Redefined HR Consultancy

09/04/2026

📢 “In general, your satisfaction with work is driven in part by whether your organization has a mission that is aligned with your values and goes about its work in a manner that is consistent with how you choose to live your life. I have written about the impact of values conflicts at work broadly before, but there are several specific problems that arise when you are a leader and the organization wants to do things that are a mismatch to your deeply held commitments.

When your organization wants to do something or pursue a project that violates a value you hold dear, it creates a significant impact for leaders. For one thing, you are more strongly identified with the organization by others than people lower down in the food chain. For another, you are likely to feel pressure to conform to other leaders.

In addition, leadership roles are well-respected and well-compensated, so there are pressures not to rock the boat.

In addition, as a leader, you may feel like you have enough influence to change the direction the organization is going, so you may continue to do things you find problematic in the hope of blunting the impact of what you see as a bad path. Here are four steps to take if you find yourself in this position.

1. UNDERSTAND YOUR RED LINES

The problem is that the longer you do things that conflict with your values and engage with colleagues who have no qualms with that work, the more that psychological mechanisms of conformity begin to influence your thinking. At some point, you come to think of the world more similarly to your colleagues and may be less likely to see what you’re doing as problematic.

So, if you’re going to go down the path of continuing your work as a way of trying to provide resistance, you should write out a list of lines that you do not want to cross. Keep that list handy, because you will find yourself compromising. Rather than being led down a path in which you slowly give up on your values, use your initial list as a reminder of what your past self valued. That may help you to know when it is time to throw in the towel and leave the organization.

2. MAINTAIN A FIREWALL

It can be a noble effort to work behind the scenes to change a course of action you find problematic, but you have to be careful to protect the people who work for you. You should engage with people in parallel roles and those above you in the food chain. Have discussions. Argue your views. You may even ally with others in leadership roles you find to have similar views to your own.” 📖 Read more….



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https://www.fastcompany.com/91598013/how-to-navigate-a-values-conflict-at-work-as-a-leader?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwZnRzaAUHD2FwZG9mAWZkaWQWUNwstv2hOELK0oPKjgjN4Wdi4GTammV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR6GBs1WuE8OUPdi2-g98eH93-NjMr2kr-fDyDjrT9XC0mDL6_KCncgsro9Kug_aem_N0BVRS8FAGn9TdyZGtQ31A

09/03/2026

📢 “Most of us have done it. Stayed up too late to finish something and told ourselves it was worth it. The problem is, it rarely is – and when that habit scales across a team or organization, it begins to quietly reshape how people think, lead and perform.

Not long ago, I overheard a conversation in a coffee shop that depicted this perfectly.

“I finished the presentation for today at 4am, so I thought I may as well stay awake and get ready for this morning.”

The response came immediately: “Wow. You’re a beast.”
We still reward exhaustion as though it’s evidence of commitment.

Last year, a senior executive proudly told me he’d worked until midnight every night that week. By Friday, he’d snapped at his team twice, forgotten a critical client detail and spent most of the day revisiting decisions he was too tired to make properly the first time.
Meanwhile, one of his team members left work at 5.30pm each evening, went for a walk, had dinner with her family, slept properly and returned the next morning clear-headed. By Thursday, she’d solved a problem the leadership team had been circling for weeks.

Exhaustion does not create better thinking, instead it creates reactive cultures, slower decisions and diminished creativity as well as teams quietly burning themselves out trying to keep pace with unsustainable expectations.

I know this because I lived it.

WAKE UP CALL

In 25 years of executive experience across ten countries, I worked with startups, scaleups and global enterprises, and from the outside it looked like success. But my ‘high performance’ was just prolonged exhaustion wearing a professional disguise powered by 12, 14 and 16-hour days stretched across decades. For a long time, I believed endurance was the price of ambition.

Feeling tired of being tired, I set out to solve the problem of how to ‘win the night to win the day’ by combining personal insight, modern research and real-world experience.

That process led me to redesign my life around what I now call the 6:3:3 model – six months earning, three months creating, three months living. More importantly, it led me to build a daily operating system that shifted me from permanently ‘always on’ to intentionally on.” 📖 Read more….



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This article challenges the toxic workplace culture that glorifies exhaustion as a badge of honor and a proxy for commitment. Drawing on personal experience and executive leadership insights, the author argues that chronic overwork diminishes creativity, decision-making, and productivity. By sharing...

09/02/2026

📢 “They hover over your shoulder, or send you a Slack every 10 minutes to ask about the report that’s not due until next week.

They’re a screamer, a bully, an expert at lodging passive-aggressive jabs, generally in front of all your colleagues. Or maybe they’ve just ghosted you, leaving you to figure out the new gig on your own.

As long as there’s been work, there have been people who make it miserable for those underneath them. And the recent spate of job-switching has given rise to some job regret. Desperate for talent, many companies swiftly promoted new, sometimes unproven, managers and at the same time accelerated their hiring processes to snap up prospects before rival employers did, says Cate Luzio, the founder and CEO of professional development organization Luminary.” 📖 Read more….



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Life is too short to work for jerks. Here’s what to do when your boss is a micromanager, bully or completely MIA.

09/01/2026

📢 “Recruiters now face an unusual dilemma: Every resume is flawless. AI makes it easier than ever to submit a picture-perfect resume and cover letter, flooding companies with materials that look the same.

According to a new Bloomberg report, recruiters are adjusting their strategy in response to the new normal created by AI. They are leaning on live tests, networking and recommendations to find the right candidates for a position.

“Networking has always been important. It’s now absolutely crucial,” Zoe McLoughlin, executive director at London Business School’s career center, told Bloomberg. “If it’s a job you really want, at least one person at the company needs to know your name before you apply.”

Job-seekers are nervous about what AI’s rapid rise could mean for their careers. Some worry the technology will eliminate positions, while others notice employers increasingly using it to screen and process applications.

Candidates are responding by turning to AI themselves. Many tap into it to apply to large numbers of jobs, tailor their experience to specific postings and draft what they hope will be a standout resume.

That is especially common among people pursuing entry-level finance roles About 84% of those candidates use AI tools to prepare job applications or interview responses, according to AmplifyME, a London-based startup that offers simulations and training for graduate students aiming to enter the financial industry.

Giveaways that applications were generated with AI

Using AI carries risks for both sides. Applicants may worry that a recruiter will spot AI-generated language and dismiss their application. Meanwhile, employers face the difficult task of figuring out which polished candidates actually have the skills to succeed on the job.

Recruiters say AI-polished resumes are recognizable, even when applicants try to make them sound personal.

Rebecca Siciliano, managing director at global staffing agency Tiger Recruitment, told Bloomberg that she looks for clues such as American spellings, bolded keywords and stock phrases including “proven track record” and “trusted right hand.”

“There’s often a heavy reliance on descriptive language rather than concrete, quantifiable achievements, and formatting can feel oddly uniform across candidates,” Siciliano told the outlet. “We look for evidence of what someone has actually delivered.”

She added that more employers are placing greater emphasis on professional networks and live, timed assessments.” 📖 Read more….



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In a sea of AI resumes, recruiters are turning to this old-school method to find the right candidates.

08/31/2026

📢 “Regardless of semantics, the era of prima donnas needs to come to an end. Not all industries have them, but powerful people shouldn’t abuse their power, in any job.

Whenever powerful people wage a campaign of misery against someone with less agency, it can be harmful. Victims of bullying are typically less productive, less happy, and less likely to be positive contributors to society.

Professionalism is a skill and a tool that businesses should push to promote efficiency and good work performance. All workers, moreover, need mechanisms to protect themselves. These can and should include formal avenues, such as human resources or union representatives, but they can also include educating workers to help one another in difficult situations. In schools, we learned long ago that the real power of the bully is the backing of a group. Without that backing, bullying tends to fall flat.

This doesn’t mean that a boss relies on the approval of other workers, but it does mean that a worker who’s the target of a bullying boss may find herself better able to manage the job if she has support and kindness from co-workers.” 📖 Read more….



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Inappropriate behavior can be detrimental (even extremely detrimental) without being rightly described as “bullying.”

08/28/2026

📢 “Are you rewarding the right people on your team? You may not be. Consider these two scenarios:

Scenario #1: Your star employee works 60-hour weeks, responds to emails at midnight, and never misses a meeting. You love their hustle. But their projects consistently miss deadlines, and their deliverables fall short.

Scenario #2: Your top salesperson consistently lands giant contracts and beats targets by 150% — but only works 30 hours a week. You often wonder why they aren’t working harder.

Now, the question: Which one do you reward?

Most leaders still equate “value” with “time spent on the job” — even though workers can deliver incredible value in infinite ways. To build a thriving team, we must shift from time-based to outcome-based thinking. Because effort without results is just expensive activity.

I help corporate leaders do this through my company, MGMT Accelerator. Here’s the playbook we use.

1. What to reward people for
The “Early Bird” Praise

→ Stop celebrating who gets to the office first.

→ Start celebrating who solves problems fastest.

The “Always Available” Reward

→ Stop promoting people who answer emails at midnight.

→ Start promoting people who prevent midnight emergencies.

The “Meeting Champion” Recognition

→ Stop praising perfect meeting attendance.

→ Start praising people who eliminate unnecessary meetings.

The “Busy = Important” Award

→ Stop assuming overwhelmed people are your best performers.
→ Start realizing they might be your least efficient.

2. How to measure goals
Use the “SMART-R” method:

S → Specific
M → Measurable
A → Actionable
R → Realistic
T → Time-bound
R → Real results

3. Getting your team to buy in
Workers need to know what’s important.

Here are conversation frameworks to use.
Start with their frustration” 📖 Read more….



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I managed teams for one of the world's most elite investment firms. I saw how often leaders rewarded the wrong behavior, and limited the company's potential.

08/27/2026

📢 “Skills shortages are costing employers time, productivity, and talent retention, with new research also pointing to a widening disconnect between what employers need and what employees believe will help them succeed at work.

Employers are losing valuable time and productivity as workforce skills gaps continue to widen, according to new research from Chegg.

The company's Frontline Workers Skills Index, based on a survey of 1,000 employers and 1,005 employees across ten frontline-heavy industries in the US, including retail, manufacturing, and finance, found that three in ten employers (30%) now spend more than eight hours a week, essentially a full working day, compensating for gaps in their workforce's skills. In manufacturing, that figure climbs to 46%.

This report is based on the US market, but HRO believes the findings are just as relevant to employers across Asia, where many of the same frontline sectors are grappling with rapid AI adoption and stretched training budgets.

Employers referred to in the survey are those fully or partly involved in hiring decisions at their organisation, while employees are those with no hiring responsibility.

The hidden cost of the skills gap

Beyond the lost hours, the research points to a broader operational toll. Employers cited increased mistakes and rework (34%), rising stress and burnout (33%), heavier workloads or having to cover for colleagues (31%), and more overtime or longer shifts (29%) as some of the most common consequences of skills shortages.

The strain is also spilling into retention. Nearly half of employers (45%) and more than a third of employees (35%) said they had considered quitting because of stress linked to understaffing or capability gaps. Food services and hospitality came out worst hit, with 57% of employers and 43% of employees saying they had thought about leaving their role, the highest of any sector surveyed.

Training is not landing the way employers think it is

The problem appears to start well before staff even walk through the door. More than half of employers (56%) said entry-level workers are not adequately prepared for work, and over a quarter (26%) described the skills gap in their sector as "serious" or at "crisis level".

It does not get much better once employees are in the job. While 77% of employers said their training programmes are effective overall, only 58% of employees agreed, and 71% of employees said training had led to no change in their pay or role at all.

The disconnect seems to come down to relevance rather than a lack of effort. Among employees who found their training ineffective, 51% said it was too generic or too disconnected from their actual day-to-day work. Others pointed to a lack of hands-on practice (39%), insufficient coaching (34%), and weak support from managers (27%).

Employers and employees do not agree on what is missing

Both groups agree there is a capability gap, but they see very different problems. Employers put AI and automation skills (36%) and digital or IT capabilities (24%) at the top of their list, reflecting the pressure to keep pace with fast-changing technology.

Employees, on the other hand, pointed to leadership and people management (25%) as the biggest gap, followed by communication and teamwork (24%). For many workers, the issue isn't purely technical, it's about management and workplace culture too.

Interestingly, when employers were asked what skills matter most for long-term success, problem-solving and critical thinking (36%) and communication and teamwork (34%) topped the list, suggesting that even employers know durable, human skills matter just as much as technical ones.

AI confidence is racing ahead of employee readiness

Nowhere is the employer-employee gap wider than on AI. While 83% of employers said they feel confident using AI tools in their current role, only 44% of employees said the same.

The gap widens further when it comes to career stakes: just 3% of employees believe AI proficiency is becoming critical to getting ahead in their role, compared to 18% of employers. More than half of employees (52%) said AI isn't used in their role at all, leaving them little chance to build familiarity with the technology on the job. Among employers, only 14% said the same, while a quarter (25%) said AI use is already becoming an expectation in their role.

Taken together, the findings suggest the bigger issue may not be a skills gap in the narrow sense, but an awareness gap: many employees simply do not realise how fast expectations are shifting around them.

A widening perception gap, not just a skills gap” 📖 Read more….



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https://www.humanresourcesonline.net/Skills%20gaps%20cost%20three%20in%2010%20employers%20a%20full%20working%20day%20every%20week,%20study%20reveals?fbclid=IwZnRzaAT8xb1wZG9mAWZkaWQWUNT2mEF56FD4i3DsKIfduDy1YZrndWV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR7cd1I8YCJn8T_0MFKwT3pHWZ7JHwcUrdOxx16vhMyBPsiuVXuSYjLFb9aaDA_aem_9wUM4_6GwTsxec2DfpzgTQ

Skills shortages are costing employers time, productivity, and talent retention, with new research also pointing to a widening disconnect between what employers need and what employees believe will help them succeed at work.

08/26/2026

📢 “The number of job openings remains near record levels, as does the portion of workers quitting their jobs. The end of enhanced jobless aid hasn't brought a surge of new workers off the sidelines, as some analysts expected.

The national quit-a-thon has legs, and employers may be wasting their breath blaming bad government policies or other external forces for the difficulty finding workers. Instead, they could look at their own role in fueling the Great Resignation.

They'd see a lot of problems in the mirror.

"Many of us leading companies have been very focused on getting through the pandemic, and maybe we haven't been taking as much time and care around our employees and our talent and their development," Rob Falzon, vice chair of Prudential Financial, said in a recent webinar co-hosted by Yahoo Finance and the Bipartisan Policy Center. "Their learning curves have flattened, they're working really hard and they're thinking, 'I want to advance my career and to do that I may need to go elsewhere.' Compensation always motivates people, but I think there are more fundamental things at play here."

[Have you switched jobs recently? We'd love to hear why].

In a recent Prudential survey, 46% of workers said they're looking for a new job, or considering looking. Better pay was the main driver, cited by 45% of those looking to switch. But the second-leading reason was lack of growth opportunities, cited by 26%. That strongly suggests companies that need workers already have people on the payroll who feel underutilized or mistreated and might be able to fill some of the staffing need, if only the bosses would get the message. Somebody's messing up.

The Covid pandemic has obviously upended work routines at many companies, and managers haven't yet grasped the changing ways workers think about their jobs. Earlier this year, Microsoft published research showing that business leaders are largely satisfied with the hybrid remote/on-site work routines at their companies, but ordinary workers are not. Employees like the flexibility that comes from remote work, for instance, but in the Microsoft survey of 84 global businesses, 54% of workers said they feel overworked and 39% said they feel exhausted.

About 20% said their employer doesn't care about their work-life balance. Remote workers also tend to feel disconnected from their companies and their colleagues.
By some measures, employers have reacted slowly to the difficulty finding workers. There's been talk of a labor shortage for a year or more, but there was no notable pickup in average pay until recently. Average hourly earnings are now up 4.8% year-over-year. That's a solid gain, but inflation is 6.8%, so wage gains still trail price increases.” 📖 Read more….



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https://finance.yahoo.com/news/maybe-bad-bosses-are-causing-the-worker-shortage-205009054.html?

One reason people are quitting their jobs is lack of fulfillment and advancement. Somebody's messing up.

08/25/2026

📢 “Many entrepreneurs start their businesses with limited funds and time. It’s not always easy to find good employees when a business first launches, so owners may turn to hiring family members. A recent report reveals that over 40% of small businesses hire family members.

When you’re looking to hire, it’s easy to make the wrong choice. There are many reasons to hire a family member to work in your business. These individuals are a known quantity. And they may have familiarity with the business that outsiders could take months or years to learn.

Some entrepreneurs hire their kids to work in the business. That practice is especially prevalent now because of the difficult job market for new college graduates.

I’ve had plenty of experience hiring family members. Sometimes, these employment stints work out. Sometimes, they don’t.

But it’s the failed instances that have taught me the most about keeping my business and my extended family intact. One example is when I hired a family member who showed great promise. Unfortunately, they left us at a critical time, giving very little notice and only vague reasons for their departure. Bridges were burned — not in their desire to take another job, but in how they did it.

Since then, family gatherings have been strained. Our personal relationship is cordial, but distant — nothing like it used to be. And the damage extends beyond the two of us. Family members have taken sides, and weddings, reunions and holiday gatherings are uneasy.

The lessons I’ve learned led me to develop a playbook for both the boss and the employee/family member.

Your responsibilities as the boss

To increase the chances for success, start with an honest and candid conversation before you make the offer. Tell your family member what they should expect from you and what you expect from them. Should they take offense to the suggestion that they may not work out, that’s a red flag. They’re not the right fit. Move on.

To help you with this conversation, I’ve provided rules of engagement that speak directly to them, for them. I encourage you to modify them for your specific needs and present them — both verbally and in writing.

10 rules for employees who are also relatives

Joining a family business is rarely as simple as accepting a job. You’re managing two relationships at once — professional and personal — and the line between them isn’t always clear. These ten rules will help you earn your colleagues’ respect, protect your reputation and keep the family relationship intact, no matter what happens at work.

Weigh the offer, not just the paycheck. A family business may be your fastest path to employment, especially in a tight job market. That’s not a reason to rush to say yes. Ask hard questions about the role, the reporting structure and how the company separates work life from family life. A job you understand going in is a job where you can succeed.

On the job, your family member is your boss, not a relative. Entitled behavior won’t win you any fans among team members. Some are probably talking amongst themselves, believing that you only got the job because of your family ties instead of merit. Let your work prove them wrong.

You cannot treat the company like you would any other company. Always work hard, and don’t take anything for granted. If anything, hold yourself to a higher standard than everyone else, because your performance reflects directly on your family’s reputation and work ethic.

Don’t gossip about family, the boss or the company. In any conversation, inside or outside the office, don’t say anything that you wouldn’t say directly to the person you’re talking about. Following this rule is a guaranteed way to stay out of trouble.

Be aware of your quest for acceptance. Every company has “water-cooler talk,” and it’s tempting to use your access to seem more informed than everyone else. Resist it. Colleagues will assume anything you say came from insider knowledge, whether it did or not — and that perception is hard to undo. Build credibility with results, not access.” 📖 Read more….



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https://www.entrepreneur.com/building-a-business/family-first-heres-what-employers-need-to-know-before-hiring-relatives?fbclid=IwZnRzaAT6Gl5wZG9mAWZkaWQWUNLvBACaOjopHIZqOMBZJNlvi5E8o2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR6Gw2g0jZxdN8iY1zArBiwWIMUhjbSS5HwjTKsWPfng2-67h8kufpOccT0vqw_aem_zhkk0ukduvt3XNeWrOK_Ug

Plus: 10 rules for employees who are also relatives

08/24/2026

📢 “Employees often leverage external job offers to negotiate better pay when internal requests are ignored, as an offer provides concrete evidence of market value. However, using an offer as a bluff is risky if one isn't genuinely prepared to leave, as it can permanently alter the employer relationship. While counteroffers address salary, they frequently fail to resolve underlying issues like career stagnation or poor management, which are common reasons for seeking new roles. The article advocates for proactive negotiation using performance evidence and market data before resorting to external offers. Ultimately, an external job offer should create a genuine choice and provide valuable information about one's worth and an employer's commitment, rather than merely serving as a threat.”

Imagine you want a pay raise.

You believe you are underpaid, your responsibilities have expanded and colleagues doing similar work elsewhere appear to earn considerably more. You raise the issue with your manager, but nothing much happens. Budgets are tight. The timing isn’t right. Perhaps it can be revisited next year.

Then another company offers you a job. Suddenly, the conversation changes.” 📖 Read more….



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https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1439792098010776&id=100059399986753

If an external offer gives employees leverage, should you deliberately get one even when you would prefer to stay? An external offer may improve your negotiating position. It can also permanently change the relationship with your employer. Here's what to consider: https://www.forbes.com/sites/benjaminlaker/2026/08/20/should-you-get-another-job-offer-just-to-negotiate-with-your-current-employer/?utm_source=ForbesMainFacebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ForbesMainFB