The human resources field is changing in response to the recent technological, economic, and sociocultural developments worldwide. HR departments are trying hard to attract and retain employees by improving workplace cultures and attitudes.
From what has happened thus far in 2018 on the HR scene, atypical working, blended workforce, candidate experience, and workplace well-being are four trends to watch for in 2019.
Atypical Work
Atypical work is employment that varies markedly from the standard full-time, regular employment. It includes part-time, temporary, fixed-term, casual, seasonal, and self-employment.
Such non-standard employment is still treated as atypical because typical employment is socially secure, is permanent, and provides regular working hours, incomes and benefits. However, atypical work is gaining popularity and will continue to do so in 2019Opens a new window .
Individuals engaging in flexible work are on the rise. Many organizations now have arrangements conducive to this. Shared offices, remote work, and freelancing are becoming the norm, facilitated by increasing access to technology, such as mobile 4G, and platforms for collaboration.
Companies can embrace this trend easily by using collaboration platforms and hiring candidates used to atypical work. If these suit their business purposes, their HR departments can plan such arrangements for the longer term.
Blended Workforce
A blended workforce is a group of employees who have a range of different contracts. They can be permanent or full-time employees, temporary workers, part-timers, agency workers, contractors, or freelancers. Over 80 percent of large corporations are expected to increase their flexible workforceOpens a new window in the future.
HR leaders should plan on welcoming, on-boarding and integrating a blended workforce in 2019, as conditions seem hugely favorable to this trend: Upwork’s IPOOpens a new window valued the platform at around $2 billion, and Kalo’s list of top 50 companies for freelancersOpens a new window has some of the best in their respective fields.
Candidate Experience
Candidate experience is candidates’ overall perception of a company’s recruitment process based on its entirety, from sourcing to onboarding. A positive candidate experience helps attract the best talent at a time when unemployment is at a 50-year low. It also influences candidates’ future interactions with the brand.
If candidates are dissatisfied by the recruitment process or have an awful candidate experience, they will have a negative impression of the company and turn against it.
Negative comments, especially on social media, might tarnish the brand image. Conversely, happy candidates will probably accept a job, remain loyal, and participate in building the brand up.
HR departments should create a positive candidate experienceOpens a new window for everyone, even those that they reject. Only then can companies become good employer brands in 2019.
Workplace Well-Being
With the exponential growth of data and technology and the consequential fast-paced changes, employees experience a lot of stress. Their emotional, social, and physical well-being is under threat from the struggle to cope and excelOpens a new window .
Workplace well-being initiatives improve retention, reduce sick time, and increase productivity, ensuring overall business growth. While such programs are common, they’re still relatively new because the areas they cover are still evolving.
Apart from the usual wellness programs, they also include progressive moves, such as preventing discrimination, promoting diversity, and fostering a sense of inclusion and belonging. HR professionals must undertake long-term efforts to gauge and enhance employee wellness in 2019 to achieve happy, healthy workplaces.
While these concepts aren’t new, they are gaining prominence and will come to fruition in 2019. All companies need to address them and ensure that their employees can thrive and maximize their productivity while achieving personal growth and contentment.