After years of workplace disruption, there’s no denying the impact that business has on employees, and employees have on business. The trends that will dominate 2023 are not new but have become irreversible since the pandemic. Employee well-being, remote work, and employee upskilling and experience were at the forefront of the past few years, but we’ve also seen the start of layoffs and hiring freezes, amid high inflation and ongoing geopolitical disruptions. All the while, companies are struggling to hire and keep talented employees. Most notably, in the ever-evolving and growing IT labor market, where tens of thousands of positions remain unfilled. 

Corporations and even smaller organizations will have to cater to new expectations in the wake of the post-pandemic normal and the predicted recession. 

The new status quo is not static, yet 2023 could be the year the world starts to turn at a more regular rhythm. There is debate about a shift of power, and it is more probable that the scales will become balanced when it comes to talented knowledge workers. Only a good salary still won’t be enough. With financial difficulties on both sides, employers will have to get creative in how they retain and attract the best people. Especially, when it comes to the IT sector.

So let’s get creative! We mixed up some of the tech and HR trends you should invest in this year.

Retention over recruitment

We’ve talked about this before, but it is still one of the most effective strategies companies can use. Employee training and development are critical for more than one reason. As talent shortage and skills gap within organizations remains, up- and reskilling the existing workforce will help organizations to fill new positions. Familiarity with the domain will result in shorter onboarding plus non-vertical career development opportunities for employees. A recent survey shows that the latter is especially relevant to Millennials and Gen Z workers, as 83% said that improving their skills is their number one priority this year. The same study found that 74% of employees are willing to leave their current job due to a lack of skill-building and career-mobility options. From building an in-house academy to hiring a company to reskill employees, there are multiple options for an organization to capitalize on its existing workforce.

Bring the tech

Digitalization is not just for big corporations but for smaller organizations too. “To enhance their organization’s financial position during times of economic turbulence, CIOs and IT executives must look beyond cost savings to new forms of operational excellence while continuing to accelerate digital transformation,” says Gartner’s VP Analyst, Frances Karamouzis. That means optimizing IT systems for more reliability, improving data-driven decision-making, scaling vertical offerings, increasing the pace of product delivery, and enabling connectivity everywhere. Automation, AI, and digital employee experience (DEX) management will gain even more ground than previously.

A Focus on Flexibility and wellbeing

Companies have been focusing more and more on work-life balance and employee mental health to prevent burnout and enhance employee experience. According to research by Glassdoor and Indeed, 90% of people believe how we feel at work matters, yet only 49% feel that their organization focuses on measuring and improving wellbeing. Focusing on flexibility and wellbeing can have significant payoffs. Efforts to prioritize employees’ happiness and health can include providing additional employee benefits, greater flexibility – including shifting away from a 5-day-a-week, 9-5 workweek – and an overall positive workplace experience.

More and more cloud infrastructures

As cloud computing gains popularity, the industry will have a significant market increase. According to a recent report by ReportLinker, the global cloud computing market size is expected to reach $1.1 trillion by 2028, with a market growth of 15% CAGR during this forecast period. Software service vendors are providing new, improved, and innovative technological solutions, low-code, and no-code cloud services amongst the most popular technologies. As Chris Wanstrath, the former CEO of the code-sharing repository Github, put it, “The future of coding is no coding at all.”

Perks, bonuses, and alternative compensation

This economic uncertainty will make bonuses, alternative perks, and L&D more popular. Even though salary increases can’t keep up with inflation, there is still a lot that employers can provide. From private healthcare to one-time retention bonuses or training programs, there’s a great variety of alternative compensations that will benefit employees without driving organizations to the ground financially. Also, while CSR, ESG, and purpose initiatives are usually the first to cut during an economic downturn, studies show that placing further emphasis on the company’s social impact or mission is a deciding factor not just for employees but to customers and investors too.

People analytics - turn valuable people data into actionable insights

Organizations are transforming their human resources departments to leverage data analytics in direct sourcing and talent acquisition. HR workers can also use data to uncover why employees leave their organizations, stem turnover, or even increase productivity with workflow management. “People analytics” or insights derived from data related to workforce talent, are helping employers uncover important information about organization-wide performance and employees’ individual needs.

Hybrid work will win the day

The demand for remote work increased since the pandemic, but as Covid-19 quiets, companies started to call back their employees to offices. Surveys say that the opportunity for remote work is linked to employee happiness, but there are other factors organizations need to take into account. While we will never go back to pre-pandemic office attendance, returning to the office for social connections, engagement and collaboration will boost hybrid working solutions. To build community in a hybrid office culture, leaders need to learn more soft skills, such as agility, empathy, and transparency. Most importantly, they will need to acquire digital soft skills.

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