Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Recruitment & retention
    • Wellbeing
    • Occupational Health
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Recruitment & retention
    • Wellbeing
    • Occupational Health
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise

HR strategyPay & benefitsOpinionTeam reward

Your HR department needs support too

by Martin Couzins 15 Mar 2005
by Martin Couzins 15 Mar 2005

The news that HR professionals are less likely to cope with life’s most unsettling events than any other profession isn’t in itself surprising, but it is worrying.

It isn’t surprising because the profession is undergoing huge change. From adopting outsourced and shared services to becoming a more strategic business partner, HR departments are having to streamline themselves and reinvent themselves – the BBC is a current case in point. Change is unsettling and difficult and it takes its toll on all individuals involved.

What is worrying is that HR professionals are finding it hard to cope with this change.

By their very nature, HR practitioners have to take on other peoples’ problems as a part of their job. When there is change, they have to help others cope first, usually at the expense of their own needs. Take, for example, an HR officer breaking news to employees that they are to lose their jobs and having to help people cope, knowing full well that they have lost their job too.

In the ever-changing business world, upsizing, downsizing, mergers and acquisitions will always be a regular occurrence. And it will be HR that drives through the associated organisational change ensuring a smooth transition for employees. But where do the needs of these HR professionals fit in?

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

HR managers have a duty to their staff to ensure that their welfare is a priority. They must be vigilant and sensitive to the needs of staff who are under intense pressure to help business change while, at the same time, having to change themselves.

HR managers must have a good look at their own department and identify how well their staff are coping with the pressures of the job. Defining the problem is the first step to solving for the benefit of HR professionals, the team and the wider business.


Martin Couzins

Martin is an experienced business-to-business journalist who has spent many years covering the HR and L&D sectors. As well as writing and curating content on these topics, he runs Massive Open Online Courses through MOOC Pro as well as a digital content and communications agency Itsdevelopmental.

previous post
Fast track for high achievers
next post
NHS trust to make biggest ever equal pay compensation award

You may also like

How to manage workplace investigations effectively

5 Sep 2025

Director with cancer treated unfairly over pay, rules...

5 Sep 2025

Agency crackdown won’t cure NHS staffing crisis alone

5 Sep 2025

Revolut employees to receive share sale payout

2 Sep 2025

City law firm freezes junior lawyers’ pay to...

28 Aug 2025

Employee Benefits Live 2025 conference programme unveiled

21 Aug 2025

Eurostar’s Georgie Willis a keynote speaker at Employee...

19 Aug 2025

Lidl to increase entry-level hourly pay for 35,000...

15 Aug 2025

Return to office: the looming battle over where...

11 Aug 2025

EU pay transparency rules driving ‘cultural pay shift’...

7 Aug 2025

  • Work smart – stay well: Avoid unnecessary pain with centred ergonomics SPONSORED | If you often notice...Read more
  • Elevate your L&D strategy at the World of Learning 2025 SPONSORED | This October...Read more
  • How to employ a global workforce from the UK (webinar) WEBINAR | With an unpredictable...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits Live
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Recruitment & retention
    • Wellbeing
    • Occupational Health
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise