Every penny counts for HR practitioners in the current economic context faltering profitability for many organisations and weak overall economic growth. And so, as I tell Jeya Thiruchelvam in this week's XpertHR Podcast, benchmarking employment practices can represent a highly effective way to keep on top of costs and do their jobs more efficiently and more cost-effectively.

HR outsourcing is on the increase, with around 50% of private sector organisations and a quarter of public sector organisations now choosing this option. But have HR professionals really got to grips with the outsourcing process and what it can achieve? The IRS conference on HR outsourcing will examine the complexities of outsourcing, and share practical and strategic advice from experts on finding the right outsourcing fit for any of the HR operations that your organisation wishes to outsource.

I once spent eight days as a patient in an NHS hospital. When the consultant in charge of the ward eventually came round to see me with his entourage I tried to join in the conversation. There was an awkward silence and then he turned back to his clipboard and lackeys.  When I was discharged I had a chat with the same consultant in his office. We got on perfectly well and he treated me like an equal. The difference was that I was no longer a patient. I was a human being again.

If you've not yet lent it an ear, XpertHR's Weekly podcast provides an excellent, thoroughly enjoyable and completely free weekly digest of key HR and employment issues. The current edition includes an introduction to the newly launched XpertHR benchmarking service from my colleague David Shepherd, explaining how it works and what XpertHR subscribers can get out of it.

I'm delighted to announce that XpertHR's new benchmarking service (subscription required) has been launched today (Thursday 14 January 2010). This is a major enhancement to XpertHR, providing our subscribers with the opportunity to access a huge resource of customisable HR benchmarking data. The interactive features of XpertHR benchmarking enable you to tailor your own bespoke HR benchmarking data. We think it'll quickly prove to be an invaluable tool for our users.

The rise of online recruitment methods over the past decade has resulted in a completely transformed recruitment landscape with social recruiting at its centre as we enter 2010, according to a fascinating blog post from recruitment consultant Andy Headworth. He argues that social recruiting now represents the cutting-edge of recruitment (external website), and that recruiters must adopt social recruiting methods in order to meet evolving candidate expectations. Consequently, platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and blogs should be seen as "primary recruiting channels", and "will become the recruiting battlegrounds of 2010".

The sudden, high-profile resignation of Jonathan Ross (external website) from his rather lucrative employ at the BBC (announced earlier today, Thursday 7 January 2009) leaves the BBC with some rather significant gaps to fill (possibly to the benefit of Messrs Norton and Kermode (external website)), thereby highlighting the ongoing and critical importance of succession planning. This is an issue that employers frequently ignore - sometimes to their cost.

Questions on medical evidence required for employees with swine flu, annual leave for employees on maternity leave and a number of questions on working time feature in December's top ten most frequently visited FAQs on XpertHR.

The closest we get to a festive themed FAQ asks whether or not Christian employees can refuse to work on bank holidays that are aligned to a Christian festival.

Four new frequently asked questions on swine flu in the workplace have been added to the XpertHR dedicated swine flu resources page.

We asked XpertHR subscribers to suggest any questions they would like answered on how to deal with the impact of swine flu on their organisation. We have added the suggested questions to the swine flu FAQs already published on the site.

Issues covered by the new questions include how an employer should deal with sickness certification when employees with swine flu symptoms are advised not to attend their GP, and the risk of employees coming to work when sick because of absence policies that trigger disciplinary action.

Chancellor Alistair Darling has now concluded what was arguably the most eagerly anticipated Pre-Budget Report since they were introduced in 1997. Here we provide coverage of the Pre-Budget Report 2009 speech, highlighting the proposals of most interest to HR and reward professionals.

IRS is conducting benchmarking research into paternity and adoption leave. Completing this brief, confidential survey on paternity and adoption leave will entitle you to a free copy of the report. The closing date for this survey is Monday 14 December 2009.

In these recession-racked times, conspicuous largesse from the banking community has the potential to provoke immediate public outcry, as illustrated by today's outraged headlines (external website) concerning proposed bonus payments for some Royal Bank of Scotland employees. So perhaps it should come as little surprise that workplace Christmas parties are being conducted in secret (external website) for many City of London finance firms in 2009.

A properly completed ET3 form in response to an employment tribunal claim can mean the difference between winning and losing a case. The importance of spending time preparing and completing the ET3, while keeping to the 28-day time limit for responding, should not be underestimated.

A new guide in the XpertHR How To section gives practical advice on completing the ET3, including issues to consider and pitfalls to avoid.

• How to respond to an employment tribunal claim is in the XpertHR How To section (subscription required).

The CBI has published a report on The shape of business: The next 10 years (on the CBI website), identifying the trends it expects to see in how business will develop over the next decade.

The report includes predictions of how workforce dynamics will change as a result of the recession, including the greater use of a flexible workforce.

With many employers having been hit hard by the full force of the recession during 2009, it is a distinct possibility that the traditional workplace Christmas party could have fallen victim to enforced spending cutbacks for many employers. IRS is conducting a short, confidential survey to investigate how employers are preparing for Christmas this year in light of the recession. Take part in the survey - which closes at the end of today (Monday 16 November 2009) to receive a free copy as soon as it is published.

UK employers have mixed views on the value of performance management, and are failing to use performance management techniques to their full potential (external website), according to research from the CIPD.

October's top 10 most frequently accessed faqs on XpertHR include a number on how to handle issues relating to part-time employees and a number on entitlement to a redundancy payment.

The most popular question, arising from the decision in the Heyday case at the end of September, asked what will happen to tribunal cases that had been stayed pending the decision in that case.

Werner Heubeck, whose exploits as managing director of Ulsterbus during the worst of the Troubles included personally boarding buses to remove suspect packages, has died at the age of 85. The Daily Telegraph has published an obituary of Heubeck on its website.

Yesterday, I went to the Public Service Partnership staff protection and wellbeing conference. Although the speakers were from the public and private sectors, some common themes emerged as to how businesses can improve staff protection and wellbeing.

Once employees have been given notice of dismissal by reason of redundancy, should employers sit back and be satisfied that they have complied with their obligations to inform and consult?

The IRS essential HR update on change management takes place in London on 8 October 2009. We’ve put together a change management resource pack to help XpertHR subscribers attending the event get the most out of it.

The IRS essential HR update on surviving pandemic flu in the workplace takes place in London on 6 October 2009. We’ve put together a pandemic flu resource pack to help XpertHR subscribers attending the event get the most out of it.

Take your Dog to Work Day, an annual fundraising event organised by the Blue Cross (on its website), is on 16 September 2009 (also reported on the Guardian website). The pet charity is encouraging dog owners to take their dogs to work to raise money to help it care for homeless and sick pets in its hospitals and adoption centres.

UK employers must prepare now for the workplace impact of a "widely predicted second and more serious wave of swine flu", which is expected to hit the UK over the coming weeks (external website) and result in a significant rise in absence levels, according to the CIPD and the Business Continuity Institute (BCI).

• Strategist:  know where you are doing and have a position about the future
• Executor: make sure you make things happen and deliver as promised
• Talent manager: involve others in your journey
• Human capital developer: invest in the next generation
• Personal proficiency: take care of yourself so others will trust you

Every day this week, we'll be adding new swine flu FAQs to XpertHR in response to employers' questions about the impact of swine flu on their organisations. The first three questions have been added to the XpertHR dedicated swine flu resources page.