>> Original article published in RCSA - The Brief 

I have a love-hate relationship with the term HR. I love the “human” side, where I’m in an industry that is focused on real, living people, but I hate the word “resource” which inadvertently defines those same humans as something to be used.

The term Human Resources was first coined in 1893 and became popular in the 1900s as HR departments were formed to “address the misunderstandings between the employee and employer”.
So much has changed in our workplaces since 1893 and while we have attempted to move away from the Human Resources term with phrases like “people and culture”, we are still stuck in an industry primarily defined as HR.

Looking ahead, our workforces are no longer just employees. The future of work means our workplaces will increasingly become a blend of employees, contingent labour, contractors, gig workers and even collectives of freelancers.

HR is no longer about employees alone, making it self-evident that the term Human Resources won’t be relevant for the future.

At the recent cocktail evening at the Auckland Museum, Agoge was again recognised for our excellence... receiving the Excellence in Candidate Engagement award at the SARA's award evening. ​

Social enterprises are businesses that solve social problems and do good along the way. As a social enterprise, Agoge has a proud history of having a positive impact in our communities, supporting the launch of the Good Trust in 2009.
 
We've extended our commitment to do good with the introduction of One for One. This lets us continue to do good in communities both locally and worldwide.

The initiative, One for One, provides one month of clean water for a person in Cambodia for every one week worked by each of our onsite staff.
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This initiative doesn't only see Agoge doing good as a part of the recruitment business division; for every one trainee on an Agoge training course one person in Cambodia also gets water for one month.
 
For our Founder/MD Andrew Nicol, One for One is a great way to communicate the huge potential of social enterprise, emphasising, “when you partner with Agoge, the work you do is bigger than just you or me, it has a lasting positive impact, locally and globally.”
 
The World Bank says that one dollar invested in water projects in the third world results in eight dollars of economic return. Agoge's CEO, James, says, "this is due to the impact on education from kids not getting unwell as often and reducing travel times for women and children to source water."

Being able to do good and have such powerful impact in communities is such a positive for a social enterprise such as Agoge.
 When you partner with Agoge, you do good.

• When you work for Agoge or come on a training course, you're doing good.
• When you have onsite staff from Agoge or send your team on an Agoge Training course, you're doing good.

With the Good Trust, Agoge also support local organisations to do good in the local communities of our people. Keep an eye out for updates and stories of the impact One for One is having on real lives in different communities.

Agoge's CEO/Founder Andrew Nicol, was invited to speak at TEDx Ruakura in June 2015 about using business to Do Good. 

Personality is that thing that we and others are perceived to be through our actions, words and interactions. Have you ever thought about your power to impact and change personality? What difference does it make to the world if the personalities you interact with are focused on ‘doing good’?

In this talk, Andrew puts a twist on a topic we have all heard before. Check out his talk and discover how Agoge is on a journey to really live out our vision of "People Matter ∴ Do Good."

It is something to bump into a family member of a recently employed onsite staff member, but what's more unique is being pulled aside by that family member;

"I hope you realize the impact that you have had on my brother"

He did not mean impact in the sense of putting his brother into work, but the respect and dignity he received throughout his job search with Agoge. When his brother had lost his hope and confidence in finding a job, both his hope and confidence were able to be restored through being caring.

All it takes is the time to smile, listen and genuinely value people as humans to give them hope.

During the application process the brother felt he was valued and like he mattered. Nothing remarkable or extraordinary needs to be done during this process, it just needs to be done with kindness. The brother was able to avoid feeling like a number or a "solution to a client problem" as he previously had. 

Morale of the story: An interaction might not change the world but it could change the world for one person. Even through the hard situations, conversations and interactions people such as the brother enable Agoge to build a legacy. A legacy that everyone would leave feeling a little bit better than they did before meeting us because……… they matter.

​~Andrew South

Hear Jim Grafas, talk about some of Agoge's initiatives to providing the best candidate experience. 

It was a successful night for the Agoge team at the 2018 Seek Annual Recruitment awards! 

Agoge was attending as finalists for the NZ Large Recruitment Agency of the Year; as well as our Hamilton Branch Manager, Andrew South, a finalist in the Recruitment Consultant of the Year category.

And it was amazing to be announced winners in both categories at the awards night! 
 
For Agoge Founder, Andrew Nicol, winning the New Zealand Large Recruiter of the Year was recognition for the hard work of the team who go all out to genuinely care for people.  “It goes to show you can be in business and do good,” Nicol said.

With a vision of ‘People Matter, therefore, Do Good’, Agoge is constantly looking for ways to do good, not only externally, but also for the many people it engages on client sites. 

“Because we work with people in such a big way we are constantly challenging what we’re doing for our people and how we can do it better. It’s such an incredible honour to be recognised,” said Agoge’s Hamilton Branch Manager, Andrew South.
  
Thank you to our team for all their hard work and dedication to caring for our candidates, onsite staff, customers, and our local communities!
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And of course, thank you to SEEK and the judges for your time & putting on yet another great event at the SARAs for 2018. 

​Congratulations to our Hamilton branch manager, Andrew South, who is a finalist in the Recruitment Consultant of the Year category at the 2018 SARAs! 
 
Joining Agoge in 2014 as an onsite staff member, Andrew has progressed from Solutions Manager to Branch Manager of Waikato and the Bay of Plenty over the space of 3 years. Andrew has thrived in Agoges values-based approach to recruitment, he is dedicated to going the extra mile for our candidates, clients, local communities and our Agoge team.
 
Agoge is also a finalist in the Large Recruitment Agency of the Year, and coHired in the Most Innovative category! The awards evening announcing the category winners will be held in November. Good luck everyone!

At our latest staff conference, we announced our Agoge Person of the Year for 2018. This award is presented to a member of the team who truly displays and lives by the Agoge vision of People Matter, therefore Do Good. This year it was awarded to Linda, our National Admin Support.

Linda has a huge commitment to her role in our Support Office. She is dedicated to supporting those around her and across the Agoge branches. Linda's ability and determination means that everything she touches, turns to 'done'. Linda is invaluable to us and a perfect reflection of our vision and values.

Linda first began at Agoge in 2011 where she became Training Coordinator for our Training business, and has been a valued member of the team ever since! In this role she looked after our trainers and managed the training as a whole along with its administration. After selling the Training business, Linda moved into her current role of National Admin Support and processes all payroll for all of our onsite staff.
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With a large commitment to our onsite team and internal staff, Linda does an awesome job as she takes everything in her stride. Congratulations Linda, there is no denying that this award is very well deserved.

Technology is rapidly changing, putting pressure on employment law, resulting in some workers losing basic protections. 
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The gig economy is driven by new technologies, but there is a major trade-off between flexibility and pay. 

Take a look at Agoge's Founder/MD, Andrew Nicol's, discussion with Stuff about why employment law needs to keep up with technological change. 

​Read the full article here >>