In this episode of Real World HR, host Louise Kennedy is joined by Dr Jennifer Cottam. Jennifer is a clinical psychologist and co-founder of Talk Works. She is serious about making services accessible, which is why, in 2014, Talk Works was set up to give rapid access to mental health support to many. Jennifer’s qualifications include the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and a post-graduate Diploma in Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT) as well as Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR). Talk Works work alongside HR Teams, Occupational Health and Line Managers nationwide to help em ..read more

What benefits can an employee survey bring to your company?     In this episode of Real World HR, host Louise Kennedy is joined by Victoria Bond.     Victoria is the CEO and Founder of Ten Space. The Ten Space survey platform provides a data-driven approach for HR professionals to easily design, gather and analyse high-quality feedback.    Following a successful HR career, Victoria saw the opportunity to build a pragmatic product for HR teams to fall in love with. Her mission to ‘create incredible workplaces through highly engaged teams’, is underpinned ..read more

Have you ever thought about starting your own HR consultancy?       In this episode of Real World HR, host Louise Kennedy is joined by Sarah Hamilton-Gill FCIPD.     Sarah is a highly acclaimed HR Consultant and business owner with over 30 years of experience in the industry. She is the UK's leading mentor for HR consultants and the founder of Leap into HR Consulting Virtual Bootcamps, the first HR consulting training program to become CPD accredited both in the UK and internationally. Sarah is also the best-selling author of "Leap into HR Consulting," w ..read more

Can the way we are treated at work influence our productivity?     In this episode of Real World HR, host Louise Kennedy is joined by FCIPD and MBA Business Coach & Mentor, Dulcie Swanston.     Dulcie has over 20 years’ experience in the FTSE 100/250 with powerhouses like Bass and Mitchells & Butlers Plc, and she's not just a Master Executive Coach, but also a Business Mentor across sectors like retail and pharmaceuticals globally. Founder of Tea Break Training Ltd and 'The 52 Project', author of 'It’s Not Bloody Rocket Science', and a voice on BBC, Dulcie stan ..read more

The cost-of-living crisis affects us all, but how does it affect us in the workplace?   In this episode of Real World HR, host Louise Kennedy is joined by committed social justice advocate; Alison Dunn.     Alison has been the Chief Executive Officer of Citizens Advice Gateshead since 2012 and has led the independent charity to support hundreds of thousands of people in the North East and maximise household income, resulting in approximately £84m of financial gains over a ten-year period. Under her leadership, the charity has undergone significant growth, increasing turnove ..read more

How can we address mental health issues in the workplace? In this episode of Real World HR, host Louise Kennedy is joined by the self-acclaimed busiest barber in the world: Tom Chapman. After a decade working at Toni & Guy, Tom founded his own hair studio in 2011. After losing a friend to suicide, he quickly realised that his salon/barbershop provided a safe environment in which he could really talk to his clients. So, in 2015, he founded The Lions Barber Collective, which is a group of international Barbers, that educate and raise awareness about mental health and suicide prevention. This ..read more

Real World HR is back for season 3! We’re kicking off with Team Oculus HR discussing hot topics within the world of HR at the moment. We’re delving into the subject of team culture. Can you put into words what your company’s culture is? Sometimes it’s difficult to grasp the true feeling of the workplace, but defining your workplace culture is important to allow efficiency and passion to grow within the team. We’ll be touching on offering benefits to staff and how to avoid grievances within your company, recruiting, and how this all links back to the culture of the company. Ready to step into t ..read more

In this episode of the Real World HR podcast, host Louise Kennedy is joined by culture change, behavioural and people expert Sarah Callender, to dive into the leadership debate. Sarah is COO at Duo Global Consulting, where she works with growth-focused businesses to lead and navigate strategic change. As part of this, Sarah is passionate about effective leadership and runs initiatives to support ambitious leaders to make a positive impact. The discussions in this episode include the qualities of effective leaders; performance management and planning techniques; and how to encourage continuous ..read more

On episode three of the Real World HR podcast, we’re joined by Occupational Health expert John Devitt to discuss these pertinent issues of mental health and substance misuse in the workplace. In his role as CEO at Recovery4Life, John specialises in offering support with sensitive, complex health and wellbeing issues such as drugs and alcohol. John believes in the importance of personal enterprise in recovery and advocates reducing the stigma associated with substance misuse and mental wellbeing in the workplace. We open up the discussion in this episode, with John sharing invaluable advice for ..read more

Ever dreaded having an awkward conversation with an employee or your manager? Or lost sleep worrying about a situation you’re in at work? The first episode of the Real World HR podcast will equip you with solutions to face these issues. Join HR expert and host Louise Kennedy as she shines the spotlight on her team at Oculus HR. The team share their journeys and why they love working in HR. Then there's the best bit - going beyond the HR handbook to discuss some standout, real life stories from their HR world. And there are some gems! Let's step into the real world of HR. ... Find out more abou ..read more