Category: Learning & Development

Employees are valuing career development more than ever—it’s a sign that the company is willing to invest in their future. How are businesses approaching training today? What are their pain points, and what topics are being addressed in training?

merger

Culture: The Key to M&A Success 

As M&A activity is projected to accelerate in 2025, organizations face a critical challenge that extends far beyond traditional due diligence and integration plans. While financial models, operational synergies, and legal alignment are rigorously analyzed, one key element is often underestimated: culture.  Cultural integration — the alignment of values, behaviors, and people practices between merging […]

Reimagine Employee Feedback: How to End Performance Reviews

“I love performance reviews!”—said nobody, ever. Despite their unpopularity, most companies still conduct annual performance reviews even though 98% of CHROs admit their performance management processes are broken. Why cling to something that doesn’t work? Because many executives simply can’t imagine a better way to enhance employee performance. What if there’s a way to ditch […]

High-Performers Receive the Worst Feedback 

When it comes to career development, feedback isn’t optional—it’s essential. But new data from Textio reveals a major gap that could be costing companies their best talent: high-performing employees often receive worse feedback.  Vague Feedback Doesn’t Help  According to Textio’s analysis of interview and workplace feedback, high performers are far more likely to receive vague […]

4 Strategies for Managers to Support Career Development  

When you hear the words career development, your mind might instantly go to dull presentations or seminars. But career development isn’t just a buzzword; it’s a cornerstone of employee engagement, retention, and organizational success.   While HR departments often design the frameworks and programs to support career growth, managers bring these initiatives to life. As […]

Millennial

Millennials Continue to Lean Heavily on Side Hustles

Millennials aren’t afraid of hard work. In fact, many are putting in far more than forty hours a week. But a new survey from Academized.com shows that extra time isn’t necessarily going into career development and chasing corporate promotions—it’s going into building side hustles. Side Hustles on the Rise Out of 2,500 millennials surveyed, more […]

Career Development for Rockstar Employees

When companies bring in a senior-level hire with 20 or 30 years of experience, it’s easy to assume they don’t need career development anymore. After all, these are people who’ve built reputations, mastered their fields, and led teams across industries. What more could they possibly need? The answer: plenty—just not the same kind of development […]

Where Everybody Knows Your Name: Applying the “Cheers” Principle to Employee Engagement 

The iconic theme song from the sitcom Cheers captures a fundamental human desire: to be recognized, valued, and part of a close-knit community. The lyrics, “Where everybody knows your name, and they’re always glad you came,” encapsulate a culture of belonging and camaraderie. While Cheers was a fictional Boston bar, its underlying principle can be […]

How to Scale Culture Without Losing What Makes It Work

It’s one thing to build a strong culture—it’s another to scale it. As organizations grow—whether through rapid hiring, geographic expansion, or acquisitions—company culture can get diluted or distorted.  New people come in, processes shift, and what used to feel natural now requires intention. The risk? Losing the very culture that made workplace growth possible in […]

3 Company Culture Strategies From SPARK HR

In an age where only 31% of U.S. employees are engaged at work, HR professionals have the heavy burden of figuring out how to create a company culture that engages employees. After all, an unhappy workforce leads to an unproductive and unsuccessful organization. Business is on the line. However, there are 3 strategies that HR […]

Company Culture Is What You Tolerate: Why Consistency Matters More Than Slogans

Most organizations can describe their company culture, but fewer can prove it. Culture isn’t what’s written on a careers page or stated in a company all-hands, but what gets rewarded, ignored, corrected—or tolerated. Culture Lives in the Gray Areas The biggest threat to a healthy culture is inconsistency. When some behaviors are addressed and others […]