With the pandemic rumbling on, uncertainty looks set to overshadow the business landscape moving into 2022.
The climate is provoking a range of HR trends and opportunities, each of which demands a coordinated response and strategy that leverages all that we’ve learnt over a very tough past two years.
Drawing on my own experiences and conversations with fellow HR leaders, I have listed some of the key challenges I see coming over the HR horizon. I also consider ways in which we can reinvigorate our teams through 2022.
- Internal mobility
As economic pressures grow, we’re going to see more firms putting workers on the in-house path to progress. LinkedIn’s Global Talent Trends report says this is a sure way to improve productivity and expenditure, with 73% of respondents citing internal recruitment as increasingly important.
Chuck Edward, Head of Recruiting at Microsoft, says:
“For all the focus on mapping the external talent marketplace, the irony is that there’s not enough focus placed on the talent underneath one’s own roof.”
- Hybrid working
Underlining what we’ve discovered about the power of remote working, a Gartner study finds that 95% of HR leaders expect a number of their employees to work remotely as our handle on the health crisis strengthens.
Some fear hybrid working undermines communication and organisational culture, but research shows that making the commitment actually yields many net positives, including better employee engagement, improved retention, and better inclusion.
- Tools and tech
Through 2022, we can expect to see further reliance on Software as a Service (SaaS), and cost-effective HR tools to help accurately measure worker performance levels and other key metrics.
Sage investigations reveal that up to 30% of your team’s capacity can be freed up by automating time-heavy administrative tasks and transactional processes. By relying on automation, your people are allowed to get on with their jobs and unlock time to innovate, in turn creating a more human workplace experience.
- Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI)
The pandemic has thrown health and wellbeing into sharp relief, forcing senior management to fully pursue equality and inclusion at every level.
Nearly 2,000 CEOs have put their names on a CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion pledge, Gartner says, while 76% of employees and job seekers feel staff diversity to be important when evaluating a job offer.
- Upskill in-house
Upskilling offers a lean and sustainable way to develop your workforce. It also helps HR professionals to improve retention and save money through recruiting and onboarding.
These benefits go some way to explaining a surge in upskill demand to 38% in 2020, from 14% the previous year, a Udemy’s survey finds. Amazon and PwC are just two of the big names that have invested huge sums into better training and tuition across departments.
Steps to take now
- A structured internal hiring programme should be implemented in collaboration with the Learning and Development department to future-proof your workforce.
- Listen more to your staff. Stronger feedback culture leads to better engagement, and greater appreciation of how to make hybrid work for individuals and groups.
- Embrace automation to take the pain out of admin. Free teams from robotic jobs so that they can focus on what matters.
- Deepen diversity through techniques such as blind hiring and applicant screening driven by AI. Set SMART diversity targets and assess with automated diversity tools to measure inclusivity.
- Analyse skill gaps with role-based skills assessments then adapt training programmes to your workers’ needs and requirements.
Trust in your talent
Working environments are changing rapidly. As a result, HR departments are challenged to rethink traditional processes and enhance employee experience as we move through the New Year.
So, temper technology with your intuition as an enterprise leader. We can build stronger organisations and gain real competitive edge when we invest in our greatest asset – our people.
At HR Spectrum, we know that through collaboration with individuals and companies who you know and trust, you can achieve smoother, more effective workflows and lasting success.
To find out more about the fantastic opportunities available through HR Spectrum, contact us today.
