The world is currently living in the aftermath of the pandemic. Its effect also hit the workplace, causing a lot of changes. These changes revolve around why we work, how we work, and with whom we work. The HR profession resides at the center of these changes.
Apart from hiring, firing, and overseeing the welfare of employees, HR leaders also predict the future of workplaces to determine how they will be impacted. Here are 5 HR trends for 2022 that will impact the modern workforce.
#1 Hybrid and remote work model is the new normal
A hallmark for HR trends for 2022 was the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. If there is just one lesson employees learned from the pandemic, it is this: time value. When the pandemic hit, many organizations were shut down, forcing their employees to work from home. Interestingly, they were still able to attain a similar level of productivity, though some others were unable to easily align with the disruption.
During the period, the business landscape witnessed an upsurge in the use of virtual meeting and collaboration tools to enable employees to communicate and work as a team towards meeting their goals. Of course, employees that enjoyed flexibility in their work mode – that is, freedom to work from anywhere – want to continue with the work model. It afforded them the opportunity to bond better with their families.
#2 Overall well-being will be a significant factor to be considered by employees
There seems to be a resurgence of the Great Resignation as many employees, especially those that belong to the Gen Z, quit their jobs in search of friendlier ones, in terms of well-being benefits. In the present age, key HR career trends that employees consider before applying for a new job include well-being packages and their benefits. These include financial, emotional, and health well-being.
In the past, a one-size-fits-all approach has been used to address the welfare conditions of employees. Unfortunately, this has proven to be ineffective to a great extent. Therefore, HR leaders that are at the core of meeting the needs of all employees need to employ a personalized approach to supporting them.
This is a win-win situation – when employees enjoy impactful well-being programs, they get motivated and perform better.
#3 Organizations are becoming people-centric
The increase in automated jobs occasioned by technological innovation is impacting the modern workforce negatively by rendering people to be less important. Notwithstanding, while the world becomes more concerned about technology, people still remain the future of work. This underscores the reason why most organizations keep on rethinking jobs and roles, thus exposing opportunities within the HR field.
With emerging roles and industries and as new technologies are being embraced by organizations, there is a growing skills shortage. HR leaders are tasked with the responsibility of identifying skills that are missing among workforces and finding people with the needed skills. For the existing workforce, organizations need to facilitate training and education that will help them acquire the skills for the new roles.
#4 Talent will be the new assessment criteria
In the wake of the pandemic that forced many people to work remotely, employees were still able to be productive and organizations were able to achieve their goals. This is because the remote work model helped organizations get exposed to a larger pool of talent from which they can hire. At the same time, many employees had to quit their job, which has resulted in a skills crisis – that is, the disparity between the skills possessed by employees and the skills required by the industry.
The crisis has been further exacerbated by emerging technologies, generational shifts, and changes in the nature of work. In response, organizations are competing aggressively for talent that will help them meet these changing demands and HR leaders are able to help attract, develop, and retain talent.
#5 Building HR skills will become necessary
This is one of the most important changes that come with new roles associated with emerging industries. No organization can climb the success ladder without an effective people management system. This is the reason why the HR profession is the biggest of it all. It encompasses showing empathy, flexibility, agile leadership, and a supply chain for talent.
Challenges such as the need to upskill the workforce, innovate around the hybrid work model, and organize around agile design will also be addressed by HR leaders. This makes it a worthwhile career path for aspiring change agents.
