There’s so much to read and so little time. Here’s our pick of the best HR, recruitment and L&D titles you should be making space in your schedule for
1. People Management
Website: peoplemanagement.co.uk
Twitter: @PeopleMgt
As the CIPD’s membership magazine, the print edition of People Management can easily lay claim to being the UK’s biggest HR magazine by circulation size. But, did you know, that even non-CIPD members can access its online news and features, delivered to your inbox five days a week? Its podcast, That HR Podcast, is one of our favourites, too.
2. HRD Connect
Website: hrdconnect.com
Twitter: @HRD_Connect
HRD Connect is the publishing arm of the company behind the annual HRD Summit – which means you can expect exclusive interviews with top industry names to land in your inbox daily via its newsletter.
3. HR Grapevine
Website: hrgrapevine.com
Twitter: @HRGrapevine
HR Grapevine – and its sister titles Recruitment Grapevine and Executive Grapevine – are popular with a wide range of HR professionals, who appreciate the titles’ mix of topics, which range from commentary on items in the news to employment law, as well as a look at HR-related stories that are making the rounds on social media. You can sign up for its daily newsletter, or read its monthly digital magazine.
4. Recruiter
Website: recruiter.co.uk
Twitter: @RecruiterMag
If you work in recruitment, then there’s really only one title you need to be reading: Recruiter. Covering everything you need to know about the recruitment side of HR – whether you work in-house or for an agency – it’s your essential weekday read. While its online content is all free, its print edition is just £35 for 12 issues: a real bargain.
5. Employee Benefits
Website: employeebenefits.co.uk
Twitter: @EmployeeBenefit
Another title for HR professionals who have chosen to specialise in a particular area, if your core interest is reward and benefits then you really have to look no further than Employee Benefits. It frequently breaks exclusives about new benefits that employers have launched and offers ample case studies to inspire your reward strategies.
6. Personnel Today
Website: personneltoday.com
Twitter: @personneltoday
Personnel Today – or PT to its friends – might sound fusty, but don’t let the old-school name put you off: it has the finger on the pulse of what’s happening in the world of work. Its coverage of employment law is particularly strong, which is hardly surprising given its close association with XpertHR.
7. Training Journal
Website: trainingjournal.com
Twitter: @TrainingJournal
TJ is the UK’s premier media title for L&D professionals, with extensive coverage of key industry topics such as apprenticeships, coaching, facilitation and OD. HR generalists will also find much of interest here, too.
8. Management Today
Website: managementtoday.co.uk
Twitter: @MT_editorial
It claims to be ‘not just business as usual’, and MT is probably an unusual choice for many HR professionals. But if you want to understand what’s preoccupying the minds of your business’s senior leaders and managers, there’s probably no better option on the market – with comprehensive coverage of topics such as women in business, Brexit, leadership and business growth. While a limited number of articles are available to read for free each month, you’ll need to pay for full access.
9. HR Magazine
Website: hrmagazine.co.uk
Twitter: @hrmagazine
Having laid claim to the most SEO friendly name ever for an HR magazine, it’s little surprise that HR magazine has a huge social media following, with nearly 160,000 Twitter followers at time of writing. Its print and online content is aimed firmly at HR directors (and those aspiring to be ones), so it’s academic tone and design might be offputting for someone looking for more easily accessible content. But there’s no doubting the credibility and expertise of its writing team.
10. HRZone
Website: hrzone.com
Twitter: @HRZone
Online-only publication HRZone features a healthy mix of content types and subjects. Although it has a higher-than-average proportion of sponsored content, on the whole these advertorials are still well-written, engaging, and informative – but critical media consumers would do well to add other sources into their mix.
11. The HR Director
Website: thehrdirector.com
Twitter: @theHRDIRECTOR
The HR Director likes to bill itself as the ‘most respected independent resource for HR directors and senior practitioners’ – a title that we’re sure other media outlets would dispute – but its online and print edition does do well to secure exclusive interviews with HR practitioners at some of the UK’s biggest household names such as Moneysupermarket Group, MTR Crossrail and the BBC. The monthly print edition comes in at a hefty £17.99 per copy; a digital format is available for a more reasonable £4.99, while online articles are free to read.
12. Changeboard
Changeboard is somewhat of an oddity: an HR jobs board that also does online features, a printed magazine, podcasts and live events, too. This broad range of formats means that however you like to consume your HR information, you’ll probably find a form to suit under its umbrella, although some might argue that it could benefit from focusing more intensively on just one or two channels. Its coverage of HR issues in the Middle East is a boon for international practitioners.
13. Harvard Business Review
Website: hbr.org
Twitter: @HarvardBiz
Last but by no means least we have the original granddaddy of HR magazines, Harvard Business Review, which was founded in 1922. If you want cutting-edge management advice – or just be seen to be at the leading edge – grab yourself a copy of its six-times-a-year print edition. Alternatively, it has an extensive online library; there’s a limit on how many articles you can read a month for free, but all but the keenest of readers will probably get away without signing up for a subscription. With nearly 20 different email newsletters to choose from, HBR really does cater for almost every audience – its ‘management tip of the day’ newsletter is a particular favourite.
Ciphr is a leading UK provider of HCM software solutions.
This article was first published in September 2016. It was updated in March 2019 for freshness, clarity and accuracy.