Five years of Salary Reviews show the shift: pay has climbed, but what people really want now is flexibility, trust, and purpose
The Hays Salary Review has been a mainstay for decades, tracking the pulse of pay and workplace priorities across Australia. But it’s the last five years that tell the most interesting story. From COVID-driven uncertainty to record skills shortages, and now the squeeze of rising living costs, the data reads like a diary of how quickly work […]
Output over hours: what are you really paying for?
Let’s put this on the table. If you’ve got 38 hours in one column and an employee’s outcomes in another—what is their wage actually paying for? To clock in and sit at a desk for 38 hours a week, or to deliver the outcomes tied to their role? If you just said both, let me push […]
Business-First is Out. People-First is Profitable. Let’s Talk Employee Experience
There’s a reason HR professionals are banging the employee experience (EX) drum louder than ever — because it works. Not in a fluffy, warm-and-fuzzy, “yay team” kind of way. In a hard, measurable, bottom-line-impacting kind of way. But to get there, businesses need to undergo one of the biggest mindset shifts of all: from business-first […]
The Real Work: Why Compliance Won’t Save You From Turnover
There’s a belief out there — still very much alive in small business land — that if you hire good people, you’ll get good performance. That if you “treat people fairly,” they’ll stick around. That if you tick the compliance boxes, you’ve done your bit. Let’s be blunt: compliance alone is not a retention strategy. It […]
Getting the Best Out of Your People Isn’t Luck. It’s Intentional.
You know what doesn’t work anymore? Managing people like they need to be managed. Policies written for the lowest common denominator. Performance reviews designed to protect the business instead of grow the individual. Engagement surveys that read like compliance checklists. If you want to build a workplace where people thrive—not just survive—you need to recognise that […]
The Real Work: Holding the Mirror Up to Culture, Leadership and the Future of Work
There’s a reason most businesses would rather slap up a new mission statement than ask their people what culture really feels like day-to-day. Because asking the question means you have to be ready for the answer. It takes courage to hold a mirror up to your culture — not just your vibe or your branding, but […]
The Space Between: Where Culture Becomes Real
There’s a seductive simplicity in aiming for compliance.It’s clean. It’s quantifiable. And it’s comfortable. Then there’s best practice HR — aspirational, polished, full of leadership buzzwords and culture decks. But the real work?It lives in the space between. The bit that doesn’t come with a checklist.The part where intent and impact collide.The day-to-day moments where your […]
Hiring Warning: Are You Importing a Culture You Don’t Want?
Let’s talk about a recruitment temptation that’s very real—especially in regional areas and during a skills shortage. You’ve just hired a brilliant employee from a competitor. They’re sharp, they get the job done, and within weeks… five of their former colleagues want in too. Sounds like all your staffing headaches are solved, right? Well… not quite. Because […]
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