By Josh Bersin
2014 will be an exciting and challenging year for HR, learning, and talent professionals.
In summary, this is a year businesses will find it increasingly difficult to attract, retain, and develop their people. Passion, engagement, development, and innovation are key.
Global economic growth will create a new level of competition for people. HR organizations will shift their focus from cost reduction to retention and engagement. Technology will continue to make the world a smaller place, forcing companies to improve their employment brand in every possible way.
Data will become a new currency. Leadership will continue to be in short supply. And you, as an HR professional, will have to innovate and adapt to stay ahead.
In this article we summarize our ten predictions for 2014, detailed in the report linked here. This is our tenth year publishing these predictions, and I hope you find them educational and valuable as you plan your strategies for the year ahead.
2014: The Year of the Employee:
Attraction, Retention, and Engagement Will Really Matter
For the first time in nearly a decade, this year you will find the issues of retention, engagement, and “attraction of talent” to be top on your priority list. We are just completing a major global study (Deloitte’s Human Capital Trends 2014, coming soon) and found that the top two people issues facing organizations in 2014 are leadership and retention. These are the problems we face in a dynamic, growing global economy.
“The war for talent is over, and the talent won.”
This year, for the first time in more than five years, employees are in charge. Companies have reduced costs, restructured, rationalized spending, and pushed people to work harder than ever. More than 60% of organizations tell us one of their top is dealing with “the overwhelmed employee.”
This year the power will shift: high-performing employees will start to exert control. Top people with key skills (engineering, math, life sciences, energy) will be in short supply. Thanks to the US healthcare laws, people will feel more free to change jobs. And companies who can’t engage and attract Millenials will lose out.
While there will still be high levels of unemployment in places, generally people have changed their perspectives. They want work which is meaningful, rewarding, and enjoyable. Top performers will seek out career growth. Mid-level staff will strive for leadership development. And you, as an HR organization, will have to compete, adapt, and innovate to stay ahead.
Our Top Ten Predictions for 2014
1. Talent, skills, and capability needs become global.
In 2014 key skills will be scarce. Software engineering, energy and life sciences, mathematics and analytics, IT, and other technical skills are in short supply. And unlike prior years, this problem is no longer one of “hiring top people” or “recruiting better than your competition.” Now we need to source and locate operations around the world to find the skills we need.
You must expand your sourcing and recruiting to a global level. Locate work where you can best find talent. And build talent networks which attract people around the world.
2. Integrated capability Development Replaces Training.
The “training department” will be renamed “capability development.” Companies will find skills short and they will have to build a supply chain for talent. Partner with universities, establish apprentice programs, create developmental assignments, and focus on continuous learning. Companies that focus on continuous learning in 2014 will attract the best and build for the future.
3. Redesign of Performance Management Accelerates.
The old-fashioned performance review is slowly going out the window. In 2014 companies will aggressively redesign their appraisal and evaluation programs to focus on coaching, development, continuous goal alignment, and recognition. The days of “stacked ranking” are slowly going away in today’s talent-constrained workplace, to be replaced by a focus on engaging people and helping them perform at extraordinary levels.
To read predictions #4-10, click here.