We’ve come a long way since the days of manual payroll and EAP phone lines.
The modern workplace is evolving fast, yet surprisingly, some of the hottest new trends (cough, cough automation) will become business as usual, while some of HR’s most ancient mantras will be more relevant than ever before.
Here’s what to expect for HR in 2018.
1. The End of Talent Management
Whoa, right? That is a BIG prediction. But according to tech expert (and bona fide HR diviner) Josh Bersin, the future will be all about team and work management — that is, performance-driven solutions as opposed to practice-driven solutions.
Look, today’s talent is overworked and overwhelmed. The last thing any of us needs is another clunky workflow. We’ve reached a turning point in the HR tech community where “automation” is no longer a star feature, but a baseline requirement.
Moving forward, it’s all about who can do automation in a way that yields max productivity from your teams and workflows. That means simpler, smarter tools that help you and your people get more hours out of every day. We 💜 it!
2. It’s All About the Analytics
People analytics that is. We’re not talking about the snooze-worthy stuff data science PhDs are made of. We’re talking real-time insights into how your people are performing (HRMS data like turnover, tenure, and performance rating), who they’re hanging out with (relationship data), how active they are (wellbeing data), and even how they’re feeling (sentiment data like feedback, mood, and sense of belonging).
Kind of like an HR 🔮.
Data from everywhere, including employee Fitbits to Organizational Network Analysis (ONA) software is landing on HR desks, bringing huge opportunities to improve the business and give HR a seat at the table.
Obviously, there will be some not-so-minor privacy and ethical issues to grapple with, but companies who nail it will gain a wealth of game-changing insights on how to do business better. 👌
3. The Death (and Rebirth?) of the Annual Performance Review
To be fair, this one first hit our radar in 2015. But for most of us, the “dreaded” annual review has been around longer than our favorite pet. And old habits die hard. In 2017, we saw continuous feedback evolve from a mere buzzword to a true blue productivity practice at companies like GE, Accenture, Netflix, Goldman Sachs, and so many more.
Now, even the staunchest of year-end reviewers are taking a hard look at their 16-page Word docs and wondering if there isn’t a better way to do this. Does that mean the annual review is gone for good? Well…not so fast.
We think many companies will keep a revamped version of their year-end review — after all, there is something to be said for that New Year momentum — and supplement it with monthly, quarterly or even real-time continuous feedback models to eliminate unpleasant surprises and take the headache and paperwork out of the process. ‘Bout time! 👍
4. Employers Will Start Thinking Like Clients
We’ve said it before, the future is talent-driven.
If you want to win with the fast-growing freelance talent population, you’ll need to step up your HR game — especially when it comes to recruitment.
Top freelancers are known for choosing their own clients, setting their own prices and skipping right past stuffy CV requirements. The best of the best always have a hot pipeline of prospects and won’t hesitate to drop a client who isn’t the right fit.
Many employers love freelancers for their depth and breadth of expertise (these guys have seen it all and can bring you profit-driving ideas you never would’ve dreamed of 🤑). Aaaand others love them for the fact that they require zero health or retirement benefits.
Companies who want to position themselves as the Clients of Choice for independent talent can stand above the competition by taking simple steps to extend benefits to long-term contractors and simply paying on time.
5. Recruitment is the Make or Break
If you thought you were done seeing “war for talent” cliches dominating HR conference programs, think again. Unemployment is the lowest it’s been in a LONG time and the on-demand talent economy is growing fast.
Today’s talent is getting smarter and more selective. The good news is ATS and recruitment management systems are also doubling down. With the help of AI and automation, HR and hiring execs no longer need to rely on run-of-the-mill job descriptions (Just say ‘No!’ to boring job descriptions! Try this instead) or mining for candidates in arcane Excel spreadsheets. 🙅
Smart recruiting tools use chatbots, AI, video and advanced reporting and analytics to help HR leaders hire better candidates, faster. 💃🎉😍
Ready to future-proof your recruitment process? Get started for FREE!
