When the circuit-breaker rolled out in April of 2020, most of us were focused on short-term response and course correction. Since then, the global economy has witnessed several changes, and employers adapted in tandem.
However, the lessons from the pandemic remain as pertinent as ever, informing the way forward for years to come. It has changed what an employee expects from the workplace, also rejigging the definition of “good” performance and productivity. In this climate, it is clear that we cannot take employee engagement for granted.
In 2021, could we expect a swift return to BAU? Or, should HR practitioners treat the pandemic as a watershed period, completely reshaping the future of work? Industry experts suggest that the answer – without a doubt – is the latter. Here are five ways the changes brought on by COVID-19 will determine the future of work.
Hybrid workplaces will continue to soar, not stall, in 2021
Remote working was already beginning to be a popular working model prior to the pandemic. Now, it is the default for any desk job. UOB had already announced instituting a two-day work-from-home policy post-COVID 19. Singapore’s largest bank will give its 29,000 employees the option to work remotely up to 40 per cent of the time.
A few months ago, EngageRocket held a digital summit titled PeopleFirst 2020, and every expert highlighted hybrid workplace as a priority for HR next year. “Whether it is the rise of the gig economy, or choosing to work from home, there will continue to be a new version of culture and collaboration, because we are just not in the same place, all the time, together,” said Chin Yin Ong, Head of People at Grab.
We have now opened our minds to the possibilities of flexible work arrangements, opening the door to a more diverse workforce by redesigning jobs and introducing new practices. Multiple biases will be diminished in favour of a more diverse workforce, enabling previously untapped talent to contribute to the economy.
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That’s why HR will need to support structured processes that allow employees freedom to navigate a complex environment. The key to this freedom lies in three elements: leadership, technology, and clarity. Managers must be flexible enough to support productivity as per the timelines and locations of tier preference.
Technology can complement this by enabling synchronous and asynchronous communication between teams. Finally, setting clear and achievable milestones, such as deadlines or targets, will give remote staff the information they need to manage their performance effectively.
A sense of purpose must cut through labour force disillusionment
Purpose and a shared vision are essential, even in the best of times, to bind a team together and keep team members motivated. As companies reacted to the circuit-breaker and scrambled to restructure their people management processes, it was easy to lose sight of this core “purpose.”
Several companies made the mistake of prioritising hour-based productivity and traditional targets instead of providing inspiration during these complex times. This has left a significant portion of the labour force feeling disillusioned and un-empowered.
In 2021, progressive employers must leverage purpose to their advantage by attaching meaning to every activity beyond just making up the numbers. To achieve this, it is first necessary to train managers to act as mentors and help them develop a strong sense of empathy.
Purpose applies to internal and external communication equally. In 2021, HR should consider job descriptions that present an attractive and meaningful work experience. Organisations will have to think about the emotional outcome for employees and help them feel more engaged.
Prepare to enable work-life integration (vs balance)
The endless days of WFH have forced us to find our individualised work-life dynamics, which didn’t necessarily mean drawing concrete lines between the two. Some employees might prefer work-life integration as opposed to work-life balance, and managers must adapt accordingly.
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This integration will also require special support for those most likely to face work-life stress, such as parents with young children, team leaders, new employees, etc.
To address this, HR can take a variety of steps, from special benefits to targeted resources. Special benefits include four-day workweeks, flexible time off, etc., to help employees plan around their personal obligations.
Underneath all of this, must lie a culture of anti-presenteeism – actively encouraged by HR – that prioritises outcomes, not an employee’s availability.
HR will influence business decisions even after the pandemic
Several functions that were previously seen as ancillary, such as IT, customer service, and HR, got a seat at the C-table during the pandemic. Business leaders recognised how critical HR is to market outcomes. HR will continue to retain its role in decision-making even after the pandemic, signalling a new era of employee centricity.
Importantly, this indicates specific upskilling requirements for HR. Being able to speak the language of business is such a critical skill for HR, even in the past and it’s going to be even more critical as the demands on the role of HR increases over time.
This has two implications. First, HR practitioners must be able to see the “big picture” of where a business is heading, the threats and opportunities on the way, and how its workforce plays a role. Second, HR must leverage analytics to quantify people management issues and potentials, even if they have a “gut feeling” or informed intuition.
We will rethink what it means to “compensate” for work
Finally, our compensation models require a comprehensive overhaul, moving away from outmoded systems that are based on work hours, non-vocational degrees, subjective opinion, and other inaccurate indicators. The crisis highlighted that employee contribution can make a difference in unexpected ways – from a manager who takes time on weekends to hear what an employee has to say, to a new employee who comes up with a disruptive idea completely unrelated to their job role.
Also Read: Ethical dilemmas at the workplace: what to do?
Companies must ask themselves one critical question: is my compensation model agile enough for this new future of work?
Companies industry-wide and region-wide need to improve recognition and sense of fairness of rewards. This can manifest itself in a number of changes that are predicted in compensation models.
Non-monetary tactics like immediate recognition from managers or an informal pat-on-the-back by a peer will become more popular. Regular performance management with nimble goals will replace cyclical, rigid structures, that leave very little room for flexibility.
The organisational performance management system could also transform on similar lines, gathering performance feedback from an employee’s 360-degree network instead of the traditional single rater system. The result is a workplace that listens to and acts on the voice of the employee, offering reassurance and driving confidence.
These five trends will characterise work-life and the HR landscape in 2021. The forces that sparked off this year will take root in new and surprising ways, shaping a more inclusive and human-driven workplace.
Companies that embrace – and not only adapt to – this new normal, armed with accurate analytics insights to make decisions, will stand to gain a competitive advantage.
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