When I think back to 2025, it felt like a year where the pace of change just kept picking up. Work was shifting quickly, and for many people it felt like it was happening faster than they could comfortably keep up with. AI moved from something we actively chose to use. To something sitting quietly in the background of everyday work. And while that made some things easier, it also created new challenges. Particularly around how people learn, adapt and keep adjusting as work continues to evolve. So, I want… Read More »How AI is influencing workplace learning in 2026

This year, we’ve seen AI become mainstream in our lives and gain ground in our organisations. It’s everywhere – in how we search, how we shop, how we read our emails, and increasingly, how we work. Its rise has been fast. AI has embedded itself into day-to-day workflows in a matter of months, not years, and while most of us do find it genuinely helpful, it’s also evolving quicker than people, and whole organisations, can keep up with. We’re seeing access to AI tools grow across businesses, but many employees… Read More »The New Manager Skills for 2026: What Leaders Need in an AI-Driven Workplace

As the year starts to wrap up, planning conversations are in full swing. Many HR and L&D teams are looking ahead to 2026 and where to focus next. This is a great opportunity to step back and make sure your learning and development plans are genuinely aligned with your organisation’s goals, not just a continuation of what’s been done before. Here are a few things we’d suggest thinking about as you plan for the year ahead.   1. Look back before you look forward Before jumping into new priorities, take… Read More »Planning for L&D Success in 2026

One of the trickiest questions in HR and L&D is how to measure training impact. It’s the question you face when you’re trying to get sign-off in the first place, when you need to show the business that training will make a difference. And it’s the question that comes back after delivery, how can we see that it worked? The truth is, a strict ROI of leadership training in the finance sense is near impossible unless you’re willing to invest in a full-scale analysis project. But that doesn’t mean you… Read More »Measuring Training Impact in Leadership Development

When someone gets promoted into their first management role, it’s a big step for them and for the business. But while most organisations have a structured onboarding process for new starters, new managers often don’t get the same support. Instead, they’re frequently expected to work it out as they go, without clear expectations or tools to help them. Without support, new managers can feel uncertain, stretched, and pulled between their old role and their new one. And that’s not great for them or for their team. Why onboarding managers matters… Read More »Onboarding New Managers: Helping Them Succeed from Day One

A lot of new managers are thrown in at the deep end. They go from being an individual contributor to suddenly having people to manage, often without anyone clearly defining the role or what’s expected. That lack of clarity can lead to all sorts of problems, such as confusion, frustration, inconsistency, and burnout, both for the manager and their team members. It’s a common issue. Smart, motivated people take on management roles for the first time and are left to figure it out for themselves. They don’t always make the… Read More »Defining the People Manager Role: A Practical Guide for HR and L&D Leaders

In our last blog, we explored why so many first-time managers struggle and why that matters. If you missed it, you can read it here.  In this blog we dig deeper into what to do about it. How do we help new managers succeed in the role, and avoid the uncertainty and confusion that often comes with it? At Willow & Puddifoot, we’ve worked with hundreds of emerging leaders and newly promoted managers. We’ve heard first-hand what they find tough, what makes them doubt themselves, and what helps them grow. And the same… Read More »A Practical Framework to Support First-Time Managers

One of the things we see again and again is people being promoted to manager because they’re good at their job but then struggling to make the shift to people management. Being a people manager requires a completely different skill set from the technical skills that made them great in the first place, but that’s rarely considered. They’re smart, talented and full of potential, but we rarely give them the support to succeed as managers. So, they’re left to figure it out on their own, often without any guidance, support,… Read More »How to Help First-Time Managers Succeed

If you’re responsible for learning and development in an evolving organisation, you’re probably juggling a lot right now. One of the biggest challenges may be keeping leadership development relevant and future focused. In this post, we’re sharing the five leadership skills your organisation needs in 2025, and how they need to evolve at different leadership levels. Many organisations are adapting to new technologies like AI, dealing with constant change, and looking for ways to drive innovation and strengthen their culture. Through all of this, leaders need to inspire their teams and… Read More »The Five Leadership Skills Your Organisation Needs in 2025