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Just two months into 2023, and it’s clear that the HR landscape is evolving dramatically.
The “future of work” has become the reality of today’s workplace.
While there’s a lot of challenges and uncertainty, the good news is that all this change is a great opportunity to raise the bar. The best HR departments are figuring out ways to differentiate themselves from the competition, winning employee loyalty and high engagement for the long-term.
Here are three hot trends in HR that are reshaping how we think about the function.
Focusing on Total Rewards – Not Just Competitive Compensation
Beating the competition with higher salaries is great, but it also gets expensive fast. In states where salary ranges are required on job descriptions, it becomes even more important to show candidates what we have to offer beyond the paycheck.
Traditional benefits are a great start, but many HR teams are now also emphasizing and leveraging other rewards. For example, think about career development, upskilling and reskilling opportunities, flexible work schedules or remote work, and other rewards. Leverage these rewards in job descriptions to attract top talent, and broadcast them internally to engage and retain your top people.
Moving Past Hustle Culture and Ultimatums
We all saw the media firestorm around Twitter 2.0. Regardless of how you feel about the company or Musk, they are the perfect example of a more old-school mentality that you can drive engagement with ultimatums, public callouts and firings, and demanding expectations of employees.
More often than not, we’re watching as these companies fail to attract and retain top talent. The reality is that this world of work doesn’t really exist anymore. Fewer and fewer employees are willing to apply their valuable, in-demand skills at an organization where they don’t feel respected or appreciated.
Rethinking Employee Wellbeing
Do you really need to offer free meditation sessions, hangover leave and other ridiculous “wellbeing perks” if you’re offering people a positive, supporting working environment in the first place?
Companies are realizing that many perks related to employee wellbeing are addressing the symptoms, not the problems. If you’re dealing with chronic low engagement and turnover – what is it about your organization that’s having this effect on people?
Maybe you need to invest in some serious leadership development from your teams. Alternatively, you may need to investigate what dynamics of your culture are causing such widespread burnout.
While some people will continue to paper over the problem with increasingly gratuitous perks, the most forward-thinking HR departments will look into diagnosing and addressing the root causes.
