The evolution of the world economy comes with a business model that is also constantly morphing. Demographic changes and an increasingly diverse workforce look set to transform the corporate world in the next few years, but what will the future workplace look like and what should HR do right now to equip themselves and their organisations for the workforce of tomorrow? Research just conducted by atrain identifies five global megatrends that will have a profound impact on the workplace and HR.
5 global megatrends impacting HR
1. Demographic development
Around the world, countries that reach higher economic maturity levels experience declining birth rates. In China, birth control policies have further accelerated this decline. An ageing workforce, several generations working together and mass migration are becoming increasingly common phenomena.
2. Knowledge economy
Innovation is key for gaining competitive advantage—the ability to generate knowledge has become a critical success factor for organisations. As a consequence, demand for a highly qualified workforce continues to increase. The combined effect of the knowledge economy and the decline in birth rates in many countries means that the talent gap that HR is already facing today will become even more profound in the future.
3. Globalisation
Business today is global, and global companies are focusing efforts on their largest growth markets. As a result, focus is shifting to Asia, and to China in particular. In order to capitalise on growth opportunities in Asia, both multinational and local companies will need to put a significantly stronger focus on developing local leadership and building local talent.
4. Digitisation
The combined impact of the internet and mobile technologies has created a world in which information is freely available and communication knows no boundaries. The mobile phone is the workplace of the future. Such technology is key to facilitating work-life flexibility, which is one of the key demands of Generation Y.
5. Value shifts
Individuals who reach a certain economic status shift their emphasis from material goals to a greater focus on more holistic motivations including: maintaining deeper working relationships, engaging in meaningful work, ensuring professional and personal growth, and making a positive contribution to society. Job applicants now decide to work for companies that offer more than just a paycheck, something especially true for the younger generation.
HR Magazine spoke with Dr Joachim Stempfle, Organisational Development and Talent Management expert (JS), about atrain’s Future Workplace Research to unearth what is likely to hit HR in the near future and how they can best equip themselves to meet such challenges.
HR: What are the main factors hindering organisations from overcoming leadership and organisational development challenges—now and in the future?
JS: I’d say the readiness of managers to challenge their own fundamental values is often a key inhibitor. Managers are expected to learn new skills—that’s a given. But more importantly, we need leaders who are able to engage, inspire and empower people. It’s about encouraging two-way dialogue and creating meaning and purpose. It’s about managers looking at the whole person when they interact with employees. If we look at the research on the long- term success of organisations, the best predictor is employee engagement.
Even the brightest managers cannot cope with the complexities of the business environment on their own; they just cannot know it all. There is a need to have decisions made at a much lower level. How do we do that? We need managers who deeply engage with employees and are willing to empower others rather than trying to direct and control. That requires a different mindset. Not all managers are able to realign their values and become the leaders we need in the future.
HR: What should HR leaders be mindful of, given the importance of employee engagement?
JS: Engagement levels in APAC and particularly in China have been low for a long time compared to other regions, and turnover rates are high. HR leaders need to look at different ways of leading people with a greater emphasis on fostering employee engagement and wellbeing.
This does not contradict creating a performance culture. The highest performance comes from passionate, driven and empowered employees who understand and buy into the mission of the company while taking ownership for objectives, actions and outcomes.
This is the fundamental shift in mindset that needs to happen. Yet, it is ironic to see HR strategies such as building a talent pipeline and developing local leadership assuming second priority, when companies are experiencing rapid growth and become very much focused on hiring employees— whom they are then unable to retain. The priority should be on retention, not on hiring. Once HR leaders understand the importance of engagement, they will focus on the key drivers of engagement— culture, leadership, development opportunities, and flexibility to reconcile work with life goals.
Most often, the one factor that limits growth is the inability of organisations to retain highly qualified individuals. However, the relatively abundant supply of low qualification workforces may mislead managers into comfortably underestimating the keen competition for highly skilled labour.
HR: How do Chinese employers react to the idea of engaged employees getting involved in shaping their organisations?
JS: Although cultural differences exist, we are all human beings, and basic human needs are consistent across cultures. It is easy to overstate cultural differences while overlooking how much we have in common. It might be true that the traditional Chinese management style might be rather directive, but China is a country that is changing at a breathtaking pace and more and more Chinese employers are embracing the idea of getting employees involved in the strategic development of the organisation. What has always impressed me about China is the value that even very senior managers place on curiosity and learning. The speed of learning underscores China’s vast potential.
HR: How should HR leaders effectively strategise their interventions?
JS: There needs to be a clear vision to build talent from within, a defined strategy around leadership and talent development, and transparent career paths that enable individuals to drive their careers in a self-directed manner. Expectations towards leaders need to be made explicit and reinforced. For leadership development, we don’t advocate one-off activities that typically have little impact—instead you need to put coherent processes in place comprising multiple elements.
First, you need to challenge managers to think about their values, their actions and the impact they create with their actions, and how their values and behaviours align with the company’s values and expectations towards leaders. Following this, managers need to receive continuous, direct feedback on both their behaviour and their impact. Regular manager feedback, a Development Centre or 360-feedback are helpful tools in this regard. Skill building has its place to build leadership skill sets and tools. In talent management, it is also critical to move talents around to enable them to gain diverse experience and build a broad perspective.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
