“It’s funny how day by day nothing changes. But when you look back, everything is different.” – CS Lewis
As people passionate about creating a better world of work, we continue to foster innovation within our daily practices and keep an eye on the latest HR trends for inspiration.
But, let’s be honest, keeping up with our daily practices alone can be hard enough with little time to spare. We can sometimes be oblivious to the wider trends shaping the industry.
So, to make it easy for you, these are emerging HR trends and predictions based on the latest statistics.
1. Virtual working
Future projections indicate that 28% of Americans professionals will work fully remotely by 2028. It’s what workers want.
So, virtual working in some form is here to stay. We’re fans here at People Managing People, but admit it’s not without its challenges.
Organizations are still figuring out which model is best for them, but we like Amazon CEO, Andy Jassy’s, take of “there is no one-size-fits-all approach for how every team works best.”
As such, Amazon are allowing individual teams to decide how to best work. Some teams may even decide to work in the metaverse—workspaces built-in virtual reality.
For help on adapting to these new styles of working, check out our article how to adapt to a hybrid model.
Related: Virtual Meeting Etiquette Guidelines
2. AI isn’t coming for your job
It’s a common narrative that robots are coming to take our jobs and there is some truth in it. How it will all play out, in the long run, is anyone’s guess (we’re hoping for techno-utopia).
What will interest you, reader, is that a new study reveals that AI is removing middle-managers, boosting product development and that HR jobs are safe.
Ultimately, AI is an advanced tool that can help HR professionals with recruitment, data entry, and people analytics.
3. Focus on employee experience design
Increasingly, we’re seeing HR and People and Culture teams take a design-led approach to improving the employee experience.
This means borrowing concepts from UX and CX teams, for example, employee journey mapping, to design products and services that increase employee engagement, product, and retention.
4. Diversity, equity, and inclusion to the fore
Did you know that by 2065 it’s predicted that there will be no dominant ethnic or racial group in the US?
As populations diversify, and more women and people from underrepresented groups enter the workforce, the issue of diversity, equity and inclusion will be finally tackled properly.
This will take the form of increased budget for DEI projects, the appointment of DEI officers, and initiatives such as employee resource groups, advisory boards, and task forces.
5. Global workforce
With the advent of remote work we also predict another trend: the rise of a globally distributed workforce.
Whereas before hiring a worker from abroad was a bit scary and complicated, as companies become used to remote working, hiring someone from a significantly different time zone will become more normal.
To make the process easier still, employer of record organizations are growing in prevalence, taking the burden off of HR teams.
Related Read: Hybrid Working: What Is It And How To Approach It
6. Onboarding 101
According to a study by Sapling, 88% of organizations still don’t onboard well.
With the pandemic forcing everyone to stay at home, the already struggling onboarding process suffered. HR professionals found that remote hiring, onboarding, and training were even bigger challenges.
Now more than ever, the emphasis on improving the onboarding process is greater with 89 percent of those who received effective onboarding felt strongly integrated into their culture, compared to 59 percent of those who received ineffective onboarding according to a BambooHR study.
And finally, from the same study, employees who felt their onboarding was effective were 113 times more likely to rate their HR department’s capability as high.
Any more to add?
The future is never certain, but we’re pretty confident what we’re seeing on the above. What have we missed out, are there any trends you’d like to add?
Join our community of HR professionals, managers, and business leaders and subscribe to our weekly newsletter for all our latest articles on the world of work.
List of Related Tools: Global Payroll Solutions for Distributed Teams
Also Worth Checking Out: Putting Organizations On The Path To Success Using The Cascading Goals Method
Diverse workforce enabler @Rangam, building holistic workforce solution through disruptive technology, industry expertise and collaboration.
getty
2021 reinvented the HR industry by solidifying its new rules and regulations. 2022 will be all about pushing boundaries to maximize value. In this article, we will look at the emerging HR trends aiming to help businesses manage their workforce more productively and with greater empathy in 2022 and beyond.
Since the pandemic hit the world, there has been a paradigm shift in where and when we work and how we measure progress. The years 2020 and 2021 have changed the rules of the game — forever.
Emerging HR technologies are being designed today to change the way employers screen, hire, onboard and manage talent. Gartner research shows that 90% of HR leaders want to either maintain or increase their technology spend, while one-third intend to slash their budgets. This shows employers are all set to embrace the changing HR trends one way or the other.
To keep winning the game, the HR industry should deploy a working model that offers greater flexibility to employees and maximizes productivity and efficiency. Responding to a survey by Gartner, almost 60% of HR leaders said building critical skills and competencies will be their top priority in 2022.
From my perspective, here are the top HR trends for 2022 and beyond:
• Hybrid work model
• Employee wellness
• Diversity, equity and inclusion
• Employee reskilling and upskilling
• Data literacy
Let's discuss each trend in detail.
The hybrid work model is the future.
The pandemic has forced organizations to adopt a hybrid work model where employees can continue to work remotely as well as from the office.
According to a 2020 report, 90% of HR leaders would like to allow their employees to split their time between working remotely and working from an office post-vaccination. According to a survey by WeWork and Workplace Intelligence, 79% of the C-suite will encourage their employees to adopt the hybrid work model if their job permits it.
The hybrid work model is here to empower employees while keeping them engaged even when times are difficult. Instead of paying unnecessary attention to the place of work, the entire focus is on delivering better business results while ensuring employee wellness.
This shift to hybrid work will be a massive transformation in the coming years, and every HR professional must be prepared to support it.
Employee wellness will be more important than ever.
The pandemic has had a negative impact on workforce health. Factors such as anxiety, fear of losing one’s job and high workload have dented employee morale across industries, resulting in burnout. According to Gartner, 85% of employees said they experienced higher levels of burnout while 40% reported adverse impacts on work-life balance.
Indeed, employees have been stressed since the pandemic began, which has caused several physical and mental health issues. Employers in 2022 and beyond will be more proactive than ever to make employee wellness a foremost priority. In fact, according to the CDC, employer investment in employee wellness programs could lower healthcare costs and insurance claims.
Diversity, equity and inclusion are the rising needs.
The pandemic has created a need for greater empathy as well as a more humane and inclusive work environment, which has inspired organizations to focus on diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I). DE&I in the workplace is likely going to be top of the list of HR priorities in the future. HR professionals should plan to invest more in diversity and inclusion to spur innovation and growth.
DE&I is more than just a trend; it helps organizations penetrate a wider talent marketplace and build a global brand.
Employee upskilling and reskilling will be in focus.
In this rapidly evolving workplace, many of the skills that were sought after for a job in 2018 may not even be applicable in 2022. This has forced businesses to focus on upskilling and reskilling their existing workforce. Another reason is the shortage of multi-talented professionals willing to change jobs.
There is a shift from people analytics to data literacy.
Not very long ago, businesses were looking for expertise in people analytics. But now, there's a conspicuous shift from people analytics to data literacy. For 2022 and beyond, HR leaders should prioritize enhancing their data literacy and data mining skills using the latest technologies and automation.
The challenge for HR professionals is to read data contextually and obtain the insights that are relevant to executing the job at hand. To achieve that, many HR professionals need to improve their data literacy capabilities. Currently, only about four in 10 HR professionals can read, apply and communicate data effectively to influence decision-making, according to findings from the Academy to Innovate HR (AIHR). Data literacy is surely here to stay for long as it empowers leaders to accurately deal with workforce data and drive better business value.
2022 represents a year full of promise, innovation and greater inclusion. Heading into the new year, HR leaders should focus on maximizing value and pushing boundaries.
Forbes Human Resources Council is an invitation-only organization for HR executives across all industries. Do I qualify?