Being an introvert in an extrovert-dominated world can often be challenging, particularly in the workplace. In many organisations, introverts can become misunderstood and undervalued, overshadowed by their more extroverted colleagues.

For managers, this presents one of the more difficult aspects of leadership – trying to get the best out of the many different personality types in their teams. A good leader will want to make sure everyone in their team is treated fairly and given the same tools and opportunities to develop their career. So how can you make sure you’re helping the introverts in your team to succeed?

If you’re a manager or team leader, it’s important that you know how to empower the introverts in your team, to achieve organisational goals and help each individual reach their full potential. Here are some practical steps you can take to help introverted employees succeed at work.

Many introverts have an intense fear or dislike of public speaking, often feeling more comfortable and articulate when presenting their ideas on paper, rather than verbally. Having a meeting – or worse, a presentation – sprung on them at short notice can be quite terrifying, which may be hard for extroverted people to understand.

However, in most workplaces, team meetings are a part of everyday life. Having time to prepare for meetings or presentations will help introverted employees greatly.

By scheduling meetings in advance and letting teams know what’s on the agenda, you’re giving everyone time to think about the topics being discussed and process their own thoughts. This will also benefit the business by ensuring that employees are given the best opportunity to share their knowledge and experience with the group.

It’s not about pandering to the introverts in your team – it’s about showing your employees that you respect their individual work styles by running an effective meeting that will generate the best ideas and outcomes.

Once you have your team gathered together in a meeting or brainstorming session, how can you be sure that the introverts in your group will share their voice?

For introverts, speaking up in group situations can be hard, especially when there are a lot of big personalities in the room who are more outspoken. Introverted team members will often sit back and listen, letting the extroverts run the show while keeping their ideas and opinions to themselves.

Susan Cain, author of bestselling book ‘Quiet’, believes that modern society dramatically undervalues introverts, losing much by doing so. She suggests a strategy for encouraging introverts to participate called the think-pair-share technique, which is more commonly used in classrooms but is very effective in the workplace.

Introduce a topic for discussion and ask team members to take some time to themselves to think about it, writing down their thoughts if they’d like to. Then divide the group into pairs to discuss their ideas one-on-one. After a few minutes, ask each pair to share their thoughts with the group.

Having some alone time to think and prepare before being asked to share with the group will make introverts feel more comfortable, prepared and ready to share their ideas with the team.

It seems that most modern workplaces are set up with extroverts in mind. Open plan offices, brainstorming sessions, constant collaboration, self-promotion… all of these things feel opposed to an introvert’s authentic self. Pushing against this every day can lead to many introverts experiencing burn out at work or low mental health.

It’s important to empower introverts by creating a safe, positive work culture in which they feel comfortable and supported. Even if this means doing things a little differently in your office. This will help bring out the best in introverted staff members, allowing them to contribute their best work for your organisation.

The most effective managers are those who take the time to understand how each individual works best. These leaders have the potential to change how we see introverts in the workplace and how they see themselves.

While these team members can sometimes come across as aloof or a little awkward at times, the introverted mind is responsible for many wonderful inventions, ideas and innovations in our world. They are often very hard-working, creative and loyal employees – they just need to be given the space and supportive work culture to show that.

False

How managers can help introverts succeed at work

Collaboration is increasingly important in today’s workplace and a highly sought after skill in any employee.

With technology making communication across teams and offices easier and more accessible, staff have more opportunity to collaborate and work together than ever. Building a culture of collaboration has great benefits for your business, increasing cooperation, improving knowledge sharing and promoting teamwork and positive working relationships.

Let's look at how you can help build a culture of collaboration in your organization.

The work culture of any company will be far more positive when individuals work together as a team.

For employees, working collaboratively increases their sense of identity within the team, as well as building a personal sense of achievement and overall team morale. Building trust and cooperation as a group leads to real support for each other, encouraging loyalty and respect.

Managers and supervisors who understand the benefits of collaboration will look for opportunities for their teams to work together and connect, promoting a culture of teamwork.

These days, teams don’t always share the same work space, with employees working from home, remotely or in offices across different continents.

Large, diverse teams often need to work together virtually to deliver a project, meaning fostering effective online collaboration is vital. With so many individuals involved, it’s important to make sure you’re tapping into those resources of knowledge and experience.

Employers and managers should encourage team members to share information and knowledge freely, to accomplish team and organizational goals.

Collaboration is most beneficial when it leads to a direct outcome.

Focusing on outcomes helps to keep progress moving forward, with teams working together to achieve shared goals. Sharing a sense of purpose is an important part of teamwork and will help to strengthen employee working relationships, as well as their engagement with the project.

One of the biggest barriers to success is when teams act as a collection of silos, rather than one organization.

In many offices or job sites, you can see cases of siloed work behavior, with staff sticking to their own teams and not really mixing or interacting with the pods or offices beside them.However, through teamwork and collaboration, employees are able to tap into a larger and wider knowledge base, meaning working across teams can be very beneficial for everyone. Be conscious of helping and supporting other branches and departments, to reach the same company goals and milestones.

During onboarding for new hires, encourage them to meet with other branches and departments, to break down silos and encourage collaboration. Nokia’s collaborative culture begins the moment a new hire starts on the job, when their manager sits down and lists all the people in the organization it would be useful for the employee to meet. They look together at what topics the newcomer should discuss with each person on the list and why establishing a relationship with him or her is important.

In a leadership role, you have the exciting opportunity to drive collaboration in your organization.

If you’re a manager or team leader, particularly in HR, you can lead the way in improving collaboration in your workplace. You also have a responsibility to encourage the collaborative process to make your whole team better than the sum of its parts.

You’ll be helping to increase work satisfaction of your team, while improving efficiencies and knowledge sharing, reinforcing your skills as a leader.

In fact, “great value is placed on leaders who can bring diverse groups together in a spirit of cooperation to get things done.”

If you’re interested in becoming more proactive in building collaboration within your organization, you can learn more through online courses such as How to Build Collaborative and Focused Teams. This free eLearning course will provide you with the skills and knowledge to understand what drives culture, helping you to build collaborative, high performance teams.

These days, our lives are often ruled by technology, with handy devices that allow us to check our emails first thing in the morning, finish work projects after hours and take phone calls from the office at any time.

There’s no doubt that technology makes life a whole lot easier, with laptops, tablets and smartphones offering us instant communication and convenience. But with the existence of these devices, the lines between work and home life have become increasingly blurred. And while being constantly available and online can have its advantages, it also means many of us are finding it hard to switch off from technology at home.

Today, we’ll look at the importance of switching off from work devices after hours, to help you avoid technology burnout and create a better work-life balance.

Being plugged into technology 24/7 can put you at significantly higher risk of burning out, which can prove to be very counter-productive for your career.

There are many health risks associated with technology burnout, including high blood pressure, increased heart rate, high levels of cortisol, depression and anxiety. Employees struggling with low physical or mental health can expect to see negative impacts on their productivity, work performance and resilience to workplace challenges.

In Australia this week, workers were encouraged to take part in national Go Home on Time Day, which aims to raise awareness about healthy work-life balance. The day is an important reminder that life shouldn’t revolve around work and when you leave the office for the day it's time to disconnect 100%.

If you’re checking work emails from home in the morning, working in the evening to meet deadlines, or finishing off a project after hours to make things easier the next day, you need to assess your workload or time management during the day.

Mark Cropley, author of ‘The Off-Switch: Leave Work on Time, Relax Your Mind But Still Get More Done’ agrees that people who fail to switch off after hours are at risk of damaging their health and work performance.

“They’ll be in bed and their mind will still be on work. They’ll go round and round in circles thinking ‘I’ve got to do this, I’ve got to do that.’ Then they go back to work the next day feeling more fatigued and more likely to make mistakes,” Cropley says.

Taking time out from tech devices will improve your health and productivity at work, allowing you to work better, rather than longer. You’ll be able to face the new working day feeling fresh and full of energy. For many people, it’s often in this downtime that they come up with their best ideas, as the brain shifts gear while running, swimming or just being out in nature, away from the office environment.

Remember, technology exists to make things easier, but spending too much time chained to your phone or laptop can end up creating more problems in your life and blocking your creativity.

Encourage Yourself to Switch Off After Hours

Employers and managers need to understand the importance of switching off after hours and be educated on the risks of technology burnout for their staff. But we also need to hold ourselves accountable in our own time.

As Cropley says, “The problem is that people just get into a routine of answering emails all the time. But we need to take control of our life outside of work. We’ll be more respected for it.”

For remote workers, freelancers and business owners, working from home has many benefits, including greater flexibility and autonomy, but it can mean even less distinction between work and home life. If you love your job, it can be even harder to set boundaries for yourself, but you need to recognise that it’s very important for the sake of your wellbeing and career.

Next time you’re tempted to check work emails from home, or finish up a project on the train ride home, try switching off instead – read a book, listen to music or a good podcast, or just relax with family and friends. You’ll feel much more refreshed and ready for work when it’s time to switch back on the following day.

The importance of switching off from technology

When it comes to gender equality, we’ve come a long way in the U.S. Laws are now in place to ensure that everybody receives fair and equal treatment at work and we also see an increasing number of women taking roles in what were previously male dominated industries.

We certainly are getting there, although there is still work to be done if we are to see 100% equality in the workplace. Despite the progress that has been made, there are still some issues that plague the issue of gender equality in the American workplace.

Sexual discrimination is still a very real issue for many women working in the United States, and it ranges from being very subtle, to very obvious. In some instances it might mean women being deliberately left out of team building or social events, helping to create a male orientated environment in which the women are made to feel less worthy. In other cases it might mean teasing of a sexual nature, which could hold far deeper consequences that might first appear. It could also mean women being overlooked for certain positions due to gender stereotypes or prejudices, although this can work both ways with men also being occasionally overlooked for positions that are considered to be traditionally feminine.

There is also the serious issue of sexual harassment, which can potentially lead to very serious ramifications if not addressed. Remember that sexual harassment is not necessarily only about physical contact, it can also be psychological and what might appear to be a bit of fun can in fact be very intimidating for the victim.

Employers must do what they can to help prevent sexual harassment from taking place, and there are guidelines and procedures in place to help with this.

According to the American Association of University Women (AAUW), female workers in the United States currently receive approximately 80% of wages that men do. This is quite a significant gap of 20% between what men and women are paid. Studies by the US Department of Labor have shown that this figure is closer to 5% when taking into account career and education choices by women, but still the gap remains.

One recent high profile case that clearly outlined Gender inequality in the US is with actress Jennifer Lawrence when she learned that she was making significantly less than her male colleagues. Miss Lawrence herself has suggested that she is to blame herself because she could have held out for more money, so perhaps another issue could be that women are not encouraged enough to value their contribution as much as men are.

A disproportionately high wage gap could be an indicator of a sexual inequality issue within the workplace and is something that should not be ignored.

Gender occupational segregation is the workplace phenomena where different demographics are more or less likely to be in certain industries. One such example is the disproportionately high number of men that are employed in the software and tech industries. The male dominated careers and industries tend to be higher paid than the female dominated industries and this helps to explain the wage gap between the two genders.

One reason for this segregation is sexual discrimination, with one gender being favored over another for positions for no other reason than their gender. If you are found guilty of favoring one gender over the other for no other reason than their gender then you could have serious consequences to pay. If challenged, you could be expected to show that it is necessary to favor one gender over the other in the given scenario.

Family commitments are another thing that helps contribute to Gender Occupational Segregation and, by extension, the wage gap. Women are more inclined to choose roles that still allow them to dedicate time to other commitments such as bringing up their children and taking care of family members. What’s more is that the roles that women choose to take up may pay less, but tend to offer greater advantages in terms of social stratification.

Sometimes, in order to be careful not to be discriminatory, we can end up doing the exact opposite. In the case of Gender discrimination in the workplace, we could end up favoring a candidate for a particular position because of the need to be fair to both genders overall. While such actions may be well intended overall, they still put you in the position where a better-qualified candidate may have been denied an opportunity on gender reasons alone. Even if you did have good intentions in favoring one gender over another in the workplace, you could find that you have broken regulations and you may be prosecuted accordingly.

Some gender inequality issues are less obvious than others, and some may even go unnoticed completely. It is important that as many people within your organization are educated on gender inequality issues, particularly those in supervisory/managerial positions, so that issues are more likely to be identified when they occur.

It is necessary that you make it absolutely clear that procedures are in place to assist anybody that feels as though they have been discriminated against. It is also necessary to make it clear exactly what these procedures are and how to make a formal complaint.

If a formal complaint is made then you must undertake all necessary steps to be sure that you comply with legal procedures. Follow the correct procedures and you not only have a pleasant and fair working environment for all, you will also protect yourself legally should any instances of discrimination occur in the future.

How to promote gender equality in the workplace

Discrimination in the workplace is something that business, industry and society in general has worked hard to crack down on over the years. A lot has been done to protect the rights of workers of different gender, race, religion and other demographics and employers potentially stand to face heavy penalties if they are found to be in breach of the regulations. Even if an employer is not directly responsible for an act of discrimination, then they could still be held to account if necessary procedures are not followed.

Following set procedures on discrimination and legal compliance not only helps to prevent instances of discrimination in the future, but it also helps to protect the employer against legal issues down the road.

One of the most important things is to be absolutely clear on just what constitutes discrimination in the first place. Somebody could be acting with what they genuinely think are good intentions while being completely unaware that they are in fact being discriminatory against other employees. “I didn’t know” is unlikely to hold any water should you find yourself at a discrimination tribunal, so there are no excuses for not making sure that everybody is up to speed on exactly what discrimination entails.

Discrimination in the workplace is the act of favoring one demographic over another for reasons that are not relevant to the situation in question. Below are some of the most common examples.

Gender: Decisions based upon a person’s gender rather than their attributes and qualifications is very likely to be discriminatory and is likely to get you into trouble. For it to be allowed that a particular gender can be favored over another it is necessary to show that the favored gender is better suited, or even necessary, to the role than the other. One example of this could be a counselor’s role aiding women that have been abused my men.

Race: Racial discrimination is one of the hottest topics in the work place and offenders could find themselves facing considerable penalties.

Disability: In many jobs, it is necessary for workers to have certain mental and/or physical capabilities if they are to be able to do the job. This means that people with certain disabilities cannot reasonably be considered for the job. If there is no such requirement for certain physical attributes, however, then there is no reason to exclude a person in the workplace based on disabilities they may have. An employer will also need to make sure that the premises and facilities provide full access to anybody with disabilities, otherwise there could be a case for discrimination.

Sexual Orientation: A person’s sexual orientation is, in itself, not a reason to select or overlook any individual for a particular role. Religious beliefs or any other factors are not acceptable reasons to discriminate against another person for their sexuality. If a person of any sexuality has been discriminated against for no other reason than that sexuality, regardless of what that sexuality may be, then that is a clear violation of the law.

Religion: Unless a person’s religious beliefs prevent them from carrying out necessary parts of any job then their religion should not be a reason for favoring or excluding that person in the workplace. While a bar manager, for example, cannot be expected to hire somebody who’s religious beliefs prevent them from handling alcohol, an employer cannot expect the same person to handle alcohol if it is not a necessary part of the job.


Pregnancy: Pregnant women’s rights are well protected by the law and breaking these laws can lead to severe penalties. In addition to being protected by the law while working, women are also allowed, by law, to take maternity leave. In many cases the father is also permitted by law to take paternity leave of up to 12 weeks in some cases.

In 2015, The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission received nearly 90,000 workplace discrimination charges.

It is not only management that should be aware of discrimination and what defines it, but everybody involved in the workplace. Even somebody that is in what might be considered to be a low grade position with little to no authority can still be guilty of discrimination, intentional or otherwise. You will also likely find that even if an individual did act independently, the organization could still be held responsible if it is shown that reasonable steps were not taken to help prevent, or correct, the situation.

To make sure that your organization has shown itself to make an effort to educate all staff on discrimination you should ensure that all necessary training and information has been provided. Educating people on discrimination is one of the best ways to help prevent it from happening in the first place. It can also help to cover your organization legally should an incident occur. After all, it just isn’t possible to be in full control of every individual’s actions.

Depending on which jurisdiction you come under, employers have access to information packs and guides on what constitutes discrimination and how to make sure they are complying at all times. There are also businesses available for hire that specialize in discrimination laws and compliance and training staff in these laws and how to abide by them.

The best way to deal with discrimination in the work place is with education…this is the #1 way prevent it from happening in the first place.

Get the facts about discrimination and legal compliance

A strong HR team is the backbone of any organisation. However, the role is not without challenges. From attracting and retaining employees to workplace security, communication, and leadership development, HR managers face common challenges that many of us could only imagine.  

As such, there is no better time for HR managers to refocus their attention on overcoming common challenges in the workplace. It’s time to develop plans and initiate policies that will build up their companies and their employees!

Acquiring the best talent, overcoming a sluggish economy, and building up a solid leadership team are just a few of the most pressing challenges that HR managers face in today’s business climate.

With this in mind, we’ll take you step-by-step through the most common challenges that HR managers face, offering actionable advice for overcoming these challenges. 

Attracting outstanding employees is the driving force behind any great business.  

For an HR manager, landing these talented individuals is a job in itself. To attract potential employees, businesses must set themselves apart from the competition. The job applicant should not be the only party working hard to impress. 

If an HR manager wants to find all-star candidates for a position, they must put their best foot forward and show the applicant what they have to offer. Great HR managers have to understand how to sell!

As ever, L&D plays a key role in attracting employees, with one study finding that 59% of people say opportunities to learn and grow are extremely important to them when applying for a job. 

To learn more, see our article on how to attract the best talent for your business. 

So, you’ve hired the perfect person, and they’ve signed on the dotted line. Now, how do you get them to stick around?

History has shown that some of the most successful companies have low turnover rates and positive atmospheres.

Promoting a positive work environment and sustaining employee morale is critical for HR managers. There are certain things you can do to keep your workers happy and performing at their very best, such as:

Establishing a positive workplace culture

Offering your employees the chance to consistently better themselves and improve their skills is not only good for them on a personal level but will also benefit the company. For example, 94% of employees say they would stay at a company longer if it invested in their professional development.

Whether you focus on courses offered in a traditional classroom setting or through online education, there are endless opportunities to foster progress in the workplace.

Focusing on the wants and needs of your employees and providing them with an atmosphere that will challenge them professionally and promote camaraderie should be a top priority for any human resources department.

To demonstrate this, TINYpulse finds that employees who don't feel recognized for their work are 2x more likely to be actively seeking a new job. What’s more, research shows that 79% of people who quit their jobs cite “lack of appreciation” as their reason for leaving. In contrast, a positive workplace culture will encourage employees to remain with a company long-term. 

To find out more, read our recent article on 5 tips for long-term employee retention. 

Whether you’re dealing with a potential data breach or a physical situation, ensuring your company is protected against security issues often begins with HR managers.

Reevaluating current policies and determining whether they work for present-day demands is essential. An HR manager will need to look at any vulnerabilities in a company’s structure and decide on a course of action to protect the business and its employees from personal and professional harm.

While the American economy is trudging along slowly, this is no guarantee for the future. Businesses must constantly work to protect themselves from financial downturns.

For HR managers, managing the HR budget is a large part of this protection plan.

This topic goes hand in hand with our previous suggestions on retaining good employees. The human resource department of any company should promote emotional intelligence within the workplace.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report, emotional intelligence will be one of the top 10 job skills by 2020. 

Given this, employees want to know they are appreciated for more than just the work they turn in. Whether a business leader takes the time to understand them on a personal level can be a determining factor in a company’s success.

The HR management team should involve themselves in this by assisting the company heads in understanding the need for emotional intelligence.

It’s essential that employers lookout for more than just their own professional gains and focus on the fair treatment of their employees. HR managers should look for ways to encourage a dialogue between employees and managers and promote an appreciation of their team's emotional needs.

For further insights, you can read our article on increasing empathy and emotional intelligence. 

Good leadership is an essential part of a company’s success. Smooth operations often lie in the hands of the company’s current management team and those candidates with future potential.

To maintain a positive leadership culture, HR managers must support these individuals. This can mean offering a variety of things, including:

Potential leaders should be identified early and given ample support and training opportunities.

Hands-on experience is the best way to prepare for upcoming responsibilities. Having the chance to shadow and work alongside current managers can be the ideal preparation for future leadership roles.

For current managers and company leaders, training should be ongoing. Over time, there will always be room for improvement with new skills, policies, and technologies to discover.

Communication is vital in any workplace. While this may seem like an overstated concept, it’s surprising how many professional leaders aren’t great at communicating with other leaders and employees.

HR managers should seek out online resources that encourage enhanced communication.

Overcoming these challenges will promote business success

Many of the challenges mentioned above not only represent the current professional setting many businesses find themselves in, but they will continue to be relevant for generations to come.

If an HR manager can find the techniques to overcome these challenges, they will provide the company with tools that will last them years. The specifics may change from company to company, but the base necessities for workplace success will remain constant.

For more insights, subscribe to the Go1 newsletter to stay on top of all the latest L&D trends. Or, you can book a demo today to find out how Go1 can help with your team’s learning needs.

We’ll take you step-by-step through the most common challenges that HR managers face, offering actionable advice for overcoming these challenges.

How HR managers can overcome common challenges

We’ll take you step-by-step through the most common challenges that HR managers face, offering actionable advice for overcoming these challenges. 

Continued education and training for personnel are important in the success of a business, and that has never been more important than today since technology is growing at such accelerated rates. Here are a few ways in which eLearning can help you improve the performance of your sales team.

How To Improve Your Sales Staff Performance With eLearning

According to the Education Resources Information Center, “For companies to stay competitive, they must continually bring new products and services to the marketplace. One strategy organizations can use to support this requirement is to provide their sales force with training that enables revenue generation”. As you’ll discover, eLearning is the perfect solution for delivering training to improve your sales staff performance.

The most basic definition of eLearning is “electronic learning”.  However, it’s about more than just attending a school or college online, taking a few courses, and getting a certificate. Today, with all of their new technological advances companies can use eLearning to help their staff learn how to improve their sales skills.

Some of the benefits of eLearning vs. traditional learning include:

Tailored to specific needs.
With eLearning, a company can actually tailor the curriculum to its needs. For example, if the company wants to focus on marketing for one group of employees and sales etiquette for another, it can be done.

Flexible. 
Unlike traditional schools where students may need to wait a semester or longer for a particular class to become available, there are now software programs available to create particular classes and curriculum.

Ability to track progress. 
Instead of waiting for the “report card” to come out, you will be able to track the progress of the employees enrolled in the eLearning courses. Managers can also monitor the success, strengths, and weaknesses of each student to better address their needs.

Smaller bits of information. 
Instead of trying to cram a week’s worth of instructions and lessons into a three-hour training video, companies can break down the information into bite-sized classes or programs that will likely be better absorbed than longer classes.

3 Ways eLearning Creates Better Sales Staff Performance

5 Types Of Microlearning That Help Improve Your Sales Staff Performance 

According to the eLearning Industry, “In essence, micro-eLearning offers students and employees the opportunity to more easily absorb and retain the information that is being offered, by making lessons and course activities more manageable and ‘digestible’”.

Here are a few types of microlearning that can help improve your sales staff performance.

These would be games designed by the company that are in some way educational for the employee. They can be lesson-driven so that each level in the game passed is another level in lesson achievement.

The human brain tends to retain visuals more than the written word which is why slideshows are so successful. These provide valuable information in a short amount of time.

Again, instead of reading materials and perhaps zoning away from the information, people tend to find videos more entertaining. Instructional and informational short videos can be developed with an engaging tone that will capture the attention and help ensure the information is retained.

Hands-on learning is essential for some people. It also reinforces the information and lessons they are learning. For example: A sales team could be shown how to work a transaction from beginning to end, then the simulation would have the employees do the same transaction on their own.

These are other types of microlearning tools where the employees can watch and read at their own convenience.

The importance of eLearning is growing among businesses and corporations as they discover not only the benefits of the flexibility of eLearning, but also the invaluable ways employees can learn and grow their skills. Staying up to date with the products and/or services of the company, the newest technology and newest trends will help your sales staff performance in a big way.

Improve the performance of your sales team with eLearning

Boost your confidence for your next talk with this short course! 

Many people would rather die than stand in front of a microphone. It doesn’t have to be that way. This brief course will show that anyone can become a polished public speaker with practice. We've designed it for the person who wants to feel confident while powerfully delivering a message to any audience, large or small.

The ability to speak in public is one of the most valuable of all business skills, so make sure you enroll and brush up on your skills today!

Looking for more? Try our Top Categories! 

Looking for something but can't find it? Meet one of our learning consultants and let us help you out!

Free course: how to master public speaking

With technology traditionally being viewed in opposition to the environment, with its reliance on power, batteries and mass manufacturing, the term green technology may sound like something of an oxymoron.

However, sometimes technology can reshape society in surprising and unexpected ways, being used for different purposes than that in which the product or service was originally intended. In this way, certain technologies are being used to mitigate or reverse the effects of human activity on the environment, reducing our carbon footprint rather than increasing it.

This rise of green technology is an interesting time for employees working in technology and development, allowing them to use their tech skills to help create positive change.

Here are 5 exciting examples of green technologies changing the world for good.

Reduce energy consumption with green power outlets

One of the ongoing problems of traditional power outlets is their continual need for power, even once a device or appliance has been switched off.

This continual use of power is often referred to as “vampire power” with its blood-sucking power consumption draining both the environment and your electricity bill.

To combat this waste of energy through vampire power, green power outlets have been designed that allow you to cut off all power to your appliances with one easy turn of a dial, increasing your energy efficiency and reducing environmental impact.

Did you know that many electronic devices can be harmful to the environment if they’re not disposed of correctly?

With approximately 20 to 50 million metric tons of electronic waste (or e-waste) being disposed of every year, e-waste is a huge problem for the planet.

As well as being harmful to the environment, electronic waste can also cause health issues for individuals. The tiny parts that go into your mobile phone, computer and TV can contain mercury, lead, cadmium and other dangerous metals inside. While dismantling and salvaging products for gold and copper, e-waste can pose a risk to people in developing countries tasked with this dangerous job.

However, the good news is that tech companies can now take care of their e-waste responsibly, through companies who will directly pickup and process e-waste and ensure none ends up in landfill or in the wrong hands.

Creating solar panels with 3D printing technology

With the exciting world of 3D printing continuing to grow, there have been some inspiring arrivals in the green technology sphere.

For example, Australian scientists are one step closer to making a cheaper and faster way to print solar cells onto plastic. Once available, this technology could be used to power laptops to rooftops, allowing you to run your home responsibly on power from the sun.

Green technology could also see the invention of a home 3D printer able to produce solar cells from easily available materials, with the capacity to provide remote areas outside of the power grid with cheap and reliable electricity.

Mini solar lights bringing education to Africa

With many people in developing countries living beyond the energy grid, electricity is a precious and valuable commodity.

In Africa, with half of sub-Saharan Africans living without power, many households rely on kerosene lamps – which are not only expensive to run but produce toxic smoke into the atmosphere.

Recently, the introduction of tiny solar lights, generating just a handful of watts, have made reading or working at night possible. These solar lights, being free to run and safe to use, have opened up possibilities for education that were previously unimaginable to many Africans.

Energy-saving computer hardware and programs

Computers are a continually rapidly growing source of carbon, contributing to approximately 2% of global emissions, with that figure likely to double within a decade. Is there a way for the IT industry to continue without the huge drain on power from fossil fuels?

Green IT products focus on providing consumers with more environmentally conscious hardware, such as energy-efficient laptops and servers. There are also software options on the market that can power down our desktop when it’s not being used, or run in the background of your operating system and tune up your computer's own energy-saving hardware.

The use of these technologies holds promising hope for the future, with innovative products and services enabling individuals and communities to reduce their carbon footprints and impact on the planet. It also offers an exciting time ahead for those working in the technology industry, allowing you to use your tech skills to help change the world for good.

How green technology is changing the way we work

We all know human resources is responsible for interviewing new hires and helping them through their onboarding process, but what other functions do HR professionals perform for their employers?

For HR teams, each day brings a diverse range of roles and responsibilities – from helping other staff grow and develop in their careers, to assisting with organizational strategy and budgets.

To get a better understanding of the diverse functions of human resources, let’s look at 5 reasons why your HR team is so important for your business.

Your HR team plays a vital role in the professional development of your company’s employees, carrying out important activities such as performance reviews and professional development programs.

HR professionals are able to identify the type of skills training and employee development necessary for individual staff members to improve their skills and qualifications. In this way, your HR plays a valuable role in enabling employees to reach objectives and company goals, which has a positive effect on your business’ profits and reputation.

Within their roles, HR staff can also gather valuable information and feedback from your staff, which can be used to improve levels of employee performance and engagement. 

The HR team can play an essential role in developing your company's strategic direction, with their job role giving them a direct say in all new hires and recruitment. This area of responsibility is very important in shaping the future of any company, having a definite impact on an organization's stability and future success.

In their interactions with staff across all teams and business units, and at all levels, HR professionals are able to form a big picture view of your organization and make continuous improvements to company processes and efficiencies. 

Through the use of employee surveys, focus groups and exit interviews, HR staff can conduct real assessments of your company’s culture and management through feedback from staff. This helps highlight any issues and challenges that need to be overcome, determining what underlies any employee dissatisfaction within your organization.

We tend to think of human resources as dealing primarily with the ‘people’ side of things, rather than finance, however your HR team can play a useful and positive role in curbing company spending.

It’s helpful for employers to understand how important the proper management of human capital is to your company's bottom line. Your HR team can reduce excessive spending by: 

Negotiating better rates for benefits such as health care coverage

Ensuring competitive and realistic wage-setting

Having a solid knowledge of employment trends and salary analysis

By making sure your recruitment and selection processes are efficient, HR can also minimize company expenses regarding advertising jobs, onboarding, training new employees and reducing staff turnover.

Conflict is bound to arise in all organizations, regardless of size or industry. With so many different personalities and working styles put together under one roof, it’s inevitable that certain employees will clash at one time or another.

The important thing is to have processes in place to deal with conflict, managed by experienced and qualified human resources professionals. HR staff are specially trained to handle conflict resolution between two employees, or even a manager and employee.

Your human resource manager can act as a consultant and mediator to sort out any issues in an effective manner and remove tensions from the workplace, before they get out of control.

Creating a Safe and Positive Work Culture

Last, but certainly not least, an organization’s HR team is responsible for creating a workplace culture that is safe and compliant, with minimal risks to your staff’s health or wellbeing.

In building a culture of compliance, your HR team will develop, implement and communicate policies around sexual harassment, bullying and workplace health and safety (WH&S). As champions of these policies, HR staff encourage equality, diversity and the protection of workers’ rights, with zero tolerance for any form of harassment or discrimination.

Every company wants to be known as an "employer of choice” – a workplace that receives recognition for the positive way in which they treat their staff. With organizational culture such an important part of any company, HR professionals also play a large role in how happy and engaged staff are in the workplace.