Reverse mentoring fosters a multigenerational workforce by breaking down barriers and encouraging dialogue between senior leaders and junior employees, creating a common culture and language, says Garth Byrne, head of learning and development at Employment Hero. The approach enables younger employees to connect with senior leaders for development and career guidance, while senior leaders gain a fresh perspective on workforce dynamics, potentially enhancing employee retention, but careful preparation is needed to overcome challenges, Byrne says.

Leaders can bring efficiency to their teams by breaking down big goals into manageable 21-day increments with a follow-up review of success and what needs adjusting to meet a team's capacity, writes executive coach Dave Coffaro. Ask yourself if you're working at optimal efficiency and how best to use your time to achieve your company's strategy and vision, Coffaro adds.

A secondment -- when a worker is loaned out to another department for a set time -- can boost a career by growing companywide contacts, knowledge and skills and allow a worker to try out a potential career shift. "This can be particularly empowering in today's career landscape, where linear career paths are becoming less common, and individuals are increasingly seeking diverse experiences and skills," writes Benjamin Laker of Henley Business School, University of Reading.

Research suggests that networking with high-profile people helps men to progress in their careers, but the same strategy may not necessarily work for women -- and it could even backfire. However, organizations may be able to take steps to rectify this problem, such as by reframing "networking opportunities in ways that explicitly signal communality," write Siyu Yu of the University of Michigan and Catherine Shea of Carnegie Mellon University.

Being laid off, which used to be kept private, is now shared on social media by the former employees who speak candidly about their experiences. HR leaders call it a paradigm shift that began with the mass layoffs earlier during the COVID-19 pandemic and has removed the stigma of losing a job.

Private sector companies added 107,000 workers to payrolls in January, according to ADP, down from 158,000 in December and less than the Dow Jones had estimate. ADP reported a 5.2% annual gain in wages.

As Oura braces itself for the arrival of the Samsung Galaxy Ring, it's updated its own smart ring with stress-tracking capabilities: the new feature, called Resilience, assesses the wearer's ability to handle psychological stress via the official app.

Employee recognition software is being used to reward and recognize workers with badges, gift cards and other perks for, say, a well-executed presentation. The rewards can boost morale but need to include "people who are already on the fringes [to not] exacerbate some of those inequalities that are embedded in the organization," says David Kryscynski of Rutgers University.

Dan Buettner, who researches the habits of people in the Blue Zones -- areas in the world where people regularly live into their 90s and 100s -- recently shared on Instagram the meal that "the longest-lived family in the world" eats every day: Sourdough bread, three-bean minestrone soup, and a glass of red wine. "Keep in mind that this meal is eaten in the presence of loved ones," says registered dietitian Samantha Cassetty. "Maintaining a strong social circle helps improve happiness and combat loneliness, bringing additional health benefits beyond the nutrients in the meal."