Episode Details

What does great HR leadership look like after more than 25 years of change in the profession?

In this episode of the HRchat Podcast, Bill Banham is joined by Siobhan Reid, Head of People and Culture at Circle Voluntary Housing Association, to explore the evolution of HR from the traditional personnel department to a modern People and Culture function built around human connection, psychological safety and better use of data.

Siobhan has more than 25 years of HR experience across commercial, public and non-profit environments. Her senior HR career stretches back to 1999, when she became Head of HR and Training covering Ireland, the UK and international operations at O’Briens Irish Sandwich Bars. Since then, she has built HR functions from the ground up, supported organisations through significant change and developed a leadership philosophy centred on fairness, compassion and listening.

Bill and Siobhan discuss why organisations can have excellent policies and processes on paper while still creating poor employee experiences in practice. They explore the influence individual managers have on workplace culture, why listening should come before action when transforming a People function, and the importance of creating environments where employees feel psychologically safe.

The conversation also considers menopause in the workplace and why employers need to make it a normal and supported part of the wellbeing conversation. Siobhan shares her thoughts on annual leave and recovery, including why employees often need a meaningful, uninterrupted period away from work to properly switch off and recharge.

Turning to Circle and the wider housing and non-profit sectors, Siobhan discusses some of the challenges organisations face around attracting and retaining talent, burnout, employee wellbeing and pay.

Finally, Bill and Siobhan explore the growing role of people analytics, automation and AI in HR. They discuss how HR teams can move beyond vanity dashboards and use workforce data to provide leaders and boards with actionable insights, while maintaining reliable source data and using AI responsibly.

Topics discussed include:

• How HR has evolved over the past 25 years
• What hasn't changed about great people leadership
• Building and transforming People and Culture functions
• Why listening should come before implementing new HR initiatives
• The impact managers have on the employee experience
• Psychological safety, fairness, empathy and compassion at work
• The "stop, start, continue" approach to organisational change
• The Sunday night test for workplace culture
• Menopause support in the workplace
• Annual leave, recovery and employee wellbeing
• Talent attraction, retention and burnout in housing and non-profit organisations
• Turning people data into actionable business insights
• Moving beyond vanity metrics in HR dashboards
• Using AI and automation to identify workforce trends and potential hotspots
• The importance of clean, reliable data and responsible AI use

About Siobhan Reid

Siobhan Reid is Head of People and Culture at Circle Voluntary Housing Association, one of Ireland's leading social housing providers. Circle manages and owns more than 2,000 homes nationally and works with local authorities, state agencies, developers and funders to deliver social and affordable housing solutions.

Siobhan has more than 25 years of experience in HR and People and Culture across commercial, public and non-profit organisations.

Connect with Siobhan on LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

And if you're in Dublin in November, join Bill and Siobhan at the next Disrupt event in the city.

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