Your 12 minute HR lesson
Episodes
Fortnight
15 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In Taylor Swift's song Fortnight, did her character also commit infidelity? Or am I reading too much in? Suburban boredom and frustrated love is n...
I would prefer not
08 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This episode explores the philosophical idea that most people work not because they are deeply engaged, but because employment is a practical exchange...
Ambushes
01 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Workplace ambushes occur when managers bring employees into conversations or investigations without adequately informing them of the issues being disc...
Chapters
25 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This episode explores whether a person’s past should define their future, particularly in workplace decisions involving criminal convictions and tru...
Playing with Jacks
17 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This episode explores “advanced ER” — situations where employers must sometimes act despite limited evidence. Using a World War II analogy about...
Popping personal bubbles of reality
11 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
How employees can create personal “versions of reality” in workplace conflicts, particularly around performance and conduct issues. Drawing parall...
Avoiding lose-lose situations
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This article examines “lose-lose” situations in workplaces through the lens of tragedy and difficult decision-making. Drawing on Romeo + Juliet, i...
Heating up & cooling down others
26 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
We explore the importance of managing conflict before it escalates. Using the extraordinary restraint shown by Vasili Arkhipov and Stanislav Petrov du...
Limp norms
19 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This episode explores the often-overlooked role of workplace norms—those unwritten rules that sit between formal law and policy. Using the example o...
Thinking about others
13 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
People care more about what they think is important than what you think should matter to them. In HR, the mistake is prioritising internal initiatives...
Go to the mountain
05 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The concept of “management by walking around” encourages leaders to leave their offices and spend time observing and engaging with people on the f...
Anticipating employee strategies
30 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In disciplinary situations where an employer raises concerns about misconduct, employees typically respond in one of three ways: “kiss the ring,” ...
Body cams
23 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Police body-cam footage shows how trained officers manage conflict by calmly asserting authority, clearly outlining expectations, and signposting cons...
4 to the floor
15 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
“Stick to message” is a powerful leadership skill, especially in conflict. It prevents conversations being derailed by “whatabout” arguments a...
Fear of outside our control
09 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Why do managers (and HR) often feel anxious when dealing with union representatives or others from outside of the workplace, or outside their control?...
Moving problems
01 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Like the “found family” trope from films, workplaces are where people form new gangs, new groups, new familites. But sometimes......the piece expl...
Squeaky wheels
22 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Using the parable of the prodigal son, we explore the workplace dynamic of “the squeaky wheel gets the grease.” The younger son demands his inheri...
Calm, hard, Words
15 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This episode of the 12 Minute HR Podcast uses Tim Minchin’s song Come Home (Cardinal Pell) to explore how difficult truths can be delivered calmly a...
Special Episode: AI: Spade or Subcontractor?
13 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
We’re living through a step change with AI, much like when platforms such as Facebook suddenly became universal after years of quiet development. Th...
Why emails are bad
09 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Email is not true communication — it is only evidence that something was sent. We use examples from history and communication theory, the talk expla...
The lost art of listening
02 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This lesson explores why listening is a complex but essential skill at work, arguing that many people struggle either because they’re distracted or ...
Lax to strict
26 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This episode explores why moving people from a period of lax rules to stricter expectations is one of the hardest challenges in people management. Usi...
Simple Solutions Suck
19 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This episode argues against “sugary” learning in HR and leadership—catchy slogans and simplistic insights that feel good but don’t actually ch...
Magic words
23 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
I explore the idea of “magic words” — phrases we treat as if they instantly change a situation — and why leaders shouldn’t fall for them. Dr...
Riding shotgun on risky decisions
16 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This episode delivers a practical HR lesson on decision-making, arguing that HR’s role is not to make decisions but to ensure decisions are made wel...
Flawed mentors
09 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week we talk about the “flawed mentor” — that Gandalf/Dumbledore/Merlin figure who guides us… until the moment their limitations show us ...
P&C or HR?
03 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This episode examines how hype often outpaces reality in business, using WeWork, Bodega Boxes, and Theranos as examples of ideas that generated enormo...
I can't explain fast car
24 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I weave together a story about two five-year-olds, Tracy Chapman’s Fast Car, and the Dunning–Kruger effect to explore why some pe...
Don't listen to this one
18 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
You've been warned.... so don't blame me...
Double header head trip
17 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What would future beings think of us if humanity suddenly disappeared? That’s a thought experiment I dive into in this week’s episode — and it l...
Positive fish
11 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Punishment stops bad behaviour. Rewards start good behaviour. It sounds simple — but it’s one of the most misunderstood ideas in management.In thi...
Taking charge with calm
03 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A lot of the time in HR, we don’t actually have power — we have influence.And the most effective kind of influence often comes from calmness.In th...
Strategising up
27 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ever felt stuck in HR, waiting for the business to tellyou what to do? In this week’s 12-minute HR lesson, I unpack how “TheRemains of the Day” ...
The secret sauce of sampling
21 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week's podcast: the secret sauce of sampling.Today I’m channelling my inner grumpy old man. We interview. We personality-test. We talk endlessl...
Rethinking Risk
13 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There’s an old saying: “Dissecting jokes is like dissecting a frog. No one laughs—and the frog dies.”In this week’s 12-Minute HR Lesson, I’...
Dinosaurs and the Holidays Act
06 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How is a dinosaur like a piece of legislation? The lesson of Jurassic Park is chaos theory; life is too complicated to be fully accounted for by any s...
Low hanging fruit
01 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week's episode: Low-hanging fruit.You've written the policy, you've launched it, you've had the awareness day, you've posted ...
Home again
22 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week's podcast: Home again.How can an iconic song give you insight into your workplace language? In broad vague sloganistic safe phrases? Lov...
The engineering metaphor
15 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Too much of HR is treated like internal marketing.- Convincing people everything is fine.- Selling the “isn’t our company great?” message.But wh...
The Hulk, the Law and You.
07 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
HR, the law… and the Hulk?In this week’s 12-minute HR lesson, I talk about what the Hulk can teach us about managing power at work.As managers and...
Whitney: the greatest
31 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why was Whitney Houston one of, if not the greatest? How were her live performances of 'The greatest love of all' some of the best live performances? ...
Can't live there
24 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Management is hard and unpleasant, and many shy away from the unpleasant parts. But it has to be done, because systems only work if everyone pulls the...
Best fit or practice?
21 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We rattle off the term 'best practice' all the time, but is it true? Is there a 'right way' to do things in all situations? Let's ...
Maslow's Hammer
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Maslow explained how our needs are a hierarchy, but he also had a hammer. Maybe he did some DIY on the weekends. In this episode I explain how we used...
Balancing needs
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Everyone has two parts to them, two sets of needs. What is too much to ask, and what is reasonable to ask, when it comes to enforcing the contract?
A pause button
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Stopping and thinking is a skill. Too little, and you blunder from mistake to mistake, too much and you get analysis paralysis. I discuss one of the g...
It depends
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Want to be wiser? Want to appear wiser? Or at least be less foolish? The answer is it depends. Have a listen.
What does ER mean?
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
ER is a skill set within HR that many struggle with. To make it harder, it's not even clear in the industry what people mean when they use the terms E...
What does sorry mean?
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Apologies are an important social tool for getting us back to harmony. But does it always work? what does sorry mean? If someone apologises, is that a...
The wrong tools
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When is a manager's style wrong? Why do we need to intervene? There are many ways of dealing with situations, but most of the time rough handling of o...