When Jill Smart was approached by George Shaheen, then CEO of Andersen Consulting—now Accenture—about her taking an HR role with the company in the early 2000s, she already had over 20 years of consulting experience with the firm under her belt. At the time, Andersen was outsourcing a lot of talent, and wanted to appoint a chief learning officer (CLO) to oversee training for consultants from different backgrounds who were joining the company.

Smart was hesitant to take on a new gig. She loved working with clients in financial services consulting, but a mentor who worked in the same department recommended that she pivot from consulting to HR. “It was completely out of my comfort zone,” Smart told HR Brew. “It was a very strategic role, and I’m much more of an operator and an execution person.” Even so, she added, “It was the best thing I ever did.”

After spending two years as Accenture’s CLO, Smart was tapped for the CHRO position, which she held for a decade, from 2004 to 2014. After leaving Accenture, Smart served as president of the National Academy of Human Resources, a professional organization for senior HR leaders, for eight years. She currently serves on the board of directors for several companies, including EPAM Systems and AlixPartners.

While leading HR for Accenture was never part of Smart’s plan, she embraced the opportunity to be “at the epicenter of the business.” At Accenture, Smart stressed the importance of adaptability, as well as learning the ins and outs of clients’ businesses. She said she believes this prepared her employees to take on top HR roles elsewhere, as many went on to serve as CHRO or CPO at companies including Ubisoft, PepsiCo, and McKesson.

Keep reading here.—CV

Pay transparency is now a norm for many US employers, according to recent surveys, thanks to a wave of legislation requiring businesses to share information about salaries in job postings.

But transparency can also reveal pay inequities within organizations, prompting questions for HR leaders. The surveys also indicate employers are starting to develop strategies to address pay equity, and in some cases are budgeting for raises to address compensation gaps within their workforces.

Most employers comply with pay transparency. Some three-quarters of organizations surveyed in June by advisory, broking, and solutions firm WTW said they’re sharing the pay rate or range for open jobs with external candidates, while 69% said they share this information with internal candidates. Among the US organizations already communicating this information, 86% said they’re sharing pay rates or ranges across the entire country or region.

The next frontier: pay equity. As employers comply with pay transparency, they’re also revamping their compensation programs, said Jack Jones, a principal with Mercer’s career practice, in a webinar discussing the firm’s 2025 compensation planning survey. “When you have to open up your processes and show people what you’re doing, it’s really important that you’re confident in what you’re actually doing,” he said.

Keep reading here.—CV

Time is money, especially in Switzerland, known for timepieces that often cost over $500,000. One employer is taking that to heart, telling its workers to forgo using the restroom, or do so on their own time, according to a June court ruling unveiled in September.

A regional court in Neuchâtel, a small city in western Switzerland, ruled that Jean Singer & Cie SA, a Swiss watchmaker, does not have to pay its employees during their bathroom breaks, the Associated Press reported. The decision came down three years after labor inspectors learned about the company’s policy and expressed concern that it could be harmful to workers.

But the court disagreed, ruling that, “Swiss law does not mention the right of employees to go to the toilet, even though this is a basic physiological need.” It also noted that while the practice may continue, Jean Singer & Cie SA must modify its policy to ensure it does not discriminate against women.

Some employment experts are afraid that the ruling could set a poor precedent.

Keep reading here.—KP