With the labor market tightening in the UK, and some sectors having to battle hard to recruit and retain the best people, employers are realizing that they have to be responsive and inventive in trying to meet employee expectations for flexible benefits that help with their work‐life balance.

Purpose – Aims to describe the advantages resulting from the trainers and associate trainers in the IT section of Leeds City Council's learning and development unit having achieved the trainer‐assessment programme (TAP) certificate in training‐delivery skills. Design/methodology/approach...

Purpose – The paper focuses on ways of tackling low staff morale in a large public‐sector organization. Design/methodology/approach – The author argues that the quality of leadership and the people‐management skills of line managers affect employee morale, yet people can feel positive...

Purpose – The paper evaluates the impact of a leadership development program on middle managers at Derby City Council, UK. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on interviews with 32 managers who had undertaken the program, named Leading Managers. Findings – The program focuses...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the origins, development and success of an employee well‐being package at Hillingdon Council, London, UK, which has helped to reduce sickness absence from an average of around 15 days per person per year at its worst to just above eight days...

Purpose – This paper aims to describe a new e‐learning service for Glasgow City Council's 37,000 staff. Design/methodology/approach – The paper explains the reasons for the new e‐learning service, the form it takes and the advantages it has brought. Findings – The paper reveals that...

Purpose – This article seeks to advance the view that collaborative leadership can generate the relationships necessary to resolve the tensions between rising expectations, smaller budgets and more innovative solutions. Design/methodology/approach – The article contends that, in the 1980s...