Gender stereotypes continue to shape how work is valued, how talent is assessed, and how people progress in organisations, often in ways that operate beneath the surface of conscious awareness. Despite decades of progress on gender equality, deeply embedded assumptions about leadership, competence and commitment continue to influence workplace decisions.

In this episode of The HR Room Podcast, Dave and Mary are joined by globally recognised researcher and DEI expert Lori Mackenzie, co-founder of the Stanford VMware Women’s Leadership Innovation Lab, to explore how gender stereotypes persist in today’s workforce — and why they matter for HR leaders.

Drawing on international research, real workplace examples and lived experience, the conversation examines how stereotypes show up in recruitment, promotion, performance assessment and leadership language. They discuss why women can also internalise and reinforce these beliefs, the impact of motherhood penalties, and how seemingly neutral words can carry gendered assumptions.

They also explore the growing role of AI in HR decision-making - both the risks of embedding existing bias at scale, and the opportunity to use data and pattern recognition to challenge inequity. 

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We love your feedback and we’re always here to support you with your HR challenges.

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by The HR Room, produced by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland and beyond about the issues shaping the world of work today.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please share it with colleagues or friends and leave us a review.

Embedding workplace wellbeing takes more than good intentions and one-off initiatives. It requires people across the organisation who are willing to champion it every day. In this episode of the Wellness Works mini-series on The HR Room Podcast, Dave Corkery and Laura Barry, Head of People Development at Insight HR, are joined by special guest Brian Crooke, Founder of Workplace Wellbeing Ireland and The Work Well Institute, to explore how wellbeing champions can bring strategy to life on the ground.

Together, they unpack what a wellbeing champion really is (and what they’re not), why peer-led influence is so powerful, and how champion networks help bridge the gap between wellbeing policy and everyday employee experience. The conversation covers how to select, train and support champions, the importance of role clarity and leadership backing, and how to avoid common pitfalls such as overload, lack of structure or tokenism.

Drawing on practical examples from organisations across Ireland, including Irish Life and ESB, this episode offers clear, actionable guidance for HR professionals and leaders who want to embed wellbeing in a sustainable, credible and inclusive way - not just as an initiative, but as part of organisational culture.

If you’re not already following us on LinkedIn, please do. If you have suggestions for future episodes, or if you’d like to join us as a guest, reach out to Dave Corkery at [email protected] or connect with him on LinkedIn.

If today’s episode has you thinking about introducing or strengthening a wellbeing champion network in your organisation, you can arrange a confidential consultation with Laura Barry by emailing [email protected].

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland about the issues shaping the world of work today.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please share it with colleagues or friends and leave us a review.

📞 Immediate HR support: 056 770 1060

Workplace investigations sit at the heart of fairness, trust and accountability in organisations. But when investigations involve high-profile individuals, external parties, or allegations of serious misconduct, the scrutiny can be intense and the risks for employers multiply rapidly if fair procedures are not followed.

In this episode of The HR Room Podcast, Dave and Mary are joined by Rebecca Bowman, Head of Investigations at Insight HR, to examine a recent high-profile UK case involving HarperCollins and allegations made against author David Walliams.

Using what has been publicly reported about the case, they whether the investigation process itself may have been flawed and what HR leaders can learn when managing allegations involving contractors, public figures and non-employees.

They unpack the principles of natural justice, the importance of fair procedures, and why speed, secrecy or outcome-driven approaches can expose organisations to legal challenge, reputational damage and loss of trust. The discussion offers practical guidance for HR professionals navigating complex investigations under intense pressure.

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For confidential HR support, contact [email protected]

We love your feedback and we’re always here to support you with your HR challenges.

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by The HR Room Podcast, produced by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland and beyond about the issues shaping the world of work today.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please share it with colleagues or friends and leave us a review.

Workplace wellbeing is often talked about as an HR initiative – but without leadership ownership, even the best programmes struggle to succeed. In this second episode of the Wellness Works mini-series on The HR Room Podcast, Dave and Laura are joined by special guest Stacey Machesney, Head of Health & Wellbeing at Irish Life, to explore why leadership is the true foundation of sustainable workplace wellbeing.

Together, they discuss why wellbeing cannot sit with HR alone, the dangers of box‑ticking, and how leadership behaviour, culture and work design shape the real employee experience. They examine the ethical, legal and business risks of getting wellbeing wrong, the growing impact of mental health claims, and the modern challenges leaders now face – from hybrid work and loneliness to neurodiversity and inclusion.

From practical guidance on influencing senior leaders to the importance of empathy, training and role‑modelling healthy behaviours, this episode offers clear insights for HR professionals and leaders who want to move beyond surface‑level initiatives and build workplaces where people can truly thrive.

• Laura Barry – Head of People Development, Insight HR

• Why leadership ownership is essential for effective workplace wellbeing

- Wellness Works Webinar: Designing a Wellbeing Programme That Works

- Irish Life's Health of the Nation Report 2025

If you’re not already following us on LinkedIn, please do. If you have suggestions for future episodes, or if you’d like to join us as a guest, reach out to Dave Corkery at [email protected] or connect with him on LinkedIn.

If today’s episode has you thinking about leadership and wellbeing in your organisation – whether you’re starting from scratch or strengthening an existing approach – you can arrange a confidential consultation with Laura Barry by emailing [email protected].

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland about the issues shaping the world of work today.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please share it with colleagues or friends and leave us a review.

📞 Immediate HR support: 056 770 1060

Redundancies are one of the most sensitive and high-risk moments in the life of any organisation. When they are mishandled, the consequences can be profound - from reputational damage and industrial action to long-term impacts on trust, morale and employer brand.

In this episode of The HR Room Podcast, Dave and Mary are joined by employment law specialist Adrian Twomey, Partner at Jacob & Twomey Solicitors, to unpack what happens when redundancies go wrong. Using a recent high-profile Irish case as a starting point, they explore the legal obligations, human realities and organisational risks involved in collective redundancies.

Together, they discuss why empathy matters as much as compliance, how consultation processes shape outcomes, and what HR leaders and managers can do to avoid the worst-case scenario - including strike action, reputational harm and unfair dismissal claims.

• Adrian Twomey –Partner, Jacob & Twomey Solicitors

• Why redundancies are one of the toughest moments for any organisation

• Irish Times article on the Covalen redundancy case

If you’re not already following us on LinkedIn, please do. If you have suggestions for future episodes, or if you’d like to join us as a guest, reach out to Dave at [email protected] or connect with him on LinkedIn.

We love your feedback and we’re always here to support you with your HR challenges.

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland about the issues shaping the world of work today.

Workplace wellbeing is a phrase we hear all the time - but what does it actually mean in practice? For some, it’s fruit bowls and yoga mats. For others, it’s leadership, culture, and how work is really experienced day to day. In reality, true workplace wellbeing goes far deeper than perks and initiatives.

In this first episode of a new four-part wellbeing mini-series on The HR Room Podcast, Dave is joined by Laura Barry, Head of People Development at Insight HR, to explore what effective workplace wellbeing really looks like, and why so many organisations struggle to get it right.

Together, they unpack the difference between reactive wellbeing supports and preventative, strategic approaches. They discuss why culture and work design matter more than one-off initiatives, the risks of treating wellbeing as a “nice to have”, and how organisations can build sustainable systems that support people to thrive - not just cope.

From the impact of hybrid work and social disconnection to the growing importance of employer brand and psychological safety, this episode sets the foundation for leaders and HR professionals who want to move beyond surface-level wellbeing and embed it at the core of how their organisations operate.

Laura Barry – Head of People Development, Insight HR

• Why “workplace wellbeing” is often misunderstood - and what it really means

• World Health Organization – Healthy Workplace Framework

If you’re not already following us on LinkedIn, please do. If you have suggestions for future episodes, or if you’d like to join us as a guest, reach out to Dave Corkery at [email protected] or connect with him on LinkedIn.

If today’s episode has you thinking about how wellbeing is working in your organisation - whether you’re starting from scratch or refining an existing programme - you can arrange a confidential consultation with Laura Barry by emailing [email protected].

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland about the issues shaping the world of work today.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please share it with colleagues or friends and leave us a review.

📞 Immediate HR support: 056 770 1060

As Irish organisations head into 2026, HR leaders are facing a complex mix of challenges - from attracting and retaining talent in an increasingly competitive market, to navigating cost pressures, culture change, and new regulatory demands like the EU Pay Transparency Directive. At the same time, there’s a strong sense of optimism across the profession, with many organisations investing in leadership development, coaching and capability-building for the future.

In this episode of The HR Room Podcast, Dave and Mary are joined by Liam Barton, (Commercial Director – Insight HR), to unpack the key findings from Insight HR’s brand new report, Ireland’s HR Landscape 2026. They explore what’s really keeping HR leaders awake at night and where the biggest opportunities lie in the year ahead.

They discuss why talent attraction and retention remains the number one challenge across every sector, how employee engagement and culture are evolving in a post-pandemic workplace, and why AI, hybrid working and skills-based workforce planning are set to reshape HR practice in Ireland.

• Mary Cullen – Founder & Managing Director, Insight HR

• The biggest HR challenges facing Irish businesses in 2026 — and why talent attraction and retention tops the list

• Ireland’s HR Landscape 2026 – Insight HR Report 

If you’re not already following us on LinkedIn, please do. If you have suggestions for future episodes, or if you’d like to join us as a guest, reach out to Dave Corkery or connect with him on LinkedIn.

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland about the issues shaping the world of work today.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please share it with colleagues or friends and leave us a review.

📞 Immediate HR support: 056 770 1060

This episode of The HR Room, we’re looking back at a great year of conversations with some of Ireland’s best HR leaders. We’ve pulled together a little selection box episode for you collating our ten key learnings from these conversations in 2025.

Each insight has a supporting clip to it, but if you’d like to go back and listen to the full conversation on any of the topics, you’ll find the episode number and a link below.

Happy Christmas to all our listeners and we'll see you in 2026!

In a world of hybrid working, constant connectivity and rising pressure, employee wellbeing is no longer a “nice to have” - it’s a business imperative. Yet many organisations still approach wellbeing through surface-level perks rather than addressing the deeper cultural, structural and leadership factors that truly impact how people feel at work.

In this episode of The HR Room Podcast, Dave and Mary are joined by Dr. Mark Rowe, family physician, lifestyle medicine expert and wellbeing thought leader, to explore what real, sustainable wellbeing looks like in today’s workplace.

Together, they unpack why wellbeing must go beyond yoga classes and fruit bowls, how leadership behaviour and management practices directly shape organisational health, and why wellbeing should be treated as a strategic driver of performance, productivity and retention - not an add-on.

If you’re not already following us on LinkedIn, please do. If you have suggestions for future episodes, or if you’d like to join us as a guest, reach out to Dave at [email protected] or connect with him on LinkedIn.

For confidential HR support, contact [email protected]

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland about the issues shaping the world of work today.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please share it with colleagues or friends and leave us a review.

We love your feedback and we’re always here to support you with your HR challenges.

📞 Immediate HR support: 056 770 1060

Migrant and refugee women in Ireland face significant and overlapping barriers when trying to access employment — from qualification recognition issues and childcare responsibilities to language barriers, rural isolation, unconscious bias, and confusion around immigration permissions. At a time when employers are struggling to find skilled talent, these barriers represent not just an equality issue, but a missed opportunity for Irish organisations.

In this episode, Dave and Mary are joined by Fiona Hurley, CEO of NASC, to discuss the findings of NASC’s Breaking Barriers report, which captures the lived experiences of migrant women navigating the Irish labour market.

Together, they explore why highly skilled migrant women — including those with STEM, healthcare and professional qualifications — are being filtered out of recruitment processes, how employer misunderstanding of immigration stamps limits opportunity, and what HR leaders can do practically to remove bias and widen their talent pool.

If you’re not already following us on LinkedIn, please do. If you have suggestions for future episodes, or if you’d like to join us as a guest, reach out to Dave Corkery at [email protected].

The HR Room Podcast is brought to you by Insight HR — where we speak with HR leaders, experts and practitioners across Ireland about the issues shaping the world of work today.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please share it with colleagues or friends and leave us a review.

📞 Immediate HR support: 056 770 1060