Keeping Top Employees in an Economic Downturn

While few average performing employees will consider leaving during a recession, new research shows that top performers can and will if they feel they are not being valued. The very strategy that some businesses employ to get through these hard times may to be blame, treating employees more like costs to be pared down than valuable assets to be held on to.

For the average employee, hanging on to a job will be top priority. This isn’t the case for those who are among the best and brightest at an organization. For them, many struggling companies simply don’t offer the challenges and the rewards that they need to feel valuable and successful. They also have the skills and ability to be highly desired elsewhere so there is less of a risk of winding up unemployed.

So is there anything you can do to keep these employees even if your business is struggling? After all, they may be pretty hard to replace if they do decide to leave. While in the end you can’t make the decision for them, you can give them fewer reasons to consider leaving at all by creating a workplace that helps them continue to develop their career, values their assistance in the decision-making process and recognizes them for work that is done well.

You also may benefit from being up front and honest and addressing any of their concerns when it comes to cutbacks, compensation and the company’s potential. Those workers who are truly invested in their jobs may see the struggle as a challenge that can help them cement their position in the company. Whatever you choose to do, make sure you’re not ignoring your best employees while watching out in for the bottom line as it could come back to hurt you later on.

This post was contributed by Megan Jones, who writes about the distance learning mba. She welcomes your feedback at Meg.Jones0310@gmail.com

HR Software Show - slow but there is hope

I attended the CIPD HR Software show on London this week. The event set out to help HR professionals "discover how technology can transform your people management processes. Packed with innovative solutions and leading suppliers it’s the ideal place to get tailored advice and industry updates.".....not a bad objective. The show was well supported by suppliers many of whom had really gone out to impress with impressive stands and sales people.

Unfortunately, much of what was on offer looked like jazzed up spreadsheets and much of the technology just merged into a blur of boring screens. However there was hope. It was apparent that many of the suppliers (and even some of the attendees) were keen to talk Web 2.0 and how it could be used to help the profession - especially in the recruitment space. The CIPD even had their Web 2.0 paper proudly displayed. This all bodes well for HR 2.0. More on the event to come including the good, the bad and the ugly.

TUBE workers action - the end of trade unionism?

Working in London this week has been nothing short of a nightmare as a result of the industrial action taken by members of the Tube Workers Union (RMT). It is estimated that their failure to turn up for work cost the City more than £100M not to mention the resulting chaos and disappointment for 3 million people trying to get to work, events, hospital etc.

Transport for London (TfL) said instead of engaging in "meaningful talks" about pay the RMT had submitted "a wildly unrealistic claim". RMT general secretary Bob Crow responded by saying: "This is a magnificent result which underlines the anger that has been provoked by management in their confrontational approach on pay and job security. If TfL want to avoid confrontation they should withdraw their plans to slash jobs and guarantee there will be no forced redundancies, start talking seriously about pay and call off the bully managers."

TfL said the RMT had demanded an "unrealistic" 5% percent pay rise and was against cutting back office jobs that had been duplicated as a result of maintenance firm Metronet being taken over by London Underground.

This annual confrontation between the parties is really disappointing and it pains me to say that the comments made by the Trade Union and especially by Rob Crow and simply horrid and should no longer acceptable in a civilised nation. It is one thing to negotiate and consult on important matters but bringing misery to the public is simply out of order. So for me it is time for:

TfL - impose a no strike clause

RMT - I'm afraid you have forgotten your heritage and the efforts of your predecessors, get back under your stone where you belong.

Workers on the London underground - please reassert yourself as the decent people I know you are - allowing Crow to influence you like this is embarrassing and VERY bad for you, your families and your great city.

Is there anything new in Leadership?

I was working with the CIO and his leadership team from a major government agency this week where we were considering their strategy for the next few years. I have run many such events over the years and as seems often to be the case, getting people to agree what they are actually there to do is a challenge and one that often ends with pages of sentences full of jargon.

With some effort we did however manage to agree on some simple principles for the team which included Secure, Affordable, Standardised and Agile. All pretty noble principles. However, one of the chaps then asked "OK these make sense but could they not be used as part of any CIO's strategy? ". The debate really got going at this point and the group concluded that whilst the principles they had come up with could be seen as generic the process they went through to get to them and what they actually do with them would be the key to success. Makes sense to me.

Honour each other as geese do

Milton Olson suggests that next time you see geese heading south for the winter, flying along in a “V” formation, consider why they fly that way.

As each bird flaps its wings, it creates an uplift for the bird behind.

By flying in a “V” formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own! People who share a common direction can get where they are going more quickly and easily because they are travelling on the thrust of one another.

When a goose falls out of formation, it feels the drag and resistance of flying alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the “lifting power” of the bird in front. If we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation with those who are headed the same way we are (and willing to accept their help as well as give ours to others).

When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back into the formation and another goose flies point. It is sensible to take turns doing demanding jobs. With people, as with geese, we are interdependent on each other. Geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed. We need to make sure our honking from behind is encouraging, and not something else.

When a goose gets sick, or is wounded by gunshots and falls out of formation, two other geese fall out with that goose and follow it down to lend help and protection. They stay with the fallen goose until it is able to fly again or dies. Only then do they launch out on their own, or with another formation, to catch up with their group. If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other in difficult times as well as when we are strong.

Emotional intelligence works!

A new study reported in the BPS Research Digest shows that training in emotional intelligence (EI) - the ability to understand and manage one's own and other people's emotions - actually works. Researchers claim their findings have profound implications given the number of positive outcomes, including improved health and occupational success, that are known to be associated with having greater emotional intelligence.

Nineteen students undertook the training, whilst 18 others formed a control group and carried on life as normal. The training was theoretically grounded and aimed to improve the understanding of emotions, identifying emotions, expressing and using emotions and managing emotions.

After training and at 6-month follow-up, the training students but not the control students showed improvements in aspects of "trait" emotional intelligence normally considered immutable, including improvement in emotion identification and emotion management (of self and others' emotions). Surprisingly perhaps, "emotional understanding" showed no improvement.

"Overall these results are promising," the researchers said, "as they suggest that, with a proper methodology relying on the latest scientific knowledge ... some facets of EI can be enhanced but not all."

The researchers said their findings could have potential application in health, educational and organisational settings but they acknowledged their study had a number of major limitations. These include the fact that the control group undertook no special activity, so any effects observed for the EI training could be caused by non-specific factors, such as the simple benefit that can come from taking part in group activities.

HR 2.0 and Business Delusion - live blog

Jon Ingham kindly produced a live blog of my presentation on HR 2.0 and the business delusion. This is a first for me and I think it worked pretty well. Romanian HR people seem to be struggling with the same challenges as the UK and the US. Interesting debate about the balance between providing a service, adding strategic value and determining the opportunities (or not) provided by the IT vendors.

Follow this link to re-visit the live blog - Romania HR 2.0 Conference 2009.

Love TED? Get the EDGE!

I still remember the first time I visited TED; so much to learn so little time. Just when I thought I was getting on top of all this amazing brain food I received an email from a learned friend suggesting I visit the EDGE. Here we go again. Science meets communications meets deep thought and challenge.

The Edge Foundation, Inc., was established in 1988 as an outgrowth of a group known as The Reality Club. Its informal membership includes of some of the most interesting minds in the world.

The mandate of Edge Foundation is to promote inquiry into and discussion of intellectual, philosophical, artistic, and literary issues, as well as to work for the intellectual and social achievement of society.

Join the Digerati visit the EDGE

Change or you wont go South

I had the pleasure of working with Garry Marshall this week. Garry has just returned from the Amundsen Omega 3 South Pole Race, the first race to the South Pole since Scott and Amundsen’s historic race nearly 100 years ago.

Garry told us the story of how after almost two weeks of intensive Polar Training in Antarctica, teams of 3 set off to race from the edge of the Antarctica continent, to race over 370 nautical miles across the largest ice cap in the world to the Geographic South Pole.

The racers will faced constant challenges throughout their journey: surviving in temperatures as low as -50C, navigating and skiing while pulling a 70Kg. pulk (sled), climbing up to 9300 ft. to the South Pole and through everything working together as a team.

One of the most fascinating things Garry mentioned was that despite having spent months preparing, some of their specialist equipment failed.Rather than worrying about the cost (both financial and emotional) that had been placed in their gear Garry and his colleagues soon realised that they must discard or modify rather to risk perishing like Scot did all those years ago. Despite looking half frozen as he does in this picture Garry and his team successfully made it to the pole. A lesson here for all of us I am sure.

Amundsen Omega 3 South Pole Race was more than just a race. It was the journey of a lifetime…

Read more here and watch out for a BBC documentary on the race coming soon.

Symphony in green

Big week in the offing for me next week and one that I am really looking forward to. On Tuesday I am facilitating a large event for a sales community whilst on Friday I am running a more intimate event about sustainability (green IT etc). What has got me especially excited is that I will be sharing the stage on Tuesday with Miha Pogacnik.

Miha is at the vanguard of innovation, is an accomplished classical concert violinist, and world-renowned for inspiring organizational transformation and leadership. I have met Miha and he is one of life's marvels and I cant wait to work with him. The idea of using the arts to inspire business has long been a favorite notion of mine and but this will be the first time I have used the medium of music.

So what is Open Space Technology? - Part 2

One of the particular reasons for the success of OST lies in what are called the Four Principles and The One Law. Participants are told these "rules" announced and described during the opening session. These describe rather than prescribe; they do not operate as rules which one must obey but simply describe what the system expects will happen in any case:

1. Whoever comes is the right people: this alerts the participants that attendees of a session class as "right" simply because they care to attend
2. Whatever happens is the only thing that could have: this tells the attendees to pay attention to events of the moment, instead of worrying about what could possibly happen
3. Whenever it starts is the right time: clarifies the lack of any given schedule or structure and emphasises creativity and innovation
   
4. When it's over, it's over: my particular favorite which encourages the participants not to waste time, but to move on to something else when the fruitful discussion ends

There also exists another tentative "law", usually referred to as the "Law of Two Feet", which reads as follows: If at any time during our time together you find yourself in any situation where you are neither learning nor contributing, use your two feet. Go to some other place where you may learn and contribute.

This last "law" emphasizes that no one should sit in sessions that they find boring; instead only people genuinely interested in the topic at hand should attend the discussions. I pushed this law very hard when I ran an OST event recently and was told by the collective that it was the reason why the event went so well.

Are you cutting out coterminosity? The end of jargon in the UK

Council leaders in the UK have today published a list of 200 words that public bodies should not use if they want to communicate effectively with local people.

The Local Government Association list, which has been sent to councils across the country, sets out 200 words and phrases that all public sector bodies should avoid when talking to people about the work they do and the services they provide. Here is the list in full - I just love it!

Across-the-piece - everyone working together
Actioned - do
Advocate - support
Agencies - groups
Ambassador - leader
Area based - in an area
Area focused - concentrating on the area
Autonomous - independent
Baseline - starting point
Beacon - leading light
Benchmarking - measuring
Best Practice - best way
Blue sky thinking - thinking up ideas
Bottom-Up - listening to people
CAAs - why use at all?
Can do culture - get the job done
Capabilities -
Capacity - ability
Capacity building - enough room in the system
Cascading - why use at all?
Cautiously welcome - devil in the detail
Challenge - problem
Champion - best
Citizen empowerment - people power
Client - person
Cohesive communities - why use at all?
Cohesiveness - together
Collaboration - working together
Commissioning - buy
Community engagement - getting people involved
Compact - why use at all?
Conditionality - why use at all?
Consensual - everyone agrees
Contestability - Why use at all?
Contextual - background
Core developments - main things that are happening
Core Message - main point
Core principles - beliefs
Core Value - belief
Coterminosity - all singing from the same hymn sheet
Coterminous - all singing from the same hymn sheet
Cross-cutting - everyone working together
Cross-fertilisation - spreading ideas
Customer - people/person
Democratic legitimacy - voted in
Democratic mandate - elected to put people first
Dialogue - talk/discuss
Direction of travel - way forward
Distorts spending priorities - ignores people's needs
Double devolution - Why use at all?
Downstream - Why use at all?
Early Win - success
Edge-fit - Why use at all?
Embedded - set in
Empowerment - people power
Enabler - helps
Engagement - working with people
Engaging users -- getting people involved
Enhance - improve
Evidence Base - research shows
Exemplar - example
External challenge - outside pressures
Facilitate - help
Fast-Track - speed up
Flex - Why use at all?
Flexibilities and Freedoms - more power to do the right thing
Framework - guide
Fulcrum - pivot
Functionality - use
Funding Streams - money
Gateway review - Why use at all?
Going forward - in the future
Good Practice - best way
Governance - Why use at all?
Guidelines - guide
Holistic - taken in the round
Holistic governance - Why use at all?
Horizon scanning - Why use at all?
Improvement levers - using the tools to get the job done
Incentivising - incentive
Income Streams - money/cash
Indicators - measurements
Initiative - idea
Innovative capacity - Why use at all?
Inspectorates - monitoring bodies
Interdepartmental - working together
Interface - talking to each other
Iteration - version
Joined up - working together
Joint working - working together
LAAs - Why use at all?
Level playing field - everyone equal
Lever - Why use at all?
Leverage - influence
Localities - places/town/city/village
Lowlights - worst bits
MAAs - Why use at all?
Mainstreaming - Why use at all?
Management capacity - Why use at all?
Meaningful consultation- talking to people
Meaningful dialogue - talking to people
Mechanisms - methods
Menu of Options - choices
Multi-agency -- many groups
Multidisciplinary - many
Municipalities - towns/cities/areas
Network model - Why use at all?
Normalising - make normal
Outcomes - results
Outcomes - focused
Output - results
Outsourced - privatised
Overarching - Why use at all?
Paradigm - Why use at all?
Parameter - limits
Participatory - joining in
Partnership working - working together
Partnerships - working together
Pathfinder - Why use at all?
Peer challenge - Why use at all?
Performance Network - Why use at all?
Place shaping - creating places where people can thrive
Pooled budgets - money
Pooled resources - time and money
Pooled risk - Why use at all?
Populace - people
Potentialities - chances
Practitioners - experts
Predictors of Beaconicity - Why use at all?
Preventative services - protecting the most vulnerable
Prioritization - most important
Priority - most important
Proactive - Why use at all?
Process driven - shouldn't everything be people driven?
Procure - buy
Procurement - buying
Promulgate - spread
Proportionality - in proportion
Protocol - guidance
Provider vehicles - Why use at all?
Quantum - Why use at all?
Quick Hit - success
Quick Win - success
Rationalisation - cut
Rebaselining - Why use at all?
Reconfigured - reform
Resource allocation - money going to the right place
Revenue Streams - money
Risk based - safest way
Robust - tough
Scaled-back - cut/reduce
Scoping - work out
Sector wise - Why use at all?
Seedbed - idea
Self-aggrandizement - Why use at all?
Service users - people
Shared priority -- all working together
Shell developments - Why use at all?
Signpost - point in the direction of
Single conversations - talking to
Single Point of Contact - everything under one roof
Situational - situation
Slippage - delay
Social contracts - deal
Social exclusion - poverty
Spatial - Why use at all?
Stakeholder - other organisations
Step Change - improve
Strategic - planned
Strategic priorities - planned
Streamlined - efficient
Sub-regional - work between councils
Subsidiarity - Why use at all?
Sustainable - long term
Sustainable communities - environmentally friendly
Symposium - meeting
Synergies - what use at all?
Systematics - Why use at all?
Taxonomy - Why use at all?
Tested for Soundness -- what works
Thematic - theme
Thinking outside of the box - Why use at all?
Third sector - charities and voluntary organisations
Toolkit - guidance
Top-Down - ignores people
Trajectory - route
Tranche - slice
Transactional - Why use at all?
Transformational - change
Transparency - clear
Upstream - Why use at all?
Upward trend - getting better
Utilise - use
Value-added - extra
Vision -- ideal/dream/belief
Visionary - ideal/dream/belief
Welcome - necessary and needed/step in the right direction
Wellbeing - healthy
Worklessness - unemployed

So what is Open Space Technology - Part 1

At the beginning of an Open Space the participants sit in a circle, or in concentric circles for larger groups.

The facilitator greets the group and briefly states the theme of their gathering, without giving a lengthy speech. Then someone will invite all participants to identify any issue or opportunity related to the theme. Participants willing to raise a topic will come to the centre of the circle and announce it to the group.

Someone writes the topics on sheets of paper which get posted on a wall, creating an agenda. If someone posts a topic, the system expects that the person has a real passion for the issue and can lead the discussion on it. No limit exists on the number of issues that the meeting can post.

When someone determines that the posting of all issues has finished, the meeting sets times and places for the individual sessions; and participants sign up for those individual sessions. Sessions typically last for 1.5 hours; the whole gathering usually lasts from a half day up to about two days. The opening session lasts about an hour, even with a very large group.

After the opening session, the individual groups go to work. The attendees organize each session; people may freely decide which session they want to attend, and may switch to another one at any time. Online networking can occur both before and following the actual face-to-face meetings so discussions can continue seamlessly.

Very large groups have generated as many as 230 sessions running concurrently over the course of a day. If desired, each session can generate and distribute reports (online or hard copy); and longer meetings may establish priorities and set up working-groups for follow-up.

OST operates in a very simple fashion, and such meetings require very little planning up-front. The organizers set no agenda and prepare only a very rough schedule; the meeting largely self-organizes. The facilitator remains largely invisible and has no control over the meeting itself. This means that one need organize only basic logistics (like space and food, for example) in advance.

Rant interview with Harrison Owen, founder of OST coming soon.

Source: Wikipedia and Harrison Owen's Open Space Technology: A Users Guide: A User's Guide

Open space technology in action - defining business priorities

I have written before about the group management system known as Open Space Technology (OST) previously and I can now reflect on my 1st real experience of using it.

In this case I was asked to facilitate a session with a large consulting and IT services business (Atos Origin). The goal was to help produce part of the organisations take to market strategy. Like expected when working with any large, multi-part organisation this was going to be a challenge especially given their a complex mix of organisational history, processes and cultures. I spent best part of a week doing the usual thing; clarifying objectives, setting the agenda, considering the audience, planning the visuals and developing the key themes. To be honest this all got a bit complicated and I realized I had to do something different to make the event a success. So I turned to OST.

OST offers a method to run meetings of groups of any size. ("Technology" in this case means tool — a process; a method.). OST represents a self-organising process; participants construct the agenda and schedule during the meeting itself. Proponents claim that OST allows somewhat diverse people to address complex and possibly controversial topics.

OST enables groups of any size to address complex, important issues and achieve meaningful results quickly. It functions best where more traditional meeting formats fail: in situations involving conflict, complexity, diversity of thought or people, and short decision-times. People have used it in widely diverse situations, from designing aircraft doors at a large aircraft-manufacturing company to engaging street kids in defining a sustainable jobs-program.

OST meetings have a single facilitator who initiates and concludes the meeting and explains the general method. The facilitator has no other role in the meeting and does not control the actual gathering in any way. There are some key elements and a single rule used when using OSP which I will also come back to.

So did it work? For me the answer is an unequivocal yes. The group arrived with no idea about what I was going to get them to do. Within 10 minutes we had a good debate going on and in no more than 30 minutes we had an agenda on which the rest of the day focused. Feedback from the group has been great and they have a list of clear actions and activities to be getting on with. Next week I am working on a large conference for 300 Sales and Marketing professionals. I am SO tempted to scrap the agenda and have a go with them!

Please stop it I can't stand it anymore!

HR reports on Jackie Orme, CEO of the CIPD saying

HR can no longer simply measure its success by good people management, but must focus on sustainable performance, innovation and leadership..by attracting, "the brightest and best"

Ok so I clearly agree on innovation but.....she also claims the profession is but a teenager! Well given its reaction to technologies such as Web 2.0 (and HR 2.0) and the fact that we as a profession have been around at least since the industrial revolution in the UK I think rather that senility has set in.

Innovation works but we dont do it!

60% of senior UK business executives believe that innovation can add significantly to their business' bottom line but only 6% believe their business to be innovative!

I helped facilitate a Breakfast Briefing this morning hosted by Atos Consulting, Boyden and Google with a large group of delegates drawn from across the sectors (Financial Times, Channel 4, World Television Group, BAE Systems etc). The discussion centered round the question, "...is innovation the lifebuoy in a sinking economy?". The session was fascinating and I especially liked the idea that we should encourage our people to "fail quickly", by piloting small versions of innovative projects and then acting on those results.

During the Q&A session I conducted a straw poll on who felt that innovation added significantly to the bottom line - roughly 60% of the group thought there was indeed a link. When I asked a supplementary - "ok, so who thinks they work for an innovative company?" only 6% of the group put their hands up. Is this a sign that organisations are missing a trick here, possibly in response to the economic downturn? Does innovation only happen in "others" organisations?

Credits: Picture by Greg Stewart of Clarity Rules

Why innovate now?

This excellent presentation on innovation further supports the evidence presented previously here that innovation provides a key route out of the economic crisis. Over to you HR professionals - how are we going to innovate?

Innovation and Strategic Growth

View more presentations from imootee. (tags: business idris)

Innovate out of the economic downturn - "a good cold shower for the economic system."

According to NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts) Innovation is:

...the development and dissemination of a new product, service or process that produces economic, social or cultural change.

Innovation is the integration of scientific discoveries, new technology and creative activity leading to economic and social value.

Economic downturns can have positive effects; they force companies to increase their efficiency, cut waste, and strive to do things in smarter ways. In such times is has been claimed that innovation is the single most important condition for transforming crisis into an opportunity (Mahroum, Business Week 2008).

This is an area where I believe HR can play a significant role – a specific subject on which I will return to in the near future. However, there are some macro level opportunities for organisations and governments to support innovation - which given the evidence presented here only work:

Injecting capital. New funds should be provided to fill the gap in any serious downfall in private investment in strategic science and technology (S&T) including areas areas such as disruptive technology, nanotechnology, alternative energy, health and life sciences.

This approach was taken by the South Korean government when the country was hit by an economic crisis in the 1990s. Two years later spending on R&D exceeded pre-crisis levels, and Korean businesses did not have to play catch-up when the economy bounced back.

Think Global. Encourage international investments in S&T programmes from nations and regions that have cash such as China, the Gulf, and Japan.

The Japanese are looking to expand globally, the Chinese are hungry for knowledge transfer, and more recently, small, rich Gulf countries have allocated billions of dollars to spend on science, technology, and learning programs. Expensive long-term S&T programs can become new platforms for multilateral collaboration.

Focus on Public Programs. Maintaining and expanding levels of funding for public S&T programs. This should help keep a country's knowledge base expanding.

When Finland was hit by economic crisis in 1990, after the collapse of its main trade partner, the Soviet Union, its government's expenditure on R&D and education in all sectors increased. Ten years later, Finland emerged as one of the most competitive and innovative countries in the world.

In Sweden, a major economic crisis also in the 1990s saw the number of people engaged in R&D activities increase by about 20%. Swedish businesses emerged from the crisis with global leadership in sectors such as telecom and machinery.

Support Talent. Seed capital funds can be created to support the newly created army of potential entrepreneurs composed of highly skilled people made recently redundant in specific sectors.

This current crisis will decide the fate of economic systems of many countries for decades to come. Not all have the capacity and resources to come out of the recession successfully. This is the time for driving ahead-and no time for battening down the hatches.

Other Information:
Quote in title by Austrian economist Josef Schumpeter
Referance: Business Week

2009 - the year of the 4 day working week?

I have written before about my frustration about the lack of traction that organisational psychology seems to have in the workplace (and even with HR's professional body in the UK - the CIPD). Can you imagine any CEO not listening to his engineering managers on the installation of some new plant or disregarding her corporate lawyers input based on current case law? Not a chance!

So CEO you want to know how to motivate your people and improve productivity - then listen to your organisational psychologist (or HR if they are any good and not lost in the detail and creating blockages to change all over the place).

There are however some shoots of hope out there as exemplified by John Medina in his groundbreaking book "Brainrules". Here Medina puts a strong case for organisations to think about peoples brains before making organisational changes. The idea being that a happy brain leads to a happy employee seems pretty obvious to me.

The latest idea is the notion of the 4 day week. Cary Cooper (professor of organisational psychology) and others have been asking us to consider the possibilities of this "radical" change for some time. Some organisations have suggested implementing it including KPMG and others in car manufacturing however this has been financially driven rather than being implemented to give employees a different way of life. Well they do say that good can come of bad and perhaps the credit crunch will lead to more and more organisations introducing the 4 day week....and a good thing too.

Why all HR departments need a blog

HR 2.0 is all about how to create meaning in the workplace and so promote organisational and personal excellence. Whilst the "2.0" is a bit cheesy, I first used it because I believe (and still believe) that Web 2.0 technology represents a new medium for the profession to utilise. Whilst nothing will ever beat the face to face meeting this new technology has the potential to redefine what is meant by the "employee" and the "organisation".

Blogs are one of the key elements of Web.2.0 with, I belive, huge potential for HR. However we have a problem - most companies still ban the use of social networking sites (as many as 64% as suggested by clearswift). This is not only really annoying but it supports the nay sayers who claim that HR is loosing its value in the corporation.

So what can HR do with blogging? As the Fast Company suggested recently a properly moderated HR Department Blog can be a place where:

1. Employees can post suggestions and questions; and where employers can respond, in a safe, properly moderated environment.
2. Rumors can be brought to light, answered and addressed with clarity and consistency.
3. Awards, successes, human interest (the good stuff) can be disseminated quickly.
4. Challenges, disappointments and difficult changes (the bad stuff) can be communicated directly by company leadership to all employees without being muddled by poor communicators in middle management.
5. An HR Blog can reinforce core values, quickly address real concerns, promote transparency and increase trust all while minimizing mis-information; in a forum that can be anonymous (for the fearful employee) and properly controlled (for the fearful employer).

So HR if you want that seat at the table, help your cause and relax on the social networking sites and get blogging.

Other reading:
CIPD discussion paper Web 2.0 and HR