HR Coffee Time

Even though you’re excited about the course you’ve signed up to, it’s easy to veer off track with it when you’re juggling a demanding HR job. So, to help set you up for success & make the learning from the course stick, this episode of HR Coffee Time is here to help. In it, host, Fay Wallis shares 9 tips to unlock training success when you’re a busy HR professional.

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Inspiring HR Group Programme

(Disclosure: the book links are affiliate links which means that Fay will receive a small commission from Amazon if you make a purchase through them)

Neuroscience for Learning and Development, by Stella Collins

• Episode 97: Inspiring HR: the purpose behind it and what to expect if you join
• Episode 110: Why facilitation skills can help your career & how to develop them, with Kirsty Lewis
• Episode 15: How networking can help your career
• Episode 16: How to become more confident about networking

You can find the transcript on this page of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (because it isn’t very intuitive). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

How is your performance management strategy impacting employee engagement? Understanding how to use it effectively can lead to better results for employees and therefore the organisation, as well as save money through staff retention. Performance management should be about more than KPIs and day-to-day tasks, it should be seen as an individualised opportunity to support career growth. With continuous conversations, clear goals and regular constructive feedback, performance management can become a far more effective tool.

In this episode of HR Coffee Time, host Fay Wallis is joined by Lucinda Carney the CEO and Founder of Actus. A purpose-built performance and talent management software, which makes her the perfect person to share her knowledge on:

• Performance management’s impact on employee engagement
• Best practices for performance management
• The importance of clear goals
• Tailoring performance management to individuals
• How to drive high performance
• Why you need to do more than annual appraisals

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Connect with Lucinda on LinkedIn
• Actus
• Listen to Lucinda’s Podcast HR Uprising
• Actus on Facebook
• Actus on YouTube

• The Gallup Q12 employee engagement survey
• The CIPD research report: Performance management: Could do better?

• Research review: What works in performance management
• Webinar recording: Rethinking appraisals webinar recording
• White paper: How to design an appraisal process
• Ebook: The complete guide to 360 feedback

(Disclosure: the book links are affiliate links which means that Fay will receive a small commission from Amazon if you make a purchase through them)

• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R. Covey
• HBR's 10 Must Reads on Performance Management, by Harvard Business Review
• How to be a Change Superhero: The business toolkit to help you to 'do' change better, by Lucinda Carney

• Episode 17: How to set your career goals for 2022
• Episode 25: How to use career conversations to improve retention & engagement, with Sarah Archer
• Episode 33: A helpful framework for career conversations at work, with Steve McIntosh
• Episode 57: Using the Johari Window to develop & grow in your HR career
• Episode 78: 5 ways to get useful feedback at work to help your HR/People career
• Episode 79: How to create a powerful career development programme that has an impact, with Kate Mansfield

You can find the transcript on this page of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (because it isn’t very intuitive). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

Instead of launching yourself into another busy year at work, it is helpful to take a moment to pause and reflect so that you can set your goals. There will be powerful lessons to learn from the year that has just passed and so many positives that you may overlook unless you take the time to stop.

In this episode of HR Coffee Time, host Fay Wallis guides you through the ‘Look Back to Look Forward’ activity from the 2024 HR Planner. It is 10 questions to help you acknowledge your successes and challenges, and spark ideas for powerful goals to set for 2024. In the spirit of ‘walking the walk as well as talking the talk’, she also shares her answers to the questions.

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Fay's blog article: Reflecting on 2023 - looking back to look forward
• The Essential HR Planner

• Episode 99: How mediation skills can help you resolve conflict at work, with Pete Colby
• Episode 110: Why facilitation skills can help your HR career & how to develop them, with Kirsty Lewis
• Episode 115: Why negotiation skills can help your HR career & how to develop them, with Simon Duncan

You can find the transcript on this page of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (because it isn’t very intuitive). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

Unless you are working for a truly enormous organization where all supplier negotiations are handled by a procurement team, you are going to find yourself having to negotiate at some point. Whether it’s with the recruitment agencies you use to fill vacancies, the supplier of your HRIS system, or the company that administers your benefits scheme for you – there are a whole host of occasions when negotiation skills can come in handy, you can add huge value to your organisation from a financial perspective and impress the senior leadership team.

The problem is that most HR/People professionals are never taught negotiation skills. So, if negotiation is something you’ve felt nervous about, or dreaded doing, this episode of HR Coffee Time is here to help. In it, host, Fay Wallis, is joined by negotiation expert Simon Duncan who explains:

• What negotiation is
• The four phases of a successful negotiation
• Phase one: planning
• Phase two: launching
• Phase three: undertaking
• Phase four: securing
• A confidence-boosting tip

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Connect with Simon on LinkedIn
• Email Simon at: [email protected]

You can find the transcript on this page of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (because it isn’t very intuitive). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

‘Culture’ can seem like a vague and woolly concept. You can feel what a culture is like as soon as you start working in an organization but it can be hard to describe it and even harder to know what to do to measure or improve it. But with many HR teams being renamed as ‘People and Culture’ and job titles being changed to reflect this, understanding workplace culture and knowing how to shape and improve it are essential skills for People professionals.

This episode of HR Coffee Time is here to help. Host Fay Wallis and expert guest Arend Boersema explore:

• Understanding workplace culture
• Measuring culture
• Thoughts on pursuing an ‘ideal culture’
• How personal connection impacts culture
• Where Arend’s passion and interest in culture stem from
• Using poetry in organizations
• A live reading from Arend’s book, “Poetry at the heart of business”

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Connect with Arend on LinkedIn
• Visit Arend’s website
• The Essential HR Planner

Hackman & Oldham’s Job Characteristics Model to Job Satisfaction

(Disclosure: the book links are affiliate links which means that Fay will receive a small commission from Amazon if you make a purchase through them)

• Poetry at the heart of business: Spoken word poetry exploring the concept of company culture & belonging, by Arend Boersema
• Firms of Endearment: How World-Class Companies Profit from Passion and Purpose, by Rajendra Sisodia, David B. Wolfe & Jagdish Sheth
• Good To Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t, by Jim Collins
• Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know, by Adam Grant

You can find the transcript on this page of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (because it isn’t very intuitive). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

Have you set your sights on a senior HR role but feel like you’re missing out on strategic experience in your current job? Or perhaps you’re not confident enough to operate at board level? Bridging this gap could be more fulfilling than you think. Becoming a trustee for a charity is a smart career move that not only sharpens your strategic skills and gives you board-level exposure, it also offers the rewarding opportunity to do meaningful work by supporting a charity. It’s a unique blend of professional growth and contributing to the greater good.

In this episode of HR Coffee Time, host Fay Wallis chats with the insightful Roisin Williams from Job Seeker Coaching. With her rich background as an HR professional, career coach, and seasoned trustee, Roisin unpacks the ins and outs of trusteeship. She’s here to share:

• A clear breakdown of what it means to be a trustee
• The real deal on the responsibilities and expectations that come with the title
• The unexpected upsides of stepping into a trustee role
• Answers to those niggling doubts and questions you might have
• Tips on how to kick-start your journey as a trustee

This isn’t just another podcast episode; it’s your invitation to step up, expand your HR horizon, and contribute to a cause that matters. So, why not give it a listen and see where trusteeship could take you?

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website:Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Connect with Roisin on LinkedIn
• The Essential HR Planner

• The Charity Commission for England and Wales
• Volunteering Matters (formerly Community Service Volunteers)

Episode 5: How to progress your HR career (using the 3E model)

You can find the transcript on this page of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (because it isn’t very intuitive). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

Go behind the scenes of HR Coffee Time and learn what to expect if you’re a guest on the show, and how to set yourself up for a successful interview. In this episode, Fay explains:

• The benefits of being a guest on HR Coffee Time
• Overcoming nervousness and preparing for the interview
• The interview process
• Tips for a successful interview
• Technical aspects of the interview
• Tips to reduce filler words
• The importance of keeping the audience in mind
• How to become a guest on HR Coffee Time

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• The Essential HR Planner

You can find transcripts for all episodes on the HR Coffee Time section of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (because it isn’t very intuitive). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

With claims that we’re working in a world designed for extroverts, it’s important we understand how to make our workplaces more inclusive, so that we can all thrive.

In this episode of HR Coffee Time, Fay is joined by Tom Cleary, Founder of Introverts & Co. Tom shares how to thrive at work as an introvert, and busts myths you may have heard before about introversion. He also explains practical strategies to help set yourself, your colleagues and your workplaces up for success. Some of the many things he covers include:

• Understanding introversion: definition and misconceptions
• The impact of introversion in the workplace
• Tom’s personal journey: from introversion to advocacy
• Why introversion is such an important topic for us all to be aware of & learn more about
• Creating inclusive meetings & team building events for introverts
• Strengths and challenges of being an introvert
• Strategies for introverts to thrive in the workplace
• The importance of identifying personal values

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Connect with Tom on LinkedIn
• Tom’s website
• Tom’s free online community: Introverts and co

(Disclosure: the book link is an affiliate link which means that Fay will receive a small commission from Amazon if you make a purchase through it)

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, by Susan Cain

• Episode 43: The one thing that will boost your resilience throughout your HR career, with Tom Cleary
• Episode 47: Discovering your values to help your HR career, with Zoe Hawkins
• Episode 75: What psychometrics are, how you can use them & why they’re so helpful, with Sue Colton
• Episode 110: Why facilitation skills can help your HR career & how to develop them, with Kirsty Lewis
• HR Coffee Time inclusion playlist (on Spotify)
• HR Coffee Time inclusion playlist (online)

You can find the transcript on this page of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (if you’re not sure how to do it). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

Facilitation skills can help you thrive in your HR/People career. In this episode of HR Coffee Time, Fay is joined by Kirsty Lewis, Founder of the School of Facilitation (SOF) who generously shares valuable insights, tips, and resources for honing facilitation skills. Listen to this episode to learn:

• What facilitation is
• The difference between facilitation and training
• How facilitation skills can help your HR career
• Practical tips on facilitating or running an online workshop (to make it as effective and engaging as possible)
• How to develop facilitation skills
• Recommendations for further learning & helpful resources

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Connect with Kirsty on LinkedIn
• Kirsty’s website: School of Facilitation
• The Essential HR Planner

• Liberating Structures
• Sessionlab (this is Kirsty’s affiliate link)
• Miro – online collaboration tool
• Mural – online collaboration tool
• Never Done Before
• L&D Shakers
• Butter
• The High Performance Podcast

(Disclosure: the book links are affiliate links which means that Fay will receive a small commission from Amazon if you make a purchase through them)

• The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters, by Priya Parker
• Neuroscience for Learning and Development, by Stella Collins

Episode 94: Summer reads: 3 great books to help your HR career

You can find the transcript on this page of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (if you aren't sure how). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.

Do you have an annual project coming up? A project you only need to do once a year that can feel a bit daunting because it can feel hard to remember everything involved, what you need to do and what order to do it all in? Maybe the end-of-year performance management process is looming, or you’re working towards launching the annual employee engagement survey, or you run a graduate recruitment scheme that starts up in January. In a busy HR/People role, the possibilities for projects you might be working on are endless.

This episode of HR Coffee Time is here to help you succeed with annual projects and not get overwhelmed. Fay talks through the Simple Process Plan template she uses to help her stay on track with projects that roll around once a year. (Although she does use it for everyday processes too).

She explains what it is, how it’s laid out, how to use it and the 4 reasons it’s so effective.

• Connect with Fay on LinkedIn
• Fay’s website: Bright Sky Career Coaching
• Vimeo Record
• Loom

You can find transcripts for all episodes on the HR Coffee Time section of the Bright Sky Career Coaching website.

If you found this episode of HR Coffee Time helpful, please rate and review it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This video shows you how to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts (because it isn’t very intuitive). If you're kind enough to leave a review, let Fay know so she can say thank you. You can always reach her at: [email protected].

Be notified each time a new episode of HR Coffee Time is released and get access to other free career tips, tools and resources by signing up to receive the free weekly HR Coffee Time email.