Books to inform and inspire

Help is at hand with timely resources for HR practitioners navigating transformational change initiatives and uncertainty. These three books provide valuable guidance.

Jacob, K., Unerman, S., & Edwards, M. (2020). Belonging: The Key to Maintaining and Transforming Diversity, Inclusion and Equality at Work. Great Britain: Bloomsbury Business.

Research from Dynata (2020) about workplace culture in the United Kingdom and United States of America uncovered troubling opinions, such as one in four people have felt excluded or marginalised at work because of their beliefs, personal circumstances or identity.

The authors of Belonging argue that greater cultural diversity, especially at a senior level, provides an opportunity to increase business success in the current dynamic environment, and they question why HR efforts to improve diversity fail.

A range of micro-aggressions that undermine inclusion are identified and techniques are suggested to encourage a culture of belonging that specifically relate to women and have general application to LGBTQI+ and BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) employees.

Some repetition of ideas occurs and the application of techniques ‘active mindfulness’ and ‘transactional analysis’ are under-developed. Conversely, advice on “how to disagree with the boss” provides useful tips for anyone who wants to seek equality of opportunity.

Pinder-Amaker, S., & Wadsworth, L. (2021). Did That Just Happen?!. Boston: Beacon Press.

A organisations aiming to create cultures that are sustainably diverse and inclusive. The two authors, renowned North American clinical psychologists, apply a variety of skills and strategies to short case studies to illustrate their efficacy from the perspective of both the user and the discriminated.

Readers are challenged to be aware of their own biases that become ‘identity-related aggressions’, which can have a cumulative psychological and physical impact on the targets, and steps are suggested to encourage internal (individual) and external (organisational) longterm systemic change to address power imbalances.

Learnings from ways to overcome long-standing disparities resulting from abuse of power of racism that “still infiltrates United States society today” (p 63) can enrich our own striving towards equality in New Zealand. Much of the advice can be generalised to increasing our cultural empathy in other domains such as sexism, ageism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, classism and xenophobia.

Kettle, M. (2022). Fully Connected. Australia: Mel Kettle (reviewed by Kathy Catton)

Leadership specialist Mel Kettle provides a practical guide for leaders on how to prioritise themselves, reclaim lost energy and find joy. With increasingly blurred boundaries between work and life, it can be difficult to find time for this, but it’s essential for sustained leadership success.

Drawing upon extensive experience working with diverse clients such as Toll and ANZ, Mel shows leaders how to become fully connected so they can take back ownership of their life, reclaim their health, energise their workforce and create cultures of belonging. In a unique three-step framework, readers learn how to shift from surviving to thriving.

Accessibly written and filled with tools and tips, Fully Connected empowers leaders to unlock the power of selfawareness and self-care to become a fully connected leader.

Ruth Garside, CFHRNZ, is passionate about HR, after a long career in HR and I/O psychology in the United Kingdom and New Zealand as a practitioner, OD consultant, lecturer and researcher. Although retired, she still keeps up to date with employment law and HR initiatives relevant to today’s work environment.