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We surveyed more than 150 HR professionals from businesses spanning from less than 100 employees through to 5,000+, across multiple industries from banking and finance to construction and healthcare, to find out the priorities, trends and challenges facing the sector in the coming year.

Despite seeing the back of Covid lockdowns in 2022, the business and employment landscape has become no less turbulent. An already weakened economy has been further stretched in dealing with the aftereffects of the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the spiralling cost of living. As such, businesses need to remain flexible and agile to cope with these fluctuating pressures.

As well as looking ahead to the upcoming year, we compare the findings to those of last year to evaluate how the HR community has pivoted to navigate the ever-changing landscape.

What are the priorities for HR in 2023?

For the first time in recorded history, the amount of job vacancies outnumbered the amount of unemployed people in 2022. Talent shortages have been widely reported and, unsurprisingly, many of the top priorities for HR in 2023 can be attributed to this issue.

78% of respondents identified retention and recruitment as a priority for 2023, making it the most common of all priorities across HR. This is followed by priorities that are evidence of HR departments placing a real emphasis of looking after their people. 63% identified employee health and wellbeing as a focus this year, while 57% had employee engagement and experience high on the agenda.

This all points to one thing – businesses and the HR departments within them are making people the core focus. This is also reflected in the workplace initiatives looking to be implemented by HR this year, with mental health and employee wellbeing both coming out on top at 76% each, followed by flexible working (66%).

Who is the worst affected by talent shortages?

More than half of the HR professionals surveyed (55%) identified staff recruitment and retention as a challenge in 2023, making it the biggest issue facing the industry in the coming year, and one that has become more prominent as 64% reported that staff turnover has increased in their organisation, a jump from 56% in 2022.

Different sectors have been more susceptible than others to this issue, though. Construction and hospitality and tourism were among the worst affected, while 43% of respondents from banking and finance companies reported they hadn’t seen any real impact. 

There was also a correlation between the size of an organisation and the extent of the impact of talent shortages. Businesses with fewer employees tended to be the least affected, with 43% of sub-100-employee businesses seeing an impact, as opposed to 74% from those belonging to companies with 501-1,000 employees.

Who is looking after HR?

Given how much emphasis is being placed on looking after employees this year, and the economic pressures facing people and businesses alike, 2023 has the potential to be a turbulent year for HR professionals to deal with. So, we wanted to know, where do they turn to if they are struggling themselves?

The prevailing first point of contact for HR professionals to raise their concerns to was their line manager at 64%, closely followed by senior leadership (57%) and then colleagues (38%).

This is just a snapshot of our key findings from our HR in 2023 and Beyond report, which paints a wide picture of these issues above, as well as exploring the changes in adoption and impact of remote and hybrid working, remuneration in HR and for wider employees, the use and benefits of HR software, plus much more. Click here to download the report for free.

The post How will the HR industry look in 2023? The results are in! appeared first on Natural HR.

Human Resources Information Systems make core HR simpler and more efficient. Enabling your organisation to optimise all human-based processes, HRIS is the future of HR.

In this post, Natural HR looks at what HRIS is, the benefits of using this software, and how to use it. Keep reading to find out everything you need to know about HRIS.

What is an HRIS?

A Human Resources Information System is, simply put, an HR software package. An organisation’s HRIS system is used to collect and store data on employees. From recruitment to performance management and employee development, good HRIS software can do it all. Natural HR software has all the functionalities needed for end-to-end Human Resources Management.

HRIS meaning

While HRIS stands for Human Resources Information System, it is also sometimes referred to as a Human Resources Management System or Human Capital Management. 

Benefits of Using HRIS

Technology is known for making processes easier, and HRIS is no different. Here are the main advantages of using HRIS software:

Makes HR teams more efficient

As HRIS software stores and organises employee master data, core HR is made much simpler. With automated and streamlined HR processes, HR teams can focus on the human element with greater efficiency and accuracy. 

Cloud-based

While some Human Resource Information Systems can run on a company’s technical infrastructure, most systems are now cloud-based. This means that the software can be used from anywhere with an internet connection, so you don’t have to be at your desk to use it, making it perfect for organisations with remote or hybrid working. It also means that the system can be accessed from a mobile phone, laptop or desktop.

Receive support when required

While support will differ between different HRIS companies, most offer excellent customer support to ensure that no questions go unanswered. Natural HR aims to answer all support tickets within 30 minutes so that your staff can continue working efficiently without waiting 2 – 3 business days for a response to a crucial question.

With Natural, you will also have a dedicated Account Manager who will offer personal assistance, from onboarding to implementation, to help you get the very most out of your HR software.

HRIS software has many useful features

Natural HR software has a broad range of features to aid every element of HR. Here are the features of our software:

• Absence management
• Asset management
• Document management
• Employee engagement
• Expenses and mileage
• Analytics and reporting
• Payroll
• Performance management
• People management
• Recruitment and ATS
• Self-service
• Talent management
• Time and attendance
• Training and development
• Workflow

HRIS can be integrated with other software

In order to further streamline and enhance your HR operations, HRIS software can generally be integrated with a number of other solution providers. Many HRIS providers, like Natural HR, also offer API solutions to enable organisations to transfer data with ease.

Tip: You can browse our native integration options here.

Need a Human Resources Management System?

If you do not yet have HRIS software, your organisation could certainly benefit from this HR solution. Download our infopack or contact us directly to find out more.  Alternatively, book a free demo to try it out for yourself.

The post What Is An HRIS System? appeared first on Natural HR.

HR professionals are the go-to people. For everything from a disagreement at work or discussing a change of circumstances to approving leave and building training programmes, they deal with it all. 

They are challenged with hard decisions and often take on the brunt of employees’ problems. And a lot of the time, they do this behind the scenes with colleagues none the wiser. But whilst they are busy supporting everyone else, who supports HR? 

Whilst this line of work has always been demanding, the pandemic and lockdowns took it to another level. Not only did HR have to deal with the same challenges as everyone else with the new way of working, but they also had to help facilitate it and ensure there was an appropriate support system in place. 

Not to mention having to deal with staff cuts at record levels and, of course, feeling the same job insecurity as many of their colleagues. Many of whom were turning to human resources for answers. 

HR had to be agile and keep up with ever-changing restrictions. They had to be flexible to allow staff to work on their own time from the safety of their houses. And not forgetting the level of understanding and empathy that was required to help employees through difficult times.

As a result, HR has evolved. It is now an all-encompassing role that takes on the demands of many different departments – from recruitment and finance to mental health first aid and grievance support. 

With so much going on in the world of HR at any one time and so many people’s well-being to think about, it can be easy for HR teams to forget about themselves. 

That’s why senior leadership needs to ensure HR works within its own positive working environment, the team’s well-being is safe, and job satisfaction is high. 

Support the supporters 

Just because it ‘falls’ within the HR department, it doesn’t mean they should automatically take it on by themselves. HR professionals can experience burnout too. 

With new roles, like mental health first aid, making their way into businesses, it’s important to remember that this doesn’t always have to sit on HR’s shoulders. Yes, they might be the obvious choice, but what if your HR personnel are dealing with their own mental health problems or perhaps this topic hits close to home? They might not have the mental capacity to support others in this specialised way. 

Also, who’s to say employees feel truly comfortable opening up about mental illness to these individuals? Perhaps they’d rather speak with someone in another department or someone their own age who can relate. It’s easy to open up these support roles to other willing people with training available to help them develop skills. 

A successful business, and a successful team, are willing to help each other – no matter the department. Take a moment to think about the HR people who are constantly checking on your well-being at work, and simply ask if they are ok and if there’s anything you can do to help them. 

And at the same time, senior leadership needs to take a more proactive approach when it comes to checking on HR teams. A simple thank you and regular team check-ins can go a long way. At the end of the day, you’ve employed them to make sure your team feel supported. So why wouldn’t you do the same for them? 

Let’s look after our people’s people! 

Specialist HR technology can help unload the burden of administrative, manual tasks that take up HR professionals’ time and make it easier to manage growing workforces from afar. If you’re interested in supporting your HR team further, get in touch with the Natural HR team.

The post While HR is busy looking after personnel, who looks after HR? appeared first on Natural HR.

In truth, it can be up to any individual in the business who can project manage from start to finish – and anyone who is a stakeholder in the value-derived from digital transformation – especially HR teams.

Digital transformation might be an incremental change – like the introduction of a new communication tool – or a large-scale project, such as an entire business overhaul. But it’s not just about technology, it’s about adoption across the whole team. Therefore, businesses need to have a strong culture to be able to work collaboratively, be communicative, and agile. And a strong HR presence is vital.

Since hybrid working became ‘the norm’, it’s been the mission of many organisations to help their employees work more efficiently, be more productive, and gain a better day-to-day balance. In turn, those who have embarked on digital upgrades have been able to boost retention and attract new talent. In fact, 41% of HR executives intend to focus on the adoption of digital tools to drive growth.

However, many think digital transformation can be a quick fix for internal issues, particularly for the challenge of hybrid work. But businesses can’t expect to roll out new technology or upgrade to better systems to instantly solve problems, it requires strong leadership throughout to guide the project.

HR support through organisational change

It’s all about adding value. And HR should take a primary role in this. It requires leaders who understand culture, and how people’s jobs might change, to support and guide the team through the process. By communicating effectively, this can aid adoption.

Throughout, it’s important that staff understand that technology is there to enhance their roles. If the digital transformation strategy and implementation doesn’t suit those actually using the implemented tools, then the project will fail. Evidencing this, recent research from McKinsey and Co revealed that 70% of digital transformations fail most often due to resistance from employees.

That’s why HR leadership is so important. These individuals can dig into the team’s thoughts and feelings about the project and the impact it’s having on day-to-day operations. They should be able to give hard evidence to business leaders that staff attrition is increasing because of the technology the organisation is using – therefore inducing a change of direction. Or they can give positive feedback to drive the current strategy forward. Either way, each piece of useful insight can fuel digital transformation.

Lastly, businesses shouldn’t roll out digital transformation just because everyone else is. There must be a need and a strategic focus. This all comes back to robust leadership and the role in which HR plays in bringing everyone together towards one common goal. HR is the glue that holds it together.

If you’d like to read about some of the challenges new HR leaders may face, read our free guide.

To find out how Natural HR can help you with your own digital transformation project so you can better engage and develop your team, book a demo today.

The post How digital transformation can unlock the true value of HR leadership appeared first on Natural HR.

1. What is the history behind the business?

This may seem like an obvious one, but it’s important to get to know the company you’re considering. Details like when it was set up and why, the experience of key stakeholders, and how many clients it has can all contribute to your decision and whether the organisation is right for you. So, make sure you find out this information off the bat.

2. What is unique about your software?

Finding out about the companies Unique Selling Point (USP) is crucial and will set it apart from others in the market.

Your HR software should be all about your business and its people, removing the burden of time-consuming administrative tasks. Therefore, functionality and support are essential USPs to pay attention to. You need to make sure the platform does exactly what you need it to do, when you need it, and ensure any issues that may arise are dealt with effectively. A customer-centric platform will stand out from the crowd.

3. What are your support capabilities?

Issues are inevitable but it’s how those problems are dealt with in the first instance that will count.

With larger vendors, customers can sometimes feel lost in the crowd. So, if support is important to your organisation, a smaller provider with a more dedicated assistance function might suit your needs better.

Support is a key benefit. You want to know your provider is going to be there when you need them.

4. What is the project implementation process?

You need to know the ins and outs of getting the software up and running.

Helpful things to note are whether there are any costs associated with this, how long the implementation process will take, and if any existing services will experience any downtime, if so, for how long. This can aid decision-making, especially if you’re looking for a quick and easy transition.

Research found that around 54% of software implementation projects fail due to poor management, therefore the best implementations will be well prepared. Know exactly who from your business should be involved and what role they play, agree to timelines, carefully defines your requirements, and communicate the changes clearly. This will set you up for success.

5. If any, what resources do we need to invest in to get the project started?

It’s important to know who needs to be involved on your end. This might include the legal team or senior management departments for sign-off, the IT department to prepare the current environment or perhaps existing employees who need to feed into the system in the future.

This means that everyone can be clear about their role in the project and can help with making it a smooth transition to the new system.

6. What modules do you cover?

This is where you need to assess your requirements as a business. Perhaps you need to be able to track time and attendance, manage recruitment and onboarding, or automate your workflows, or all the above. Knowing exactly what the provider offers, or could offer in the future, is crucial to your decision.

The best HR software is an all-in-one platform. This way you can focus on engaging, managing and paying your employees from a central location – cutting the time spent on tracking down information across multiple places.

7. How do you handle specific company requirements?

Once you know what products are on offer, it’s time to get into the details of how it’s dealt with inside the system. Is there a particular process that needs to be translated into that module? Maybe your company does something slightly different to others. Now is the time to find out if the software can perform in the way you’d like it to.

If you’re keen to use your software to bolster recruitment, find out about the provider’s interview feature or onboarding experience and how this works. Asking for specific examples of how these features have improved processes in real-life is also beneficial.

8. How do you integrate with other systems?

As with many organisations, there’s bound to be several other services and systems that you use on a daily basis and need to be linked with your HR function. Therefore, knowing in advance whether it’s possible to integrate them, and how this is done, is helpful before moving forward on your software journey.

9. What training do you provide?

A new system comes with new processes and nuances to learn. So, it’s best to find out if the vendor offers training and how they can accommodate this.

Try to look for a provider that offers in-person or virtual training during the implementation stage and video guides to follow on which staff can refer to regularly.

10. Are you mobile-native?

Depending on who is using the platform and where they need to access it – this could be a make-or-break answer.

If you find a provider that offers a mobile-friendly user interface, sectors who rely on contractors or flexible workers can access HR data on the move, promoting flexibility and accessibility throughout your organisation.

—

Your HR system will be personal to your company’s needs – with a different set of requirements and challenges for each team a vendor speaks to. So, tailor the demo to find out exactly what you need to know. This will only make your decision easier further down the line and enable the provider to show you what they are capable of.

Five benefits that make Natural HR the natural choice…

• HR software made by HR professionals for HR professionals
• Easy to use – anytime, anywhere
• Superior security for your HR data
• Industry-leading functionality from hire to retire
• World class support for full peace of mind.

To find out how Natural HR can help you better engage, manage, and pay your people, book your free HR software demo here.

The post 10 questions to ask in an HR software demo appeared first on Natural HR.

2020/1: some of the most turbulent years in this generation’s history. However, hopeful HR leaders began 2022 seeking calmer waters for their profession, their businesses and importantly, their people.

While the world of work has undoubtedly changed for good, the people profession has had to evolve too. As businesses the world over experienced seismic shifts in perspective and priorities, HR teams led the charge in championing the human element of work to effectively balance productivity with employee engagement, satisfaction and happiness at a time that saw us more separated than ever.

As how we work continues to change, attitudes towards employee health and wellbeing have evolved too – and its importance has only been heightened by the pandemic.

In the past three years alone, employee wellbeing has expanded beyond just the physical needs of employees. It now includes building a workplace and environment that is conducive to physical, emotional, financial and social wellbeing, career growth, and provides a sense of community and purpose.

We are delighted to welcome Alex Hind from Heka to the Natural HR blog who will be sharing his take on employee health and wellbeing. Alex is the Co-Founder of Heka, a wellbeing benefits platform that helps employees feel their best, so they can perform their best – at work & home.

Alex, what are the big HR trends that will change in the next 5 years?

Reshaping collaboration and innovation

“In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the team here at Heka, along with thousands of other businesses in the UK, became remote-first.

“In fact, it turned out 97% of employees didn’t want to return to the office on a full-time basis, which poses new challenges for HR in a post-pandemic world. HR will need to play a pivotal role in reshaping collaboration and innovation in the workplace.

“Remote and hybrid working environments have become talent attracting benefits, however, our ability to create and collaborate with one another has suffered with the absence of an office environment.

“In the next five years, it will be in HR’s best interest to build digital and physical solutions for collaboration and innovation; and to utilise online platforms for relationships and communication of teams.

“Those that fail to move with the changing trends of the workplace will suffer in how well they retain talent. Those who do adapt to the benefits landscape of the coming years will see their teams grow exponentially.”

Emphasis on health and wellbeing

“We’ve seen such an uptake in health, fitness and wellbeing incentives over the past couple of years. In fact, 87% of employees now consider health and wellness offerings when choosing an employer.

“What’s more, the pandemic brought mental health and wellbeing to the surface in many businesses, with many influential figures speaking up on the matter. There’s much more openness to mental health and wellbeing in the workplace now, but there’s definitely so much further we need to go.

“The pandemic has destigmatised mental health and created a path to better working environments that leaders must stay strictly to. This, along with the rise of remote and hybrid working models, and the evident benefits they have on work-life balance, shows us it’s just the beginning of much more to come.

“Finally, Gen Z and millennials are gradually becoming the largest segment in the workforce, and as more health-conscious and fitness-driven employees, HR will need to consider the kind of benefits and incentives that appeal to these individuals.”

Embracing HR technology

“HR is still adopting technology to improve everything from recruitment, onboarding processes, performance and much more. Yet, with stories such as Uber’s facial recognition discrimination, work needs to be done to improve the use of technology in HR.

“As an online employee benefits platform, we see forward-thinking companies adopting tech in new and inventive ways in the near future. Especially considering the rise of digital wellbeing in the workplace.

“HR departments have begun to recognise that excessive screen time can damage productivity and performance in team members. A staggering 75% of employees to one survey said they believed limiting their screen time would vastly improve their mental health at work.“It’s HR leaders who need to leverage these applications and systems to set themselves apart from other HR departments. Ultimately this will future-proof recruitment, retention and employee wellbeing.”

What sort of role do you believe health and wellbeing will take in the future?

“As we are already seeing, health and wellbeing are becoming a determining factor in an applicant choosing employer A or employer B. In just a matter of months of years, it will take a more centre stage approach in the future workplace for all businesses.

“It’s no secret that a lot of working environments and conditions are toxic, and they just aren’t sustainable. I think the tide has begun to turn, and more leaders are realising this.

“This shift in behaviour is evident in younger generations of workers also, who are more driven by healthier lifestyles and fitness regimes. It’s only a matter of time before outdated and irrelevant benefits and initiatives in the workplace are scrapped by HR.

“HR departments will also need to find ways to support healthier lifestyles in and outside the workplace. This means providing initiatives and incentives that occur outside working hours and at a time that suits employees.

“Healthy office snacks or a ‘lunch and learn’ just isn’t enough anymore. As mentioned above, employees are seeking healthy benefits that take place outside of their office and desk space.

“Ultimately, employers will need to give people control of their benefits and create a personalised experience that puts team members first in the equation.

What do the next 5 years hold for employees?

“We envision a healthier, happier future for employees across all industries. Companies are starting to take action on improving the health and wellbeing of their people, and continued research suggests there are great benefits too.

“With improved productivity, performance and retention, it’s clear that empowering people to improve themselves, as opposed to offering discounted high-street vouchers, does work. It feels like these kinds of benefits have begun to wear thin, and their appeal to employees doesn’t inspire or lift their mood.

“It’s in our everyday routines, sleeping patterns and stress levels that impact our abilities at work. If physical fitness can really improve our happiness, then by offering a robust wellbeing package, HR leaders can build great teams.

“This direction will transform the employee experience, as forward-thinking companies finally opt for a people-centric approach to business. We needn’t look far to find great examples of companies that rose to the top of their game and put job satisfaction high on their agenda.

“Netflix, Salesforce and Microsoft spring to mind. Three companies that offer various benefits for different people with different circumstances. Parents, those planning families, those relocating, those who want flexible working, those who value an onsite fitness centre, and so much more.”

About Alex Hind

Alex Hind is the CEO and co-founder of Heka, an employee wellbeing platform that provides thousands of personalised health and wellbeing experiences to teams across the UK. For more information, please visit: www.hekahappy.com

The post Employee health and wellbeing: a Q&A with the CEO and Co-Founder of Heka appeared first on Natural HR.

While the world of work changed for good, the people profession had to evolve too. As businesses the world over experienced seismic shifts in perspective and priorities, HR teams led the charge in championing the human element of work to effectively balance productivity with employee engagement, satisfaction and happiness at a time that saw us more separated than ever.

2021 was a whirlwind for HR. It’s fair to say that after the life-changing events of 2020, the world of work has been transformed forever.

So, what does the future of work really look like? In a series of fascinating blog posts, we talk to some of the profession’s leading experts, voices and figureheads as they share what they believe the future of work looks like.

Kicking off the series, we are delighted to welcome Director of Mast People Support, Kate Marston to the Natural HR blog who will be sharing her take on the future of work.

Kate recently joined our HR Expert webinar series where she showcased how you can manage investigations, grievances and disciplinaries in the workplace whilst reducing the risks. If you want to find out more, watch Kate’s webinar on investigations.

Natural HR: Kate, what do you believe are the big trends that will change HR in the next 5 years?

Kate Marston: “Does anyone else feel like the pace of change in the working world is gathering momentum? An area that I believe will continue to pick up pace is the shifting attitude to the work/home balance and the need for flexible working.

“Pre-pandemic, a lot of businesses talked about having flexible working policies, but the reality was, most didn’t really buy into it. The pandemic changed that and the businesses who fared the best were those in a position to respond effectively and mobilise their teams working from home quickly. Others played catch up but got there – but how much productivity did they lose by not being able to respond straight away?“Now workers know they can have a better life balance, there is a demand for a flexible approach – despite the ‘it will harm your career’ brigade. What really harms careers is still the lack of encouragement for fathers to play a role in the home life – whilst we have seen the introduction of shared parental leave, there is a hesitancy to take it up due to beliefs it will be career limiting – which in itself tells you everything you need to know about the impact motherhood can have on careers.

“But progress is coming and of note, in the UK a six-month pilot programme has been announced, which is being performed by 4 Day Week Global along with think tank Autonomy, the 4 Day Week UK campaign and researchers from Cambridge University, Oxford University and Boston College. The idea is that employees work for just 80% of their normal week at 100% of their pay to see what happens to productivity and employee welfare, the idea being that you will get full pay for 80% of the work but at 100% productivity.

“Another thing that I often think about is the pension gap and the rumour that state pensions won’t exist for people of my generation. Whilst women are negatively impacted by the pension gap (which may start to be rectified if flexible working becomes more acceptable), there is also the reality that anyone who hasn’t properly planned for their retirement, will need to work far longer than the current retirement aged generation.

“HR will need, at some stage, to think through the impacts of this on the working world and how organisations will need to adapt. Playing into this is the wellbeing of employees. I would love to start seeing the role of Chief Wellbeing Officer – does this exist already? We all need to look after ourselves to keep up – Chief Wellness Officer, we need you!”

NHR: What role will HR take in the future?

KM: “These changes in attitude and social norms will mean that HR will be adapting policies, helping to change the culture, and dealing with the multitude of employee relation issues that will come as a result – management behaviour and the odd bad egg will always be top of that list!

“I also think if more roles can be performed remotely, does this open up the talent pool and also mean employees are working from different parts of the world?  How this will work from a tax perspective will also give HR and other departments a bit of work to do.

“Those in HR who head up more culture-focused organisations will be ahead of the game with this, and hopefully paving the way for the others – sharing best practice and what works and what doesn’t is something which I think makes HR special – the community feel amongst those in the industry is really strong.

“An example of someone leading the way and sharing her knowledge as she goes is Leanne Gardiner who is the Transformation Director at InHealth. I went to a talk Leanne hosted recently. She has a HR background moved into the transformation space and was talking about Machine Learning and AI.

“Whilst initially people are fearful of robots taking over jobs – particularly in the HR world, where lots of the entry level roles involve processes could be automated, it presents an opportunity to redefine being in HR and we are already seeing HR slowly shifting to people and culture. I believe culture as well as transformation, will become an even bigger part of HR’s remit.

“From my side, I also see that compliance – and I’m talking about the ethics sort of compliance that includes anti-bribery and corruption, conflicts of interest and the like, still present a big risk to organisations.

“I am the Executive Director at Women in Ethics and Compliance Global and I see so many discussions within this community where the Compliance Officers that are switched on are recognising that HR teams are instrumental to helping shaping the compliance culture. So many recognise this and partner closely with the HR team.

“Will we see the traditional HR roles shift to culture and ethics? I hope so.”

If you’d like to hear more from Kate, listen to her webinar on HR Investigations for free here.

About Kate Marston:

Mast People Support was set up in 2020 by Kate Marston. Kate is a former Detective Sergeant from the Metropolitan Police who went on to lead the investigations function at a FTSE 100 luxury brand.

She is CIPD accredited and is in a fairly unique position when it comes to the support she can offer to organisations. She has a broad wealth of experience in law enforcement, retail, manufacturing, supply chain and corporate environments.

Kate is on the board of Women in Ethics and Compliance, an accredited platinum member of HR Independents and a member of the Association of Corporate Investigators. She is part of an initiative called 3markable and is a Mentor for The Girl’s Network.

Website: www.mastpeoplesupport.co.uk

The post Ask an expert: The future of work according to Kate Marston appeared first on Natural HR.

And yet, the events of the last two years have turned the people profession on its head. As HR and leaders navigated the overnight transition to remote work, digitisation of the department was taken off the back burner and brought to the force.

In this digital age, HR departments are planning for the future of the profession while overseeing the development of their workforce with both the capabilities of their tech and employees at the forefront of their mind.

This article takes a look at just some of the key predictions for tomorrow’s HR departments and how leaders can start preparing for the future of HR, today.

Becoming truly data-driven

Data has always been key to HR success. Whether tracking HR KPIs such as employee attrition, time to hire, absence rate or your internal vs. external hiring ratio, these indicators of long-term performance demonstrate how effectively HR is achieving its objectives.

The future of HR will have data analysis at its core. But the analysis will be taken care of by high-powered tech that can analyse lines of data in a matter of seconds. The end results? Actionable conclusions that are easy to digest, present and implement.

Not only will HR data analytics make the process of becoming truly data-driven a breeze, but it will also free up HR leaders to focus on what matters most: their people.

What can you do today?

Powerful HR analytics software is already available and helps businesses to collect, process and analyse data from across your workforce. With this software, HR leaders can make strategic decisions based on hard evidence, rather than a gut feeling.

This software will only get more advanced in years to come, so becoming an early adopter will only put you, and your people, on the best possible footing for the future of work. 

Focus on employee experience

Improving employee experience has always been one of HR’s priorities, but it’s become one of the most important factors in talent retention and attraction.

For the most part, HR departments already have the means and data available to evaluate and improve employee experience. Surveys, exit interview data, suggestions and engagement software all help to paint a picture of the current state of your employee experience and inform recommendations to improve it.

But, in the not-too-distant future, the improvements being made to employee experience will be done so through tech.

If a lack of career development opportunities is a problem area, consider choosing a learning management system to create clear development pathways for your people. Similarly, employees may be praised through recognition software, health and wellness initiatives may be available through an online platform and feedback may be gathered from online one-click pulse buttons.

The ability to transform the employee experience through technology will become a key tool in every HR department’s arsenal.

What can you do today?

Start looking at your employee experience in detail to understand where improvements could be made. Does your recognition process need overhauling from dated Employee of the Month awards? Could your Employee Assistance Programme be modernised to account for the changing world of work? Do employee benefits still meet your employees’ needs?

Additionally, take a look at your existing HR tech stack and explore the full suite of features available. Often, features that could bolster your employee experience quickly and effectively may have been overlooked. Full-suite HR software such as Natural HR incorporates a number of handy tools to improve and evaluate employee experience as standard, including pulse surveys, custom employee engagement surveys, recognition, benefit statements and much more. 

Ensure cybersecurity

As the world of work becomes more dispersed than ever before, cybersecurity will take centre stage in every business – if it hasn’t already. With employees relying on home networks and in some cases, their own devices, to do their job, the challenges of the typical working environment have changed significantly.

With remote or hybrid working set to continue for the foreseeable future, new polices and safety measures will need to be introduced to ensure data security, confidentiality and employee privacy. As candidate pools become truly global, HR will need to ensure that cybersecurity training is built into employee onboarding and refresher training is offered periodically.

Additionally, as data protection regulations evolve, so too must an organisation’s security process and policies. The GDPR is just one example of how legislation can dramatically change individual perception on personal data and business must be prepared for future evolutions of data protection law.

What can you do today?

Of course, companies can put precautions in place to reduce the risk of a cyberattack including installing security software on company devices, having a robust firewall to protect networks from unauthorised access and taking regular back-ups of data.

Consider electing a cybersecurity champion (or champions!) too. This person doesn’t have to be in your IT team, but individuals who will raise employee cyber-awareness within your business. Better yet, enlist the help of a group of employees from across your business and across departments to spearhead internal cyber security awareness.

By holding regular cybersecurity awareness training sessions with employees, this will ensure they are helping, not hindering your cybersecurity efforts. This training should cover everything from managing and sharing sensitive data to how generate stronger passwords and how to report any potentially harmful cybersecurity incidents.

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Whether it’s to buy Christmas presents for the family, go to their children’s school play, or they simply want to use up the remainder of their annual leave, almost everyone within a business wants some time off during the Christmas period.

Naturally, those within HR need to manage these multiple requests so that during the festive period, your company can still operate, even with the increase in annual leave requests. In this blog post, we’re going to look at the most straightforward ways HR teams can ensure that dissatisfaction doesn’t set in within your employees when it comes to spreading the festive cheer of holiday leave.

Before we start, let’s look at the law:

Under the Working Time Regulations, all employees are entitled to a minimum of 5.6 weeks of holiday in each annual leave year. Provided the employer does not ultimately prevent an employee from taking this leave over the year, the employer must determine the rules regarding when leave can be taken.

Some employers will specify set periods of shut down where leave must be taken, such as Christmas, whether in relation to all or part of their employees’ annual leave entitlement. Under regulations, this is perfectly permissible provided the employer gives twice the length of the leave period to be taken as notice to the employee.

Moving on, let’s look at the seven best examples of how to ensure you have a stress-free December when it comes to booking holiday for your employees:

Make sure you start with a company holiday policy:

A bespoke annual leave policy that clearly states your company’s approach to leave over the festive period will allow you to clearly, and easily engage workplace expectations over the festive period.

Within the policy, make sure you:

• Establish your company-wide approach to annual leave.
• State what restrictions are in place and why.
• Explain what deadlines there are for holiday leave.
• Explain what, if any, shutdown days you will be operating.
• Explain what the carry-over policy is for your company, if applicable.

Be fair to everyone, and implement a first-come, first-served basis for holiday requests:

Instead of having to juggle multiple requests at once, a simple solution would be to offer the available annual leave spaces on a first-come, first-served basis as this will be the fairest way to manage the situation. If you employ a lot of parents, for example, you’ll likely see many of them requesting annual leave to coincide with the school holidays, so this approach will give your HR team a fair and straightforward policy to implement.

If you adopt this approach, make sure you indicate this in your holiday policy, so all your staff know they need to request leave dates as soon as possible.

If you’re struggling to get to grips with the – at times- head-ache-inducing calculations when calculating holiday pay, why not try our part-time and zero-hour contract worker holiday entitlement calculators?

Be fair but firm (and be underpinned by policy):

Aside from full shutdown days, you’re always going to need a minimum number of employees working at a given time to be able to function as a business. If this is the case, you could set limits on how many people can be on holiday from a certain department at any time, so you can be sure you’ll always be adequately resourced.

Again, you must make your staff aware that this is the case and that they may need to work their annual leave dates around their colleagues.

Be clear on any time frames where no leave will be permitted:

If you have a particularly busy period – such as Christmas – when you need an entire workforce, you can restrict staff from booking leave during this time. You may also want to consider a restriction in the first week of January so that all your teams can catch up with work missed due to the increased amount of annual leave taken in the previous weeks.

As with the previous points, make sure your employees are aware that this is your approach in your policy.

Specify any days when a holiday must be taken:

Alternatively, perhaps your business shuts down on public holidays, such as Christmas Day as well as New Year’s Day, and all your staff will be required to take those days off due to the business being shut. 

If that’s the case, you’ll want to use your holiday policy to indicate to staff that they will need to reserve some of their annual leave allowances during this period.

Be clear about what the company is doing over the Christmas period:

Make sure everyone is clear about exactly when and how the business will be operating over the Christmas period. Are you going to finish early on Christmas Eve, or will everyone be expected to work a full day? Will it be business as usual over the period between Christmas and New Year or just a skeleton service?

If you are closing down entirely over Christmas and New Year, are these being given as additional holiday days in addition to people’s usual entitlement, or will they be expected to take them out of their annual leave? If everyone knows the score, there is less potential for confusion within your workforce.

Make sure you’re following the law:

Refusing holiday requests, changing leave that has already been approved or insisting employees take a holiday at a time that suits your organisation can easily create tension and could adversely impact the working culture of your organisation.

As an HR professional, you must ensure your organisation follows the rules. For example, if your business decides to close over Christmas and you need your employees to take time off, you should tell them at least twice as many days in advance the number of days you want them to take off.

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The post Everybody wants to book time off simultaneously over the Christmas period – what should HR teams do? appeared first on Natural HR.