10 TRENDS THAT WILL SHAPE THE FUTURE OF HUMAN RESOURCE TO MANAGE THE REMOTE WORKFORCE

10 TRENDS THAT WILL SHAPE THE FUTURE OF HUMAN RESOURCE TO MANAGE THE REMOTE WORKFORCE

Prior to covid-19 human resource manager was a bit of a traditional outlook toward’s the remote workforce. Basically, remote work enables professionals to conduct their business away from the confines of an office setting. It is predicated on the idea that work need not be carried out in a certain location to be successful. Remote workers can carry out their projects and achieve their objectives wherever they wish, as opposed to making the daily commute to an office to work from a certain desk. People have the freedom to plan their days in a way that allows their work and personal life to coexist harmoniously and to the fullest extent possible. Remote employment is increasing. While it has been possible to work from a location other than a corporate office for a few decades, the practice is just now becoming commonplace.

Post covid there is an increase in the trend towards work from home. People have shifted from office work to remote work. Well,

prior to covid Although working remotely has a poor reputation but now more and more businesses are implementing work-from-home policies, especially for the IT, education and HR sector. Remote workers have a terrible reputation historically. Because their managers couldn’t supervise their direct reports at home, many businesses feared their employees would be too easily distracted there.

A decade ago, remote work was hardly ever done. Working from home was typically only possible under rare circumstances to accommodate families in particular situations. But because of advancements in teleconferencing and telework technology, some companies now successfully run entirely remote teams. In fact, corporations frequently permit their staff to work from home once or twice every week.

Well, I will say remote work is only possible because of the IT sector. IT sector helped both employers and employees connect in the covid-19 situation without any physical contact through apps like zoom, google Meet etc. Video conferencing is one of the most useful technologies for flawless remote work. Live video streams make it possible for remote workers to see and communicate with one another in real-time, from any location with an internet connection—the closest thing to a face-to-face conference. However, without the widespread deployment of broadband internet over the previous 10 to 15 years, this capacity would not be achievable. Because of how swiftly technology has developed, many organisations now operate out of coworking spaces rather than traditional offices to suit their primarily remote workforce.

As of now we have discussed remote work in depth and assume you have understood it. Now we should get back to our main topic i.e trends that will shape the future of HR to manage a remote workforce.

Nearly all of the world’s workforce, according to the HR world’s current trends, worked remotely in 2021 and 2022. 73% of all departments are anticipated to employ remote workers by 2028. To manage this transition in the workforce, HR managers need a solid plan. Understanding and adjusting to the most recent human resource trends is part of managing the new normal, notwithstanding any obstacles.

TRENDS

• EMPHASIZING MORE ON BUILDING HYBRID WORKPLACES

Now employees don’t require good and beautiful offices. Now companies should plan and build a hybrid workplace with big screens to have video conferencing with the employees and technology should be built in a manner to check the work of employees. Well, a company should use more and more technology to make the hybrid system to make the work smooth because it is the future only. Big companies like Microsoft, Google, CitiGroup etc have started making hybrid office models. Well according to the latest data found, more than 50% of the employees are demanding a hybrid system. This model will also reduce the office cost as the office will mostly work from home, then electricity and other expense which tend to look small but are a huge expenditure to the company will reduce.

• THE NORM FOR WORK WILL BE DIGITAL-FIRST

Because remote workers are less connected to an office, organisations must prioritise digitization. Executives believe that offering home access to the internet and necessary technologies (23%) and establishing digital collaboration platforms (39%) are the most crucial components in maintaining this new way of working and embracing trends, according to Deloitte. At least one application or component of infrastructure in 81% of businesses today is hosted in the cloud. Additionally, 13% of companies with more than 1,000 employees have moved their whole IT infrastructure to the cloud. To prioritise digital-first work, HR managers must develop strategies and put the newest technology into practice.

• ADAPTATION TO DYNAMIC ENVIRONMENT

So we all know how dynamic the environment is. So in this changing environment, if you won’t make changes in your company with respect to the environment you will not be able to survive in the market. HR basically need employees which are dynamic in nature, who could change with time to increase the efficiency of an organisation. Now there is a change in the working of the companies as now it is a hybrid model, Considering that employees can now work from home, several traditional HR trends and practises don’t seem as useful (such as job design, organisational design, scenario planning, etc.). To manage the new normal, these strategies must be re-optimized. A company should also invest in technology and the IT sector in this dynamic environment.

• THE PRIORITY NOW IS THE EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION

The HR business uses the wide word “employee contentment” to refer to how pleased or satisfied employees are with things like their jobs, their working environments, and the companies they work for. Many firms use frequent surveys to gauge employee satisfaction and track satisfaction patterns over time because it is one of the major metrics that can assist determine the overall health of an organisation. When employee satisfaction is high, it means that they are satisfied with their employer’s treatment of them.

Most HR are more inclined toward employee satisfaction and have an employee as their first priority. The better will be employee satisfied, the better he will be motivated towards his job. And then sure you will get a better response from the market about your products/ services. We can define its key benefits as better productivity, better employee engagement in its work, increased employee loyalty etc. well in the hybrid system you can ensure employee satisfaction by the following

• Consider employee feedback.
• Spend money on staff wellness initiatives
• Encourage candid dialogue
• Provide regular training Recognize the difficulty of the situation and offer aid when necessary

• MENTAL HEALTH IS ARISING AS A PRIME FOCUS

We now understand the value of mental health as a result of the pandemic. 41% of workers report feeling burned out, depleted, or exhausted from their jobs, according to SHRM. According to the same study, 23% of workers say they frequently feel gloomy, depressed, or hopeless. Employers are aware of this. In 2020, 69% of significant employers offered access to resources for mental health support. In 2021, that percentage grew to 88%. By 2023, the figure is projected to increase even more to 96%. Major corporations have made significant investments in mental health services, including Barclays, Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, American Express, Adobe, and Netflix. Adobe has taken extra steps to support the families of its employees around the clock.

For instance, if your coworkers are working from home, you can remind them to get up and take a three-minute break every 30 minutes. Tell them to occasionally stretch their limbs and backs, or to close their eyes and concentrate solely on their breathing for three to five minutes. Company-wide days off for mental health are a solution for that, which more and more businesses are beginning to use after spending more than a year and a half at home. In an effort to help its 15,900 full-time staff members avoid burnout and urge them to disconnect and recharge, LinkedIn made headlines by offering them a paid week off in April. Recently, Hootsuite and Hubspot followed suit. A company-wide mental health day was also chosen by organisations including SAP, Cisco, Google, and Thomson Reuters if a week seemed like too much time.

• DIVERSITY AND EQUALITY ARE GAINING IMPORTANCE

The advantages of diversity and equality at work are as varied as the terms themselves. not just with regard to company culture, but also in terms of reporting, analytics, and general performance. Diversity in the workplace is defined by the British HR company Croner as “having employees from a variety of backgrounds,” including different countries, physical characteristics, gender identities, and sexual orientations. However, Simpson’s Diversity Index is the source of the term’s technical meaning. A diversity index is a quantitative “measure of diversity that takes into consideration the number of species present, as well as the relative. abundance of each species,” according to the Barcelona Field Studies Centre.

Let’s not be distracted by the fact that this index measures weeds, animals, and bugs using a mathematical formula. It’s the underlying principle that counts. A more varied environment outdoors is typically one that is healthier (think: The Circle of Life). It turns out that workplaces follow the same rules. More than ever, prestigious companies like Google, Nielsen, and Rolodex are stressing DEI. Companies that prioritise DEI are more likely to draw in and keep excellent personnel. Actually, according to McKinsey’s study, diversified businesses are more likely to surpass their less diverse counterparts in terms of profitability.

Well, an hr should be able to maintain a balance in an organisation. There should be equality in an organisation. All employees should be treated as equals. Nobody should be discriminated against on the basis of his/her colour, sex, language, body structure etc. we many times see this discrimination in organisations. Women are many times not offered higher jobs. They are paid less salary in comparison to males. Many times people are only judged by their appearance and not their talent. An HR manager should take strict action on these issues.

If there will be diversity and equality then an organisation would be able to achieve higher profits, employee engagement, better productivity etc. Below are the ways an HR can ensure diversity and equality

• Beware of subtle prejudice
• Examine your procedures and rules. Take advice if necessary.
• Change the rules if they are unfair by being proactive.
• Boost dedication among top personnel.
• Assist managers in comprehending what it means, examining the evidence, and taking deliberate action to eliminate biases.
• Include every employee

• HUMAN RESOURCE GAINING IMPORTANCE IN THE INDUSTRY

Earlier human resource managers were not thought to be important. Many companies thought that HR managers just handle the recruitment process and just add to the expenditure of the company. But now people have understood the importance of the HR department in a company. They have realised how important is to hire good candidates for the growth of the company.

• OUTPUT WILL BE THE BASIS

Now, these days companies are adopting a hybrid system i.e its employee’s choice to come to the office or work from home. Then an HR can definitely not measure an employee on the basis of the working hours, he/she can only measure on the basis of the work done or the out produced while working. All the performance appraisals should be on the basis of the output. Also, today employees have shifted to flexible working hours. It means if a company requires an employee to work 8 hours a day, but the employee can work for 8 hours any time of the day. HR manager is just concerned about the work assigned to the employee.

For instance, only 36% of employees at companies with a conventional 40-hour workweek were top performers, according to Gartner’s 2020 Reimagine HR Employee Survey. However, businesses that provide employees flexibility over where, when, and how much they work report that 55% of their staff is comprised of strong performers.

• TODAY SKILLS ARE A TOP PRIORITY FOR AN HR MANAGER

Employers have long struggled to keep great employees. Sadly, the pandemic has made matters even more challenging. Employers would prioritise employee upskilling rather than just hiring top personnel in order to overcome this obstacle. In fact, 68% of HR leaders said that developing crucial competencies and skills will be their top focus in 2021. The emphasis on internal talent development and mobility is to be anticipated by HR managers. Additionally, it entails giving staff the tools and coping mechanisms they need to adjust to unpredictability.

• TALENT WILL NO LONGER BE LIMITED BY LOCATION 

Pre-pandemic hiring prioritised finding candidates who could physically visit the workplace. The talent pool you could draw was therefore constrained. This isn’t an issue with remote work, though. Now, you can employ people from all over the world without having to worry about whether they’re prepared to move. Businesses now have a greater talent pool for their projects, and HR departments have more latitude.