My guest this week puts forward the key principle that employers have a moral obligation to ensure that employees look forward to coming to work. This principle amongst others, is a key tenet of unleashing the power of the human spirit to enable organisations to really prosper in the 21st century.

 Josh Bersin is one of the world’s leading authorities on human resources, talent, leadership and HR technology. During the last 25 years Josh has worked with hundreds of organisations and this experience has led him to publish his new inspirational book Irresistible a book that neatly distills 7 practical yet profound management principles to enable business leaders to create  enduring companies that thrive with improved customer satisfaction, employee retention, and business agility.

Josh peppers this interview with numerous real-life examples of organisations who have the secret sauce or irresistability and of course those who’ve rather lost their way.

Why are we all so miserable? [2:49]
Despite all of the billions spent on employee wellbeing, I ask Josh why workers are so miserable. He responds citing that many management and HR practices are still rooted in the industrial age and the world of working is constantly changing citing the pandemic in particular as a major change event.

What are the characteristics of a successful organisation? [5:21]
Joish cites Ikea as an example of organisation who have developed a democratic process whereby individual stores get to have their say on decisions that are made at a corporate level.  He admits this can slow decision making but the decision reached has buy-in from across the business.

How easy is it to change a company culture? [11:38]
Josh cites the example of an established company who had rather lost its way and the steps they took to establish a new cultural manifesto that both honoured the past but identified and removed issues that were getting in the way of progress.

How can organisations become irresistible to potential employees? [19:11]
Josh reveals that the labour market is changing so fast that job descriptions are usually irrelevant within a month of a new employee joining. He recommends that organisations constantly review the actual work that needs to be done and re-engineer if required to accommodate changes such as automation.

Irresistible HR? [26:26]
Josh ask HR professionals to consider their own organisations in terms of the 7 management principles he outlines and 150+ real-life examples. He cautions against trying to copy other organisations but instead use the 7 principles he's identified as a guidebook and framework for change.

Resources:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Irresistible-Secrets-Enduring-Employee-Focused-Organizations/dp/1646871103/ref=asc_df_1646871103/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=570351888204&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12895323841890157178&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1006801&hvtargid=pla-1667581033821&psc=1&th=1&psc=1