Confirmation that all those long hours are bad for us

I gave up pastries for lent. Perhaps it should have been work.

Problem solving on the net - more than Factory Balls

Something big is happening on the internet that is demanding our understanding. I'm not talking about Twitter or any of the other forms of social networking that are fascinating in their own right. I'm talking about flash games.

You may have come across some of these games when whiling away a few minutes at work (which can easily extend to a few hours, hence their notoriety in some workplaces). But what is grabbing my attention, increasingly, is their levels of sophistication in problem solving. I have already enthused about them here but more are appearing all the time and they just get better and better.

I have learned quite a bit about them through my son Robert who has begun making them. He hosts his own games and those of others on his website, BadViking.com.

Last night I was playing this one called Electric Box. Yes it's a game but imagine this was your introduction to physics. I urge you try it. There's a small tutorial to start you off and then you're on your way. Each component and its function in the increasingly complex circuits outlined in the game is explained so that as you move from one level to the next you are building on accumulated knowledge.

Are these games being used in schools? Are they being used in recruitment? If not, they should be. Many of them are marvellous educational aids because they present learning as something that is fun and allow learners to move at their own pace.

Companies are paying consultants small fortunes for delivering so called "training solutions" that are far less sophisticated than this. You want your employees to understand logistics and production flows? Try them out on Factory Balls here. Most flash game developers are relatively young like Robert who is 21. But don't imagine they are not aware of the power of the material they are producing.

Rob has had some success already with his Panda games like this one. His first panda game, Panda Tactical Sniper, has notched up three million plays worldwide. At first sight it looks like a so-called "sniper game" beloved of young teenage boys. But if you try playing it you will find that it's all about problem solving.

He has deliberately avoided shoot 'em up games so that his site concentrates more on thinking or reaction games such as his latest one called Popopop. It seems easy at first. It is not. One thing I like about this game is a feature that allows players to create their own "levels."

I'd like to grab a few graduate recruiters and take them gently by the hand in to this flash games world. The advertising agencies have already discovered it in their search for creatives - but why should they get all the talent? The answer is that too many companies rely on their future talent to come knocking on their doors. But companies can't rely on Robert and his pals, beating a path to their door. They're having too much fun.

Twit

HR 2.0.,

What about the pay consultants?

Much has been written these past few days on the size of bank bonuses. The big complaint, understandably, is that in the loss-making banks these can be perceived as rewards for failure.

Most of the criticism on bonus policy is being directed at the banks. These policies, however, are drawn up not by the banks but by their pay consultants who have been keeping their heads down in the past few weeks.

I would welcome some justification for some of these policies from those who advise their corporate clients on incentive pay. But I don't expect to see it.

The relationship between work and pay is complex. Pay does matter but it matters most at the point of negotiation and when there is a perception of injustice. Pay is used as a lure to recruit people but once they are on board it is unlikely to become a source of unrest unless they perceive they are being unfairly treated (something I explored in this column).

In the most senior ranks companies have lived with the reality that sometimes they will be paying for failure for too long.

I have yet to see a convincing argument to support the proliferation of the bonus culture in banks. As for guaranteeing bonuses, that is a nonsense as the only justification for the bonus is that it can be regarded as variable pay, offering some protection for the paying institution if markets take a tumble.

Of course, if employees have done all that is expected of them and more - which is the case for thousands of hard working people in the Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS - it is natural that many will feel aggrieved to be losing their bonuses as a result of poor decisions at the top of the organisation.

On the other hand they may reflect that their projected bonuses derived from unrealistically high expectations over many years when times appeared good (but in fact, better than reality in a bubble economy). Those that retain their jobs must know they need to take the rough with the smooth.

A bonus must be just that - a sum of money that is not guaranteed and which should not be taken in to account in financial planning. The danger is that some people will have included expected bonuses when stretching their finances to meet a demanding mortgage, for example. They will suffer. But perhaps they should. Overspending on "hope money" is a harsh lesson for anyone, but one that should ensure greater prudence in future. Everyone must learn to live well within their means. That way they should live well.

Pour encourager les autres

It's all very well hauling bankers before the House of Commons Treasury select committee, but it's not much of a deterrent. Neither is removing their bonuses. The Royal Navy showed how to deal with aberrant leaders when it made an example of Admiral Byng.

It prompted the French writer Voltaire's famous remark, in his novel, Candide, that in England 'it is thought good to kill an admiral from time to time to encourage the others'. Ah, those were the days....

Engelbert to the rescue

While the newspapers are full of job losses it would be wrong to believe that everyone views the prospect of losing their job with foreboding.

I was chatting with a friend at the rugby match on Saturday who has been weighing up the financial realities of retirement. He's in his mid-fifties in management after spending all of his career with the same employer so the prospects look pretty good. But the company still values his services and is in no hurry to see the back of him.

"How can I hint subtly that I want to go without making it blindingly obvious?" he asked. Another friend came up with the answer: "Download the ringtone of 'Please release me' for your mobile phone." Perfect.

A good day for burying good news

This is a story I received today in the form of a press release. I hope I am proved wrong, but I suspect that you will not read anything about this in the press. Why? Because newspapers regard every day as a good day for burying good news. I can only extend my apologies to Mrs and Mrs Ward-Henry that instead of the pink pages they find themselves here.

Here it is:

"Hello, our names are Michael & Sarah Ward-Hendry and this is our story as we lurch into the economic tempest that has enveloped us all.

Having started our business Ward-Hendry Photography near Banbury with nothing but personal debt and a great idea following redundancy, we have achieved 5 years of 100% year-on-year growth. Ward-Hendry (as we are known) has become the outstanding schools photography company in the UK and Ireland.

On Wednesday 28th January 2009, we met with our bank, Lloyds TSB, at our offices to review the business's financial performance and hopefully secure the bank's ongoing support regarding existing overdraft facilities and working capital. We were concerned that in the prevailing economic situation the bank's view would be driven by the need for caution.

The outcome of the meeting was not good...it was indeed fantastic and as good as we could have imagined it might be!

In an atmosphere of almost total uncertainty in all aspects of normal day to day business life in the UK, we have received the endorsement of Lloyds TSB for our ongoing overdraft and working capital requirements for the coming year.

From humble beginnings as sole traders working from a wooden shed at the top of our garden in January 2004, the business today employs 35 people, with annual sales in excess of £1.5m expected for the financial year ending March 2009.

Our offer is strikingly contemporary and compelling to the hundreds of schools and hundreds of thousands of parents who are our customers throughout the UK and Ireland.

We are formally endorsed by the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) as a 'Partner' of the Union, which represents a membership incorporating over 80% of Primary School Head Teachers, Principles and school leaders in England, Wales and N. Ireland. We are also a 'Sponsor Partner' of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT) where our offer receives similar endorsement and credibility to in excess of 3,000 state senior schools in England and Wales.

We plan to continue our acquisition of market share in the coming year with the aim of achieving £2.4m in sales and employ an additional 10 staff.

The signs are good for our continued growth and it would appear that Lloyds TSB are indeed true to their word and will support viable, sound businesses as we all continue our journey to broader economic recovery."