Beeleaf Consulting

Coaching and Mentoring Most Favoured Tools and Talent Management

sam — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 19:25:52 +0000

The CIPD’s 2010 report on Talent Management programmes has uncovered that the most popular tool is coaching and most highly rated tools are coaching and mentoring. This shift reflects the more extensive use of internal and external coaches to increase engagement, self awareness, confidence and motivation.

Coaching is the most popular tool used by 72% of respondents in the survey. Coaching is also the most highly rated by 50% of respondents followed by mentoring.

The good news for organisations is that they can also be the most cost effective to implement in comparison to formal training courses.

This is good news for maternity coaching which has seen an increase in the last 5 years within organisations in order to retain female talent when at their most vulnerable.

Men Need Balance Too

sam — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 19:25:51 +0000

When you mention work life balance there is an implicit gender bias. Well all the womens magazine surveys will tell you women do the family and work balance act while men do the work and a bit of family.

Well that may be the truth but what is interesting to organisations is that men who are supported in thier work to balance work and family feel more positive about their employers and their future.

At present 21% are not getting that support. Is your company one of them?

“http://www.kenexa.com/getattachment/e83d6bfc-f1cb-4c7c-9579-4c8226450a80/Men-Need-Balance-Too.aspx”>

Flexible working report

sam — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 11:21:38 +0000

The report ‘Tasks not Time’ written by the Research Base gives an excellent overview of the barriers for employers and returning mothers in the work place. It highlights the concern that society is suffering as a result of 29% of professional working women down grading their job when returning to the workplace because of the lack of senior part time positions. 86% of women feel that the availability of jobs prevents them from returning to the work place.

Managers also have an important role to play to support returners. 77% of women feel that greater understanding from their manager would help their return.

If you are interested in a job share position then do contact me as I am setting up a Scottish jobs share board in partnership with Working For Parents.

Do you think research on men working flexibly should be done?

Stay at Home Dads on the increase

sam — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 10:53:39 +0000

Stay at Home Dads have now reached the 6% level according to this new survey by Aviva. It also confirms that fact that many women find the transition back to work tough with 39% saying they found it difficult.
With more Mothers now earning as much as Father (17%) parents are now able to decide who should care for the family equally. Who wants to stay at home and who wants to work? This will work well for Paternity leave too. Who wants to spend time at home without the fear of a significant loss of income. A more healthy decision then one partner ‘having’ to stay at home even though they might not be the parent who most wants to. “>http://www.PersonnelToday.com/articles/2010/04/07/55127/stay-at-home+fathers+increase+10-fold+in+a+decade.html?alertid=47000138&emailsource=weeklyspecialism

Women in the workplace Review

sam — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:50:47 +0000

This article published by the Economist offer a great insight into how other countries tackle the work/life balance so many women are faced with. It has some more stratling statistics but offers a fair relfection of how far we have come and how far we may go in our life time.

http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15174418

Parliament Gets Maternity Mentoring Accreditation

sam — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:07:13 +0000

The Scottish Parliament Maternity Network which I do training for, has just received accreditation. its the first of its kind in Scotland http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/scotland/Mentors-show–parents-back.5952655.jp but not for long as other organisations see the benefits.

If you would like to find out me then please contact me.

Back to work survey results

sam — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 21:28:20 +0000

Liz Morris has published the results of her survey supported by the NCT & Working Families charities. the results provide strong evidence for what many mothers feel. It has also been backed up by interviews with managers from a large variety of organisations about thier experience of managing women during this period.

The good news is nither party feel that they are doing a great job and things can only get better thanks to these resources.

we’ll be getting Liz up to Scoland in the New year to talk about her findings. So let me know if you would like to be kept informed.

http://www.nctpregnancyandbabycare.com/press-office/press-releases/view/184

We can no longer afford to gloss over these issues which are costing our society both in terms of emotional turmoil that so many families go through during this period and the loss of producivity for organisations.

There are so many simple things which both inividuals and employers can do to prevent these issues from arising. With support online and in person which we provide through our Back to Work without a Bump programme the future can only look happier for all working families.

FSTE 100 Women on the decline

sam — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 21:25:11 +0000

lots more potential but not a lot of progress where it matters….. http://www.som.cranfield.ac.uk/som/dinamic-content/research/documents/ft2009.pdf

Fathers Want More Time ……

sam — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:10:00 +0000

At last it looks like the tide is turning and the Dads are wanting in on the action. Though we have a long way to go until we have equal rights to time with dependents, its encouraging to hear Dads do want this. Will culture allow them to take it? At present they arent even taking 2 weeks leave let alone 3 months!

http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/business_money/half%20not%20taking%20paternity%20leave/3393102

http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/media-centre/fathers-struggling-to-balance-work-and-family/

I’ll need to change my returners programme name from ‘Back to work without a Bump’ to?????

What Women Want Report

sam — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 20:33:55 +0000

This aptly named report from the Tavistock Centre reveals what women will say in a survey but not to thier friends about work and family. 1/3 of women do not want at all and its not because they dont like work. And only 1% of women think Mothers of children under 5, should work full time.

So this means there are millions of women unhappy, dissatistified female employees. 35% of men and women think that women with children at primary school should not work at all. Yet the Government spends £21 billion on supporting women to return to work. In a Cambridge University a study it found that 46% of women said thier family have suffered as a result of returning to work. This report also reviews research on the sensitive topic of childcare & the effect of childcare on exam results and behaviour.

Oh it s juicy stuff for coffee shop gossip!

http://www.cps.org.uk/cps_catalog/what%20women%20want.pdf