Expectations around pay
Compensation is a big part of employee experience. In 2024, you can wait for higher salary expectations from your employees, which is a result of a shaky socioeconomic situation in the EU. While some companies will struggle to match these expectations, others will have no choice but to oblige, especially with rare-skilled talent.
Moreover, more transparency around pay will be required. The EU Pay Transparency Directive was adopted in January of last year, but the implementation mode is beginning right now. This means that companies will have to collect and report data related to gender and other pay inequity. While some companies have nothing to hide, other employers might see a real cultural revolution.
Shifting balance in manager positions
Time flies! Many Gen Z employees are starting in management positions. In the upcoming year, we will see more digital natives managing teams, which means a change in expectations when it comes to their subordinates’ communication, leadership, and culture.
Things like giving feedback, two-way communication, delegating work, and networking might change.
HR Tech
Last year HR professionals had an opportunity to explore the abundance of new technology to deploy at their daily tasks. The growing need for automation and HR-IT collab will continue, just as there will be a growing variety of HR Tech to choose from.
Automation is also playing a more significant role than ever for HR teams. With the rise of payroll, benefits, awards and other automation of daily processes, tasks such as time schedule tracking and paystub generation are becoming more streamlined and efficient. For example, payroll automation eliminates the need for manual data entry, reduces errors, and ensures timely and accurate payment processing. This shift not only enhances the overall efficiency of HR operations but also allows HR professionals to focus on more strategic initiatives, such as employee engagement and development. As automation continues to evolve, it will further transform HR practices, making them more agile and responsive to the needs of a digitally savvy workforce.
Challenges like implementation, privacy and data protection, and inclusivity are just a few things to expect in this journey of levelling up your HR department and your company as a whole. But hey, maybe an app or software is already coming for that?
Office experiences
A lot of people are coming back to the office. Some because they want to, and some because they are asked to do so by their employers.
If a few years back some companies went “officeless”, it is now time to rethink it. If you want you and your employees to grasp the benefits of working at the office, make the office ready for people to come back to.
What can only happen in the office? Team lunches, fun meetings, and face-to-face development opportunities. Other things to help people get excited can also help a lot.
Be careful though – when creating a perfect office experience, don’t forget to allow some time for your employees to do the work among all the fun activities.
Flexibility
This one has been making its’ way into the new-year-trend list for a while now. In 2024, striking a balance around flexible working arrangements will be a challenge for HR professionals. Especially in multinational, large organizations.
If your team has struck the balance and has a perfect culture of flexible work while maintaining connectivity, communication, and accountability, count yourself lucky.
Reskilling
Skills needed to thrive and grow businesses are changing. This means a lot of work for HR in terms of helping employees adapt to the ever-changing work environments.
This doesn’t mean growing only tech-related skills though. With the growing amount of technology at work, skills like strategic thinking, creativity, and emotional intelligence are crucial.
Education
It seems like there will be less need for a diploma in 2024 (and maybe even beyond?). As discussed, skills needed by employers are changing, and so are university programs. Slowly.
Some companies in certain spheres are not happy with the skills of university graduates and rely on hiring based on competencies and experiences instead of extensive education.
What are your predictions for the upcoming year? Do you agree with ours? Let us know!
