It is obvious that 2020 was a year of incredible challenges for human resources professionals. As the Forbes Human Resources Council notes, “To say the field of human resources has gone through a few changes in 2020 is somewhat of an understatement. HR has gone through a sweeping transformation that has turned it into something better and more efficient at meeting the modern workforce’s needs.”
Five years’ worth of change has occurred in a single year in terms of where people work, how they collaborate, how talent is found and retained, and the technologies used to support all of this. The Forbes Council describes 13 key trends facing HR professionals:
1. Bigger focus on diversity, equity, inclusion
2. More organizations speaking on social issues
3. Heightened interest in workplace culture
4. Improvement in workplace technology systems
5. HR leaders as culture champions
6. Changes in employer-sponsored health plans
7. Continued caution in hiring
8. Growing importance of working from home
9. A focus on mental health and well-being
10. Improvement of employee experience
11. More focus on the remote work experience
12. More importance of learning and development
13. A greater Focus on the human element
