Economic uncertainty has been the tonic during 2022, and it seems that in 2023 this situation is going to repeat itself, with inflation that does not find the path of moderation and prices that continue to skyrocket. No one can deny that this is going to fully affect many companies, although, as always, there will be those who will find an opportunity to progress amid adversity. In any case, it is time to review what the experts say about the trends that will arrive in the field of Human Resources in the immediate future.
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Hybrid work as one of the Human Resources trends
Companies continue to resist implement remote work, but many States are advising their business fabric to consider the possibility of having their employees work from home, because saving may be more necessary than ever. It is not just about saving money, but mainly about saving resources, as gas supply is a real concern for European countries.
Faced with this situation, it seems that the perfect solution in 2023 will be to go down the middle street: adopt a hybrid work model. In this way, employees will carry out their work some days from home and others from the office, which will allow companies save both on your energy bill and rents, since many of them could consider moving to smaller and cheaper offices or establishments, since their space needs will be less.
The era of soft skills
We have been appreciating for some years the growing importance of the soft skills of their employees for companies, and it seems that 2023 could be the year in which, those that have not yet been convinced of the need to look for personnel with good soft skills, they do it.
The uncertainty that we are experiencing at all levels is causing important changes in the ways of working, and the Employees now have to be more flexible than ever and show that they can quickly adapt to new situations.
Companies need workers who are competent today and continue to be competent tomorrow, no matter how things change. Consequently, throughout this year we are going to see how companies turn to the development of the soft skills of their work teams. Little by little, training is going to be integrated into the labor obligations of workers, who are aware that they must keep up to date in terms of knowledge, skills and abilities, if they want to continue being valuable members of the workforce.
Mental health care as another trend in Human Resources
There are more and more voices that speak about the importance of taking care of mental health in all areas of life, and especially at work, because this is something that companies have been ignoring for many years. Proof of this is that sick leave due to work stress (burnout syndrome) has grown alarmingly in recent times, and already represents the second cause of temporary disability among the active population.
Hence, one of the priorities for 2023 is improve employee well-being, adopting measures that contribute to taking care of their mental health. It is not only about giving them training in this matter, it is also necessary that the organization takes a proactive role. For example, reviewing the protocols for the distribution of tasks to avoid work overloads, or implementing measures that allow a better reconciliation of personal and professional life.
Search for effective leadership
Little by little, the business world has been getting rid of the figure of the authoritarian boss, and has replaced it with that of the leader. However, many companies now find that their leaders fail to achieve the goals expected of themThis is because they haven't embraced the leadership style they really need, which is effective leadership.
We consider an effective leader to be the one who achieves the objectives that have been set for him through a group of people who make up a high-performance team and who are willing to follow him, not because of his position of authority, but because he is an example for them. and they want to be like him.
Whoever exercises effective leadership puts aside their personal success and works to achieve the success of the whole team and therefore of the company. He is an intelligent, honest, impartial person, with the power of conviction, innovative, good communicator, enthusiastic and teamwork oriented.
Many companies point out that achieving effective leadership is one of their main challenges, but they recognize that the training programs they are implementing are not giving the expected results. Therefore, one of the trends for this 2023 in terms of Human Resources will be the search for new formulas that help make the leader profile change and adapt to what companies now need.
More democratic change management
Today's employees are more flexible, but that doesn't mean they don't want stability. In fact, a common complaint in recent years is that in organizations too many changes are taking place. These are carried out so quickly that before employees can adapt, the way of working is already changing again.
The reason for so much change is that there is no good management of it. The company does not value the options at its disposal as well as it should, and ends up implementing adjustments only to discover shortly after that they are not delivering the expected results, which forces it to make new changes.
In 2023, the trend will be to improve both organizational design and change management, both tasks moving towards a more democratic sphere. New approaches to work will no longer be imposed from the top down, but when making changes the opinion of the employees will be taken into account.
Workers are the ones who have direct information about what works and what doesn't, know their needs and those of their colleagues, and often have clearer ideas than managers about the adjustments that should be made. Yes your opinion is taken into account, surely we will find a much better managed change dynamic, and not so many adjustments will be necessary to achieve the objectives set.
Improving the employee experience as another Human Resources trend
The Great Quit, which began in the United States after the arrival of the pandemic in 2020, has spread throughout the world. The numbers of voluntary redundancies appear to have moderated, but are still higher than five years ago.
The reason many people quit their job is because they don't feel like they are going anywhere in the same job.. It is not a challenge for them and they know that in it they will not have the chance to develop their career. Consequently, what they do when they want to continue improving is request leave and go to work elsewhere.
A high resignation rate is a problem for the company, which has to invest resources in undertaking a new selection process to find the ideal candidate to fill the vacancy. Therefore, the solution is to improve the employee experience and increase your loyalty levels. Make them feel valued, and give them the opportunity to develop their professional career within the company.
This is one of the big trends in HR for 2023, getting talented employees to choose to stay with the company instead of going to work elsewhere. To achieve this, it will be necessary to adopt strategies such as developing a professional career plan for employees, improving their training, and promote internal promotion both vertically and horizontally.
Apply new technologies to recruitment
The companies They continue to take too long to fill vacant positions and often find that the person chosen has not turned out to be the most suitable candidate. In order to streamline and improve this task, for some time now the use of new technologies is increasing.
2023 will be the year in which even the companies that have resisted this the most advocate implementing the data intelligence in your selection process. The combination between the skills and capabilities of Human Resources specialists, and the ability to process thousands of data in just seconds that specialized applications have, will result in a selection process that is much more effective.
Employer Branding
The success of the recruitment process depends on many factors, but one of the most important is the company's ability to attract talented candidates. Because the best professionals and the most advanced tools are of little use if the people who apply to fill the vacant positions do not fit the profile sought.
In this sense, one of the trends of 2023 is the improvement of employer branding or improvement of the image projected by the company as an employer. The company must be able to “sell” itself as a good place to work, creating a desire to be a part of those talented people who are looking for a job. The ways to achieve this are many: offer teleworking, flexible hours, a good salary, incentive program, career plan...
These are the eight trends in Human Resources that are going to stand out the most in 2023, and they represent a challenge for companies, which are going to have to start making changes now if they want to obtain the best possible results when it comes to attracting and retain talent.