Episode 5: Why Octopus Energy doesn't have an HR department

Inside Octopus Energy

17-05-2021 • 1 hr 2 mins

In February 2021, Greg Jackson, CEO and founder of Octopus Energy, explained on the BBC's CEO Secrets series why Octopus Energy decided against having an HR department despite its considerable size. The interview headlined 'My billion-pound company has no HR department' sparked an, in parts, heated debate on social media among HR and business professionals and on the day ranked at number two in the most read articles in the BBC news app. In this episode host Russell Goldsmith met up with Greg to talk about his approach to HR and answer some of the most frequently asked questions Octopus received following the interview, covering topics from conflict resolution to hiring and employee happiness. They were joined by best-selling author, keynote speaker and futurist Jacob Morgan, who is also the host of the Future of Work podcast and the founder of the Future of Work University, to dig deeper into the role of HR and the future of people management in modern businesses.