Anand is the CEO & Product Owner at Amoeboids.
getty
The ways of working, as we traditionally know them, are in flux. With employees confined to their homes for most of last year, organizations had to find viable modes of working and staying afloat in the new normal. Research has found that 65% of employees would take a pay cut if it meant they could continue work remotely, with many interested in increased personal time, more autonomy and a better-managed workload.
This shift, or the "Great Resignation" as it's being called, is something organizations have to address in order to hire top talent, as a balanced working environment is a desirable factor for the majority of the current and future workforce.
The job of coming up with the right hiring and retention strategy falls invariably on the human resources department. From my perspective, here are some of the ways HR professionals can prepare their workplaces for the future:
1. Cultivate culture remotely.
My organization, UpRaise Research Council, took the views of 500-plus HR leaders across the U.S., Europe and APAC to understand the changing landscape and measures taken to get aligned with it. We found that 62% of organizations reworked their policies to be more inclusive of employees, while nearly all respondents were focused on talent development. These findings are in alignment with the 2021 Future Workforce Report by Upwork, which found that 67% of businesses reported changes to their long-term management practices to accommodate remote working.
Defining policies that allow employees certain leeway as long as they perform their tasks is necessary. A focus on talent development, work-life balance and wellness are essential for a culture to attract high performers more than monetary compensation. Investing in future-ready coaching with continuous feedback enhances the competency of the workforce and increases the retention rate.
Barriers To Change:
• Engaging in purposeful, value-driven work at the manager level;
• Addressing concerns of being visible in a hybrid environment;
• Ensuring physical and mental health as the second-highest rated agenda.
The biggest culture change an organization and its HR teams need to foster is adopting a coaching mindset. Collaborating with remote or hybrid teams is essential, too, and focusing on the right technology and tools can simplify the process of connecting for all employees.
2. Motivate employees to be future-ready.
We're increasingly seeing employers tying employee goals to the corporate strategy with objectives and key results to motivate their teams. Using a goal-setting framework like OKRs helps in connecting behavior change initiatives to the purpose of the organization. Linking organizational objectives to employee goals and providing coaching shows employees that their organization and managers are invested in the personal growth of the employee. Also, adopting an OKR-driven work culture can bring in more transparency, enhance productivity and drive better business outcomes.
Barriers To Change:
• Connecting behavior change initiatives to the purpose of the organization;
• Tying employee goals to that of the organization and providing coaching;
• Addressing concerns of remote employees about being treated differently;
• Finding and providing motivation, as disconnection from company culture and lack of purpose rate remain top factors that could impact employees in 2022 and beyond.
3. Enhance performance management.
According to my organization's research, over 77% of respondents want or have performance evaluation processes that include continuous learning and upskilling. A worldwide study by PwC showed that 77% of the 22,000 respondents surveyed were open to learning new skills that could help them adapt to the changing norms. Rewarding high performers fosters healthy competition, and the addition of on-the-job coaching and training modules can further overall employee growth. Gauging performances based on such transparent systems adds to employee morale and helps in solidifying a growth culture in the organization.
Barriers To Change:
• Being able to include transparent systems, policies and tools to gauge employee performance;
• Adopting a collaborative approach while defining the objectives instead of the traditional top-down approach;
• Establishing a framework to identify necessary learning areas and solutions.
4. Lead from the front.
Millennials and Gen Z form a significant chunk of the workforce, and they are vocal about a culture of transparency. Being transparent also creates a safe space for employees where they can voice their opinions and ideas without the fear of being ignored. Collaboration can catalyze innovation on a large scale. That's why imbibing transparency is essential for organizations to be future-ready, and it can happen only when the leaders within the organization value coaching and ongoing feedback and take measures to establish the right policies.
Barriers To Change:
• Building a culture of trust requires an attitude change, where risk-taking is considered essential learning;
• Improving cross-disciplinary collaboration, enabling employees of different teams to interact and learn seamlessly;
• Driving the change by having the right policies and systems that facilitate collaboration and transparency.
It’s time for organizations to embrace the new and rearchitect work in order to be successful in this altered world.
Forbes Human Resources Council is an invitation-only organization for HR executives across all industries. Do I qualify?
