5 HR Trends of 2016

As winter approaches, the year is coming to an end. Once again, all the goals you have set for this year should be reviewed, and it is time to see how much you have accomplished. In this case, there were many predicted human resource trends made regarding 2016. We would like to run through a few trends that were forecasted in 2015 and have indeed happened this year. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!

1) The Recruitment Experience

The perfect recruitment experience can be defined in many ways. When we say recruitment experience, it refers to the interaction between the company and the employee before the employee joins the company. Companies have realised the importance of recognising all potential employees and that it is important to form a symbiotic relationship with the employees.

The key here is that the whole employee experience does not start from the first day of work; it starts from the day the employee has applied for a job with the company. An example of a hassle for employees would be the many systems an employee must go through when applying for a job – giving bank account details to the finance department, giving personal details to the HR department, etc. All these processes make it troublesome and confusing for the employees.

In 2016, we see more companies focusing on the recruitment experience, trying to make it fuss free and simple to understand. It is definitely a vital factor as it will ensure that employees are engaged after joining the company. Recruitment experience is also important as it helps to build a good employer brand through word of mouth by potential employees. This will be further elaborated later on in the article.Want to learn more about Recruitment Experience (= Candidate Experience) and how you can improve it?

2) Data and Analytics

Who would have thought that the human resource department would have access to powerful data that could be put to great use? It is not common for HR to be a data intensive part of the company, however, data can come in any form and from any source. The HR department has a huge amount of data ranging from the details of an employee to the attendance of employees at work every day. With the huge number of people in the workforce, companies should collect relative data that could be of good use to them.

However, companies must first understand the importance of this data and how to make sense of it. Not only will this data allow the companies to understand their employees better, but they can also collect, process and analyse this data for their own use. Through this data, companies can gain insights into workforce trends and take action to refine their recruitment, selection and other human resource processes. It seems like many companies have already realised this point and have started to put their big data to good use. Still, if you have not done this yet, it is now time to make use of the data your company has and do great things with it according to what you need!

3) Combining HR with IT

The advancement of technology has been impacting our daily lives greatly, and most of us probably cannot live without our mobile phones. Not surprisingly, companies rely on IT, which aids the different processes of the organisation – improving and perfecting them.

The human resource department has never been more effective and efficient after the introduction of different HR systems. Many companies have started using different systems that can improve the engagement and performance of employees. There are new applications trying to transform the usual form of communication and explore new ways of how employees can work together. The rise of technology and social media have redefined the role of HR around the world, and this has been proven with the increase of HR systems you can find online.

4) Engaging Your Employees

You do not want your employees to be just physically at work; you want them to be at work mentally and whole-heartedly as well. The only way to do so is to engage your employees and make them enthusiastic about their work. In return, your employees will be more enticed to make it a top priority to put their best foot forward. To do so, there will need to be a change in the organisation’s culture management.

Many companies have already implemented different activities or even systems that focus on improving their employee engagement to drive better performance. Engaged employees will have the drive and determination to work hard and thrive for your company. An ADP study found that larger midsized businesses with 151 to 999 employees cited three talent-related reasons among all reasons for a decline in growth: disengaged employees (23%), the inability to attract qualified talent (18%) and the inability to retain key talent (17%).

5) Reinventing Performance Reviews

Companies have been reinventing their performance reviews to cater to their organisation’s needs and vision. It really depends. However, many actions have been taken such as abolishing individual bonuses or dropping performance ratings. The reason companies are redesigning their performance management system is because they realise their current process is no longer as effective as it used to be. As a result, performance management systems are becoming increasingly individualised, and they focus more on fueling performance in the future rather than focusing on the past.