Our world, our technology and our organizations are constantly evolving, and human resources is no exception.  In fact, in some organizations, even the term Human Resources is becoming obsolete as it could imply people are a resource to be used.  Alternate terms such as Talent Management, Employee Experience, Employee Success, and People Operations are beginning to pop up at various organizations.  If you’re looking to keep up with the evolving world, here are some trends to be on the lookout for in 2020:

#1   New Work

New work is a term that describes a set of interconnected trends and developments where people are subscribing to the idea that it doesn’t matter what degree you have, what matters is the end result; your values and engagement.  For most companies, change is necessary and finding employees who are capable of inspiring change is a vital asset. 

The group most responsible for driving this change are the, ever contentious, Millenials.  Born in the digital age, millennials are tech-savvy and value digitalization. They bring new ideas and workflows into organizations.  They value work-life balance and tend to prefer jobs with with flexible working arrangements such as remote work or flex hours.  They value collaboration, transparency and feedback and have strong values, favoring work that benefits the greater good or positive societal impact.

#2   Alternative Organizational Structure

With new work come new forms of leadership, specifically in the forms of  Holocracy, Gig economy and Teal organization.

Holocracy is an organizational structure where power is distributed equally, rather than the traditional top-down. This structure is appealing to employees as it gives them the freedom to self-manage, without straying from the organization’s purpose, and eliminates problems like uneven power dynamics and guesswork.

Gig economy is a type of labor market that favors short-term contracts and freelancing over permanent contracts, allowing employees a high degree of flexibility and the freedom to pick and choose jobs or a specific amount of work to perform.

Teal organization is a structure that revolves around three core values: self-management, wholeness and evolutionary purpose.  This means that hierarchies are removed and employees are empowered to be themselves while working together toward a common goal without competition.

#3   Employee Focus

The future is leaning toward a greater focus on employee experience and employee engagement. Understanding and developing your employee’s total experience has been known to yield results such as a reduction in sick time and employee retention. 

Employee engagement is also important in retention, as well as overall job performance.  If employees spend their workday feeling dissatisfied, frustrated and stressed, their performance will suffer. However, when employees feel their relationship with their company is meaningful, they’re more motivated at work and that engagement is felt by the customers they serve.

Knowing about the trends and navigating them doesn’t necessarily have to mean jumping in with both feet. Change takes time and every organization is different. And while these trends may be in the future for some organizations, we know they’re not the right fit for everyone.  There are as many tactics and variations on structure as there are different kinds of people.