Neal Bruce, SVP of Product Strategy, Lumesse
As another year begins to draw to a close, we find our eyes looking both back on the land travelled and towards the horizon ahead. In a year of flexible working, chipped glass ceilings, digital evolution, enterprising Millennials and the forward march of big data, HR has had plenty to think about. But what will next year bring and how will it impact the way HR plans for 2015?
Following a recent study carried out by Deloitte to ask over 2,500 business and HR leaders across 94 countries ‘What are the top issues HR is facing?, Lumesse collaborated alongside some of its customers to debate the findings and find out how they intended to solve them in the months ahead.
Lonely Hearts: Looking for a leader
Globalisation and technological change, the survey found, were seen as major drivers for a period of disruption in the HR industry, with organisations increasingly looking for strong leadership to help guide them through this period of disruption. In fact, 38 percent of those asked labelled leadership as an “urgent” issue.
In fact, the research showed that the quality of leadership has declined over the past decade. Why? Because leadership is confused. In a new global world, the question pervades as to who takes up the mantel for putting forward and holding everyone to new processes? A globally driven or local leadership team? If the local team, this raises questions as to whether local views help streamline the business and meet global leadership values. If global values are put in place, do these take regional and local difference into account, where markets and their view significantly differ?
Technology advances such as the introduction of social networks into the work force and the uptake of new communications tools have also changed the skills needed to succeed as a leader. The attributes of what make a good leader on a personal level are a heady mix of the old and new, global and local - with the stalwarts of business acumen, creativity, influence, and the ability to build a team. All this should mingle with newer expectations such as global cultural agility, an understanding of emerging technologies and how to harness these for business success, and the ability to successfully manage and integrate Millennials into the workplace.
Business must adapt to these expectations, which will be different for each, and lay down a comprehensive strategy outlining what they want from a leader, and how they are going to change their perspective of systems and the systems themselves to reflect this.
Engaging multiple generations in the workplace
Barely a day passes without another study appearing that further erodes the conventional notion of a workforce. The impact of Generation Y and Millennials on creating a workforce in flux is well documented, with the average time a millennial spends in a position decreasing every year. Add to this is a far more profound entrepreneurial spirit, a stronger focus on green ethics, and a greater reliance on and passion for technology and it becomes clear that finding a new way to engage this generation will be essential for HR.
Yet amidst the discussion about millennials HR must not lose sight of the need to engage senior members of the workforce, who are facing their own challenges, with an increasing retirement age at the forefront. By 2025, the number of workers aged 55–64 is forecast to rise by 89 percent, while for those aged 65 and above the percentage is even higher.
Can’t teach an old dog? Time to find a way
One of the most revealing statistics from the Deloitte survey is that 42 per cent of business leaders believe their HR teams are underperforming or just getting by - such feelings are fuelled by the view that HR is not adapting to the move away from ‘people administration’ to ‘people performance.’ The opportunity for HR to become an effective business partner is stronger than ever, but it will require HR to identify and develop in key areas.
One of the most pressing ways in which HR is looking to advance its skills and perceived role is through the handling of big data and the use of analytics. As it stands now, only 14 per cent of companies reported that their HR teams have the capabilities to utilise talent analytics; such a statistic will be unthinkable in the near-future as the need for a connection between data and the human touch will be essential.
The hunt is afoot for talent
Talent acquisition has evolved greatly over the past five years, with shifts in global talent markets, the erosion of conventional working patterns, and the increased importance of social media. The need to address this topic is clear as 75% of global CEOs and HR leaders rated talent acquisition as “Urgent” or “Important”.
One striking statistic from the survey is that by 2015, more than 50% of organisations will utilise gamification in their recruitment processes. The importance of the digital landscape will influence how recruiters interact with potential employees, and open up the means to effectively deliver a global recruitment strategy.
It is not a case of throwing technology into your workforce and hoping it will work. HR must help identify those making up the recruitment strategy, and tailor the right technology and strategy to fit.
Finding a way to tackle these issues will dominate the agenda of meetings throughout the world- will HR take the initiative and prove itself in the days ahead?