Today’s post comes to us from Brandon Bielich, managing editor of The Workforce Institute, and it features an interview with advisory board member Laurie Ruettimann.

Welcome to The Workforce Institute’s new feature, Get to Know, designed to help our readers get better acquainted with our advisory board of industry experts. To premiere our series, we include a conversation with Laurie Ruettimann. You’ll learn how she went from working in HR surrounded by candy to hosting the popular Punk Rock HR podcast. Plus, find out Laurie’s non-HR dream job. Without further ado, here’s Laurie!

The Workforce Institute: What made you first get into HR?
Laurie Ruettimann: I had a lot of student debt and learned quickly that I couldn’t afford law school. I was lucky enough to find a paid HR internship in my junior year of college at a candy factory in St. Louis, down by the Mississippi River, that overlooked a women’s minimum-security prison. My first job in HR was to be in charge of the fax machine. After that, I learned how to recruit and hire hourly workers to make licorice. Then, I was taught how to handle union grievances and workers’ compensation issues. Instead of running away from the train wreck of the modern hourly workplace, I enjoyed running toward it and fixing problems. In fact, I found HR to be addictive [like candy]!

WFI: Tell us a time when you were starting out and someone mentored you.
Laurie: I worked at a large pharmaceutical company, and I was mentored by someone who considered themselves to be a slacker. They had a great professional reputation and worked hard to deliver right-first-time solutions, but never forgot that the job fueled their life outside of work. In fact, they prioritized family over work, which made them work harder when they were on the job. When they were out on PTO, they were off. Seeing someone set boundaries and have honest conversations about limits was inspiring. When I asked them how they did it, they said it happened by being rigorously honest with themselves and developing personal relationships at work.

WFI: What was one of the biggest challenges you faced in your career? How did you overcome it?
Laurie: I have a background in writing, so I had to learn how to speak the language of the business. No, I didn’t take a class on corporate jargon. But I did take an accounting course for non-financial professionals. Also, I took a SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management)-sponsored course on communicating at the executive level. What did I learn? Slow down, use fewer words, and speak less. I was too eager to prove myself, thereby undermining my own credibility. Sometimes silence is power.

WFI: What’s a common misconception about HR?
Laurie: Many people think HR is full of followers and people who are rules-based and focused on details. HR is full of dreamers who want you to be happy, have a doughnut, and take a nap.

WFI: What excites you to stay in HR, or what made you leave?
Laurie: HR excites me because it sits at the intersection of work, power, politics, and money. Everything is an HR issue, which is tremendously thrilling and nerdy at the same time. I left my job as an HR practitioner in 2008 because I was terrible at corporate politics, which is too bad, because I loved the work.

WFI: What excites you about the future of HR?
Laurie: I’m excited about the intersection of institutional HR knowledge and technology. If we can take smart and passionate people and give them the right tools to be more productive and efficient, you’ve got a real opportunity to create organizations that are focused on issues that matter, like employee experience, diversity, inclusion, and belonging.

WFI: What skills have you prioritized that have helped you succeed? Do you think these will become more or less important in coming years?
Laurie: It’s very trendy to talk about skills-based learning initiatives and training. What does that mean? Companies are now focused on teaching the workforce how to do something specific, which can be translated immediately. All of that is fine, but the best skill I’ve learned is patience with myself and others. I want things to change, and I want it now. But the first draft of any idea or initiative is usually the worst draft. The first time I try something new is often ridiculous and embarrassing. But if I slow down and give myself permission to ease into a new task or idea, I learn and implement my new skills more effectively.

WFI: In an alternate universe, where you have infinite skills, what is your dream job?
Laurie: I’d be the weather person on a national morning TV show.

WFI: What is your biggest piece of advice for professionals starting out or looking to grow in their careers?
Laurie: My biggest piece of advice is that career satisfaction is a lagging indicator of life satisfaction. Happiness comes from taking a feeling deep inside and turning it into action. And it usually has nothing to do with work. Be someone with significant ideas — or a vibrant personal life with lots of love and activity — and take that awesome energy into your job.


Did you know? Besides being a podcast host, Laurie is also a bestselling author. Check out her latest book, “Betting on You: How to Put Yourself First and (Finally) Take Control of Your Career.”

Today’s post comes to us from The Workforce Institute advisory board member David Creelman, CEO of Creelman Research.

The latest artificial intelligence (AI) tools, called large language models, are causing a stir. Consider the following chat:

Q: Are remote workers less productive?
A: It is difficult to say whether or not remote workers are less productive, as productivity can be affected by many different factors. Some studies have suggested that remote workers may be more productive, while others have found no difference in productivity between remote and in-office workers. It is important to keep in mind that everyone is different and what works for one person may not work for another. It is also important to have a clear understanding of the goals and expectations for a given task, and to provide the necessary support and resources to help remote workers be successful.

That answer is not from an HR manager — it’s from an experimental chat application. For a slightly longer conversation with a large language model, check out my brief interview with Lex.

What HR Leaders Should Do

HR leaders should take an interest in these AI tools because, in time, they will inevitably have an impact on HR and, more importantly, will have an impact on many tasks throughout the organization. A leader doesn’t need to have deep expertise in AI, just a reasonable intuition of what AI can and cannot do.

Developing an intuition for what these tools can do is challenging. The example above might lead you to think these tools have near-human levels of intelligence. Yet, these tools can be astonishingly stupid. There is a famous case of an AI large language model waxing eloquently about why fusilli is useful in heart surgery. It makes these stupid mistakes because, while it’s good with words, it has no real-world understanding of fusilli, or hearts, or surgery.

If you ask how intelligent an AI application is on, say, the scale of an average four-year-old to a certified genius, then you are on the wrong track. The sort of intelligence found in AI is of a fundamentally different nature than that found in humans. It will outperform the genius on some queries, while falling far below the capability of a young child on others.

The best way to think about AI is in terms of its capabilities. The question isn’t whether AI is intelligent, but what AI can do for us.

The Useful Capabilities of Large Language Models

You can think of a large language model as having the capability to read through all the material on the internet and summarize relevant material in a (usually) coherent way. In today’s world, you search for articles on a topic, read through a few that look relevant, then summarize the relevant material yourself. The new AI applications can save time by taking a step out of that manual process. Occasionally, the AI will spout nonsense, but that’s no different from having to weed out poor articles from the ones you find with a manual search.

An example of this process is a tool called Elicit.org. It scans the academic literature in response to your question and summarizes the relevant abstracts. You could do the same thing “manually” with Google Scholar, though Elicit.org is faster. It can even give you a list of studies that critique the findings of the one you are focusing on. It’s good to check before you implement a program based on research that has since been found to be flawed.

What to Do Next

Given the obvious power of these new AI tools, you need to keep abreast of them. Perhaps more than anything, you want to have a good feel for their limitations, so that you aren’t fooled by some slick presentation spouting the magical properties of AI.

You don’t need to do a deep dive. Just take a little time here and there to play with the tools with an eye to understanding an AI platform’s capabilities. Do get vendors in to show off their AI tools, and then be sure to push them hard enough that you understand their abilities and limitations.

The capabilities of these new large language models have surprised even AI specialists. No doubt more surprises lie ahead. Be prepared.

Today’s post comes to us from Brandon Bielich, managing editor of The Workforce Institute.

Here we are at the beginning of another year, and that means it’s time for The Workforce Institute’s annual list of Workplace Predictions.

Each year, our advisory board of experts convenes to discuss the most pressing workplace challenges impacting not just HR, but organizations and their people. Together, they strive to forecast what’s ahead in the coming year — to help companies effectively prepare, navigate change, and better serve their employees and customers.

While traditional work has changed in many ways over the past few years, mainly due to the pandemic, one constant has remained: The most compassionate and caring companies stand to benefit the most through, maybe even despite, times of uncertainty. There are several outside factors currently affecting employees, from mental health to natural disasters to social unrest to the economy, and companies can play an influential role in improving work and life for their people.

As workers and companies start to find their working rhythm in 2023, respect for all people — and valuing the differences and dynamics that come with each individual person — will become key to recruiting and retaining top talent, building customer relationships, and fostering business success.

With that in mind, here are five workplace predictions for 2023:

ROI of DEI&B: Companies that invest in DEI&B programs during tough times will see better business results, while those who cut fall behind. In 2022, The Workforce Institute predicted that corporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) programs would emerge as a make-or-break asset for business stability and growth. As a continuation of that prediction, DEI&B as a business imperative will reach the next level this year. Many leaders have pledged to do more to improve DEI&B at their organization, or to launch a program altogether, and employees and customers increasingly prefer to work for or do business with companies wholly committed to meaningful DEI&B. Equity in its many forms, from recruiting to wages to opportunity, is better for all people. In 2023, we will see more proof that DEI&B is also better for the bottom line. Organizations that double down on DEI&B — even in the hardest of times, such as during a recession — see better returns on their investment, and a greater sense of belonging for people will help boost retention and engagement, as the unending war for talent wages on.

Metrics That Matter: The best leaders will “show their work” to gain greater buy-in from employees, especially with returning to the office and making difficult decisions. Schoolchildren are often asked to “show the work” when solving problems. In the year ahead, businesses and leaders who do the same by showing the data and metrics behind their decisions will foster greater loyalty, trust, and productivity from their people. Even if employees don’t always like or agree with the decisions made, the best leaders will be celebrated for providing greater transparency into the why behind decisions and company strategy. This will be key for tackling 2023’s challenges, including encouraging employees back to the workplace after a rise in, and increased preference for, remote and hybrid work schedules.

A Heroes’ Exit? Workers who hold on to service-oriented, essential roles — such as HR, healthcare workers, retail, and teachers — will be rewarded as many of their peers search for new careers. Organizations have asked a lot of people on the frontlines these past three years. Those workers who’ve continued to show up throughout the most trying of times will consider leaving, creating a second wave of the Great Resignation in their wake. Likewise, HR professionals have carried additional responsibilities as more and more employees have left, and many have burned out and grown weary of the original reason they joined HR in the first place — to help people. Those who decide to stay could be rewarded for their loyalty, in the form of promotions and wage increases. Organizations need to start planning now for what happens when more employees, including HR, leave en masse. This includes cross-training new and existing employees, reskilling talent, diversifying recruiting efforts, and keeping an open mind about the transferability of skills.

People-Leader Paradox: Middle management roles become increasingly valuable to the organization, though the job will be less valued and sought-after by many workers. Being a middle manager is one of the hardest roles in the workplace today — and many workers no longer want to take on the added stress and strain of managing people. Some people leaders will even take demotions and move back to individual contributor roles with a pay cut, if it means better mental health and less overall responsibility. In 2023, capable and passionate managers will be in high demand, as organizations scramble to fill leadership vacancies amid rising disinterest in the role. This will create a “people-leader paradox,” as organizational demand for leaders increases and employees’ desire for the role decreases.

Compliance Correction: The hidden costs and compliance complexities of remote and hybrid work will have major financial ramifications on both organizations and their employees. After mostly flying under the radar since 2020, companies and their people will start to feel the financial impacts of previously unforeseen costs, legalities, tax implications, and compliance requirements around the world that come with a more flexible, remote, and hybrid workforce (e.g., people working in different countries than their employers, working part time in one location for months at a time). Employees, too, will have to pay closer attention to what they owe the governments in the countries, states, and counties where they live and work, lest they end up paying more taxes than originally expected. Organizations and their employees will need to consider the short- and long-term financial implications of their workplace policies and programs.


There’s obviously a lot to unpack here. The Workforce Institute advisory board will continue to explore these workplace predictions in full as we progress into the new year, as well as share insightful perspectives and best practices for addressing these challenges head-on.

On behalf of The Workforce Institute, here’s to a productive, rewarding, and fulfilling 2023!

This month for The Workforce Institute Weigh-In, members of our advisory board share their gratitude for HR professionals, in honor of Thanksgiving in the United States.

The Workforce Institute Weigh-In for November 2022: Why are you thankful for HR?

“I am thankful for HR because, when positioned correctly, it is the guardian of tone and culture — irrespective of the short-term imperatives for an organisation. Thus, it can hold firm and steer the people agenda in support of the business strategy, at moments when P&L [profit and loss] holders might be tempted to deprioritize the employee experience in exchange for short-term results.” — Natalie Bickford, chief people officer, Sanofi

“I’m thankful for the great HR folks who don’t make headlines. HR is a lot like the CIA. When they do good work for our people and organizations, you never hear about it. But when they screw up — don’t handle a situation well or fail to stand up for employees — they cause harm that puts a negative spotlight on everyone. So, I’m thankful for the HR people doing the good work, focusing on developing and supporting their people, and making their organizations the best they can.” — Kate Bischoff, employment attorney, k8bisch, LLC

“I’m thankful because HR keeps an eye on the people issues that other leaders may overlook due to their focus on their own areas of expertise.” — David Creelman, CEO, Creelman Research

“My job affords me the opportunity to work with HR professionals from different industries far and wide, and what I’ve learned about the amazing people that make up this profession is nothing short of awe-inspiring at times, especially in the last few years. Thank you, HR, for being the glue that has held workplaces — and people — together through one of the toughest times in history.” — Julie Develin, co-host, The People Purpose Podcast

“With mass layoffs happening at so many companies just before the holiday season, this is a challenging season for HR. The analysis, decisions, communication, and follow-up that accompany ending someone’s employment are heavy burdens to carry. HR professionals do much of the lifting on this while grappling with their own survivors’ guilt and helping others navigate the workplace without their colleagues and friends who were let go. It isn’t joyful and it doesn’t feel good. So be kind and check on your HR friends, because many of us are struggling. I am thankful for kind and caring HR professionals who see the humanity in each of the employees and do their best to meet each person at the point of their individual need. I am thankful for HR professionals who challenge their own bias and push to make workplaces more inclusive and safer for those typically ignored and/or intentionally left out. I am thankful for HR professionals who keep fighting against the negative stereotypes and misconceptions of our profession. I will continue to see fully the difficult place that HR occupies and navigates in business. I will continue to advocate for HR to have a clear, loud voice in business. I will continue to do my best to represent well, as part of the spectrum of the HR profession. And I am thankful for the privilege to do this work.” — Sarah Morgan, CEO, BuzzARooney, LLC

“I’m thankful for HR because it is the intersection of many ways that businesses add value to their people. We’re employee safety, training, development, compensation, and so much more!” — Joey V. Price, co-host, While We Were Working podcast

“For me, the opportunity to write about HR and organize interviews with HR people is a gift. This team has given me helpful tips and ready-to-use examples about how to help develop people — not only in my country, but also in different cultures and environments. HR gave me the opportunity to create, to define my path on positive psychology, for example. HR for me is a synonym of grit, a way to implement objectives that I can meet with passion and perseverance for long-term and meaningful goals, related with career, talent, people, with a book, and with international collaboration.” — Ivonne Vargas, award-winning journalist and bestselling author, “¡Contrátame!” (Hire Me!)

To hear more reasons why we’re thankful for HR, listen to the latest episode of the People Purpose Podcast, brought to you by The Workforce Institute!

Today's post comes to us from Workforce Institute board member David Creelman.

If you were building an HR department from scratch, what things would you not do that you are currently doing now? To make this a bit more focused, let's imagine that you are building it from scratch, but you only have 70% of the existing headcount. What 30% of tasks or activities would you cut?

This kind of exercise is most useful if you do it yourself, rather than just read my opinion, however, given that this is an article, I'm going to have to tell you the approach I would consider taking.

Automate everything

If I were building from scratch, I'd be tempted to adopt the mantra that all tasks must be automated. For every process we designed, whether it be recruitment, training, or benefits, the goal would be to create an automated process and if a task couldn't be automated, we'd see if we could remove it from the design.

This is the inverse of how we normally do things. We usually decide on the process we want and then see if parts can be automated. Here automation is prioritized. The philosophy parallels the "mobile-first" approach to user interfaces. Companies no longer design for a big-screen then see if they can adapt it to mobile, they design for the small mobile screen in the first place.

Lean on outsourcers and gig workers

If I use outsourcers I'll need to cut my headcount even more to pay for it, yet I believe that in many cases outsourcers do more for less. An obvious case is recruitment process outsourcing (RPO).  The recruiting world is undergoing such rapid evolution that it's hard to see how an average in-house team could match the skills and technology found in a good RPO.

I'd also put aside part of my budget to allow my HR team to use gig workers. Instead of having one of my precious few staff spending an afternoon making a pretty slide deck, I'd encourage them to spend $100 on a gig worker to do that. I'd encourage them to develop their skills in using gig workers so that they could multiply their effectiveness.

Invest in analytics and business savvy

I'd want to cut even more tasks than the 30% suggested in this scenario because I'd want to invest in some new things we weren't doing before. Let's hope the automation, minimization, and outsourcing tactics will reduce the number of tasks so effectively that we'd have some budget left over. The most important new tasks that I'd want to invest in are having a much more analytics-savvy and business-savvy HR team. To encourage business-savvy, I might ask the team to go to (or attend virtually) more industry-focused conferences. Furthermore, I'd only hire HR pros who had spent at least a couple of years in a non-HR function.

Conclusion

It's much harder to transform an existing HR function than to imagine what one would do if starting from scratch. Nonetheless, this kind of exercise may open up your eyes to see a vision of what HR could be even in the face of fewer resources. This wholesale reimaging is certainly more inspiring than thinking about hundreds of small cuts one might need to make to achieve a budget reduction target.

Today's post comes to us from Workforce Institute board member Martin Armstrong.

Times are changing, and so is the role of the HR Business Partner (HRBP). When business executives think of HR, they typically think of HRBPs being responsible for creating a great place to work through employee engagement programs, establishing an open-door policy, dealing with 20% of the employee population who don't follow guidelines, processing HR transactions, managing employee relations issues, recruiting, training, learning and development, and administering benefits and compensation plans.

From a historical standpoint, the role of the HRBP was best captured in Dave Ulrich's 1997 book, “Human Resource Champions.” The HR Model that Ulrich developed was designed to help organize HR into four roles: Strategic Partner, Change Agent, Administrative Expert and Employee Champion. 

Twenty-two years later, Ulrich was interviewed in August of 2019 by David Green of myHRfuture and suggested that “the most important thing that HR can give an employee is a company that wins in the marketplace.”

While HR professionals may possess traditional and trending HR skillsets such as people analytics, strategic workforce planning, design thinking, consulting, and stakeholder/change management, Ulrich added, “it's not just about the skill you've got, it's how those skills will drive outcomes that make a difference in what matters.”

Companies that win in the marketplace demonstrate that they have the ability to successfully execute a business strategy, have a keen understanding of their industry, are financially disciplined, and capitalize on organizational capabilities that drive results.

To this end, business unit executives are likely to extend to HR an invitation to a business discussion, but only if the executive believes that HR understands the business, and in addition, proactively contributes to solving business challenges that are needed for the company to win in the marketplace.

HRBPs can maintain a seat at the table by using business acumen

In August 2019, Josh Bersin wrote an article in Human Resource Executive titled “8 Skills HR Business Partners Need for Success.” Among the eight skills described, his article listed two critically important individual competencies: Digital Acumen and Business-Language Knowledge.

Bersin describes digital acumen as “having the ability to analyze and interpret data, and to use it to help business leaders better understand workforce needs and incorporate results into workforce strategy and planning.” With respect to Business-Language Knowledge, Bersin argues that “to ensure credibility, HRBP's need to speak “in business” as this derives from knowing the details of the business they are serving and understanding its jargon and acronyms.”

Senior HR executives agree - HR isn't about HR, it's about business. The question then becomes, how can HRBPs increase their business acumen competency? According to Peter Cappelli, the Director of The Wharton School's Center for Human Resources, there are three tips that HR professionals can consider to sharpen their business acumen:

  1. Recognize that good HR is about making choices - based on a sound understanding of a company's business strategy, knowing what to do and when is the first step to figuring out different ways companies can compete and succeed.
  2. Learn enough finance to understand the factors that drive shareholder value - becoming fluent in the language of numbers and balance sheets will help HR articulate how HR metrics can lead to improved performance and a stronger bottom line.
  3. Choose your continuing education options wisely - beware of HR courses that use outdated curricula that don't reflect the issues of today. Spend time researching continuing education content that will increase your HR and business acumen.

HRBPs can also turn Business Intelligence into HR Business Intelligence by converting the massive amounts of employee data into meaningful and useful information that business units may use to make informed decisions that impact financial statements.

The cost of labor, variable compensation, unrecorded paid time off, absenteeism, recruiting/speed to hire, simplifying required training, and streamlining the use of required HR systems and tools impact money and time, two precious commodities that business executives cherish most.

Understanding the business requires HRBPs to meet with company leadership, rank-and-file employees and, where applicable and possible, even with customers. Leaving the comfort of their offices to find out how the business really works (or doesn't) will enable HRBPs to determine how HR policies, compensation plans, and other practices can help the business achieve its goals, and add value to customers, investors, and communities.

Today's post is from Amy Lupica, an intern at Kronos. In this post, Amy reflects on our recent Gen Z research and discusses why managers need to engage with empathy to help young employees thrive at work.

Each day, workers experience complex and often frustrating challenges that simply cannot be avoided. No one is spared: From retail to manufacturing to the corporate world, employees face stubborn stakeholders, customers, and bosses, deal with nonoptimal working conditions, and struggle with work-life imbalance. It can be easy to shrug these experiences off as “part of the job” or things to just “put up with,” but these aspects of work can take a mental and emotional toll that might not be obvious at first glance.

As a member of Gen Z - the latest generation to enter the workforce - it's clear that workplace dynamics are changing. With the rise of technology, the always-on nature of social media, and the heightened conversation around mental wellness, Gen Z is facing a lot of new hurdles upon entering the workforce. While we can't control every stressor, we can make sure we're building strong partnerships between employees and managers to help navigate these uniquely Gen Z needs. In my experience, Gen Zers are most successful when they work hand in hand with their manager to receive the support they need both mentally and emotionally.

How can we actually make this happen? Here are some tips for managers - from a Gen Zer:

Show Empathy

Empathy in management begins by learning not just what your workers do, but how it makes them feel. Work isn't always physical, and it takes mental and emotional effort to cope with workplace challenges. More and more, young workers want to know that their managers care about them personally - as evidenced in our recent “Meet Gen Z survey” the top three attributes they value in a manager are: “they trust me” (47%), “they support me” (40%), and “they care about me” (35%).

I recommend that managers actively seek out information about employees' experience instead of waiting for them to come to you. Show genuine interest in their personal lives, ask questions, and listen to how they feel. This active interest will help gain insight into workplace culture and help you become an employer of choice, especially for Gen Z.

Foster a safe space

To further improve your workplace culture and employee experience, focus on curating an environment where workers feel comfortable expressing frustration appropriately, even when the issue is  “just a part of the job”. If you spot demoralization among your employees, it's important to remember that cynicism is a symptom of burnout, not a cause. A supportive, open environment enhances your ability to spot and tackle burnout early and increase retention by effectively responding to your workers' feelings. Be the kind of boss that workers know won't penalize them for failing to be entirely optimistic in the face of difficult or draining work, and know when to offer sympathy rather than advice; a worker might need a pep talk more than a performance review.

Show Appreciation

Finally, take the time to recognize and reward your employees for the effort they put into their jobs each day, especially when it comes to outside stressors. Gen Zers especially appreciate one-on-one recognition for a job well done. Take the time to congratulate employees not only for productivity but for how they persevere during challenges. Let them know that you appreciate how stressful their job can be. Don't be afraid to recognize the ugly aspects of a job; even dream jobs aren't a dream every day.

Ultimately, workers just want to be heard - my generation wants to be heard. Gen Z workers are eager and anxious to build strong connections and be a part of a team. I believe that if you empower your employees to overcome challenges by bringing a personal element to work, showing them that you are on their side, and strengthening the power of your team, great things can happen!

Interested in hearing more? Stay tuned for our next post where we dive more deeply into the “Meet Gen Z survey” by surveying the Kronos intern group about the responses.

This post is submitted by Joyce Maroney, Executive Director of the Workforce Institute.

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing David Creelman and Peter Navin, authors of the new book The CMO of People: Manage Employees Like Customers with an Immersive Predictable Experience that Drives Productivity and Performance. David is a longtime Workforce Institute board member, speaker and author focused on leadership and HR. Peter is Chief Human Resources Officer at Grand Rounds, a leading provider of employer-based technology that connects members and their families to high-quality healthcare. Peter joined me for a podcast in 2017 to talk about why more executives should consider the role of CHRO as a career path.

In this book David and Peter propose a new model for HR leaders to consider that borrows heavily from marketing disciplines and urges them to think about talent management in terms of maximizing the lifetime value of employees. Just as the CMO thinks in terms of the acquisition and lifetime value of customers, Peter Navin's Talent Funnel "cocktail napkin" chart here summarizes the analogous concepts for how CHROs can think about talent.

Talent Funnel Model
Peter Navin's Talent Funnel Model

In our wide ranging conversation, we talked about:

  1. How HR leaders can use this model to up their brand from Personnel Department to strategic partner.
  2. Why HR should approach curating the employee experience the way a Chief Marketing Officer does the customer experience.
  3. Why the “predictable and immersive employee experience” is so important and what tools an HR leader can use to achieve this.
  4. The need to find unconventional people to staff this unconventional model.


You'll learn a lot more by listening to the podcast below, and even better, by reading the book. And please consider adding your own thoughts by commenting on this post.

As the Executive Director of the Workforce Institute at Kronos, I get to talk to a lot of smart HR people about their challenges and their successes. The successes I hear about are generally born from the necessity of resolving tough challenges. Irrespective of industry, world region, or company size, most HR professionals are torn between the often-competing priorities of supporting individual employees while respecting the overall objectives of the organization.  And the main thread that runs through these success stories is that great business strategies only work when they are based on clear eyed, data-based problem statements.

A former boss of mine used to say that you can't manage what you can't measure. I don't think she originated that expression, but it has always stuck with me. If you are trying to resolve issues based solely on how people feel about problems or proposed solutions, you're bound to fail. This can be particularly tricky with HR challenges. People issues inevitably are accompanied by strong emotions. Employees' lives outside of work are filled with responsibilities and stressors - partners, children, elder care, volunteer work, illness, second (or third) jobs, etc. What appear to be minor changes in the workplace can upset the delicate balance that employees are managing between your workplace and the rest of their lives.

How you manage necessary changes in HR practices makes all the difference in whether those changes will be successful. What changes are you likely to need to make this year? At the Workforce Institute, we believe there are six major trends that organizations of all sizes need to prepare for in 2019.

  1. Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming more mainstream. Don't expect robots to replace your employees any time soon, but there are many use cases for AI that can help smaller organizations achieve efficiency and operational effectiveness. Using things like predictive analytics and assisted decision-making capabilities, available in most HCM solutions, ensure HR at your company as well as managers are spending time on things that retain key talent instead of spending their time buried in approval requests, etc.  
  2. Tight labor markets make great frontline managers more important than ever. Our CEO says that people join companies, but leave managers. If your managers aren't helping your employees develop and move up in their careers, they'll be moving on to greener pastures before you know it. Companies of all sizes need to be thinking of their employee experience as a key differentiator and a way to attract the talent you need to remain competitive.
  3. People will increasingly pursue alternative paths to employment this year. As more people question whether the value of a college degree justifies huge student debt, more people will pursue alternative paths to employment and employers will need to revamp their job requirements accordingly.Do your candidates really need degrees for all the job postings you have that currently require them? Are you considering alternative candidates and new ways of evaluating job fit?
  4. Compliance with federal, state and local legislation is more challenging than ever. From the ACA to minimum wage changes, there has never been a more complex environment when it comes to managing compliance with labor and employment laws. Research we published in 2018 indicated that more than half of human resources and payroll professionals (55 percent) have witnessed compliance activities by their colleagues that created unnecessary risk. If you're not sure of what the most current labor laws are in your locations, you may want to check out what resource your HCM vendor makes available to you, so you can stay on top of the right updates to keep your company compliant.  
  5. Employees expect more flexibility from their employers when it comes to where and when they work and better self-service technology to support that flexibility.  We know it can be difficult to balance all your employees' schedule preferences against the needs of your organization, but the more effective you are at doing so, the more loyal those employees are going to be. In research we published in 2018, 9 out of ten employees globally felt their employers could do a better job with scheduling.  
  6. Disaster preparedness will become a bigger part of your HR strategy. You don't have to be a climatologist to see that extreme weather is having a bigger impact on business operations. You need to have a plan to deal with them. Here are 7 tips for managing your people and your business through extreme weather.

As you prepare for 2019, consider these predictions and the potential implications to your business if you don't start talking about them now with your leadership, your managers and your employees.

This article was originally published on the What Works blog at Kronos.

Today's post comes to us courtesy of board member, David Creelman.

It seems hard to believe, but according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are now more women than men in management, professional and related occupations in the U.S. (51.6% women, 48.4% men).

Take a moment to ponder - and appreciate - the magnitude of that change from thirty years ago. And after that moment of appreciation, it's time to get back to thinking about our priorities for inclusion.

What's next? Pick the right priority.

There are three broad goals of inclusion:

Here are some options for addressing those inclusion issues:

Looking ahead

Strange as it sounds, diversity departments in the future may need some kind of affirmative action to bring men into management and professional jobs. Currently 56% of university graduates are women and if the downward trend in education for men continues then this could eventually undermine gender diversity in organizations.

Photo courtesy of rawpixel.com

Today we hosted a tweet chat to discuss the implications of our 2018 predictions.  We were joined by a number of our board members, as well as guest tweeters with an interest in workplace issues.  Following are the questions we posed to our participants.  You can see the full transcript of our conversation below.

Today's post is submitted by Joyce Maroney, Executive Director of The Workforce Institute at Kronos.

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Michael Rossman, the Chief Human Resources Officer of Hennepin County in Minneapolis, MN. Michael is a longtime Hennepin County employee having spent more than twenty years working in various capacities in the county. He is now responsible for human resources strategy and execution covering all of the 8,000-plus employees in the county.  Being an HR leader is never easy, but can be particularly challenging in the public sector.  Within the next 2-5 years, it's estimated that Hennepin County will face a workforce shortage of 100,000 jobs.  In my conversation with Michael, he shared how he pursues innovation in HR practices in order to recruit and retain the workers they'll need.  Among other topics we discussed:

You can listen to my conversation with Michael Rossman below:

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