In the race to attract and retain the best talent in order to remain globally competitive, South African companies are falling behind. Clive Thompson reveals why local businesses are failing to develop great workplaces that produce a thriving workforce.

Call centres can be described as the cornerstones of the ICT sector and a great starting place for young people who are interested in pursuing a career in IT. Dr Madelise Grobler talks about the need to prepare and equip non-graduates for this dynamic industry.

Executive coaches with a background and understanding of the business world are increasingly in demand as evidenced by the number of people training to be coaches and the number of companies that are employing coaches, says Dale Williams.

Why is the global shortage of Business Analysts significant to New Age companies? Faculty Training Institute MD, Steve Erlank gives leaders reason to mark business analysis as a critical skill for the 21st century.

In an economy where skills are in short supply it is imperative that employers start looking to use the current workers with the necessary skills to train our youth and ensure continuity in the future. But does the youth unemployment subsidy contribute to this objective?

Whether your workplace can be described as a modern office or whether you operate in a typical factory set up there are some basic guidelines every employer should follow when developing the company’s occupational health and safety plan.

The issue of skills shortages, particularly in the technology field, is an ongoing concern for business. Mario Matthee looks at the future of ICT and talks about how industry can equip South Africa to do business in an increasingly connected world.

Increasing employee turnover is shining a spotlight on the need for HR to step up its game and integrate its operations with the strategic goals of the business; but research shows this is not yet being put into practice.

Do you know the difference between inbound and outbound call centres? Call centres are dynamic workplaces that require flexible and skilled employees. We investigate the definition of a standard call centre and the people who work in them.

The National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) is offering internship positions to promising graduates between the ages of 18 and 35 for a period of 24 months. The Internships are based nationally. Find out more about the requirements and terms of the bursaries.

Transformation at the Univeristy of the Free State specifically, and transformation in South Africa in general were the central themes of a talk presented by Professor Jonathan Jansen rector of the Higher education institution.

With today’s tech savvy audiences becoming more sophisticated, sloppy presentations simply won’t do and in fact they do more of a disservice to the message you are trying to get across. Communications specialist Elaine Matchett provides a few pointers to help you deliver your message confidently.

The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Labour commenced hearings on the 24 July 2012 into the proposed amendments to the Labour Relations Act and Basic Conditions of Employment Act. Sylvia Hammond highlights some of the key areas of concern.

Local employers are having a hard time. They are not only struggling to fill vacant positions for high-skilled workers, but they are also struggling to keep their employees at work. Johan Poolman says engagement is the key to reversing this situation.

The role that Seta's play in implementing the National Skills Strategy 3 in the workplace environment is essential to the greater skills development plan. Mark Naidoo invites industry professionals to contribute to the exploration of this issue.

The DHET has released a gazette for public comment dated 3 July 2012 on the proposed new Learning Programme Regulations, 2012. These regulations will repeal the Learnership Regulations of 2007 and cover all learning programmes under the Skills Development Act.

We sometimes discuss issues without really knowing exactly what it entails and how it should be done. Take verification (external moderation) as an example. We recently discussed this on Skills Universe and The Mentoring Network web site. So I decided to do some research on how it is conducted in practice.

In many instances HR departments are being treated as just another department in many organisations. The problem here rests with senior management who have not recognised the important role individuals in the HR department play and the value of the contribution they can make, says Des Squire.

South Africa received high praise for its efforts against the HIV/Aids pandemic, at the International AIDS Conference in Washington DC. The achievements include 1.7 million people placed on treatment and 20 million people tested for HIV during the country’s long testing campaign.

With so many companies competing for the same portion of the market differentiating the customer experience has become the new battlefield. Jonathan Hall tells companies how to stand out from the crowd.

Statistics show that diverse boards produce better operational and financial performance yet the integration of female directors into the company board continues to be a slow process.