People-Centric Design

There’s no greater organizational asset than your people, and HR will be tasked with recruiting and retaining them with a significant shortage coming and upon us. Designing the future of work will require stretching the imagination and tapping into human needs and wants. Human-centered design will give companies the opportunity to create a modern, agile approach that prioritizes open communication where employees contribute freely and equally to the conversation. Organizations that focus on putting people first will drive their businesses forward.

Upskilling the Workforce

With the rise of AI and machine learning, it’s predicted that by 2022, a majority of employees will require substantial upskilling. Automaton has already had a significant impact on many industries and organizations. This trend doesn’t show any signs of slowing.

Forward-thinking companies will create the right opportunities for their employees to take on new challenges while encouraging them to build new skills like innovation, collaboration, and agility. Access to continued education and training will enable workers to learn in whatever way is most beneficial to them.  This is another important area where HR & IT can collaborate in determining workers’ needs and the technology to deliver it.

Flexible Work

No longer will generous, traditional perks be sufficient. The future demands flexible and agile work as it will become the norm. With more than 80% of Millennials saying flexibility is a top priority when job hunting, and most older workers desiring to ease slowly into retirement by reducing hours, companies will use outside-the-box models such as compressed hours, talent pools, job shares, flextime, and remote work to attract quality talent that helps them move their business forward. It’s time for HR to get creative.

Is your organization prepared to create an environment in which your people—and your business—can thrive? It will need to start with tremendous collaboration, innovation, and vision between HR & IT.