Top Leadership Tips To Focus On In The New Year

New trends that will impact HR leadership

As we ring in the New Year, we often reflect on areas in which we can improve. In a competitive business landscape, managers and business leaders are more than ever required to pay attention to new ways to motivate and attract top talent.  Think of what happens when your employees aren’t performing at their best, or when the technology they need versus the technology they have creates a barrier to a job well done. New trends in well-being, ethics, next-gen technologies and the way we recruit will all have an impact on HR leadership during 2019.

In 2018, companies made even more strides to show that employee health and well-being is an important part of their business. Moving into the New Year, leaders should expand their employee offering to focus on physical, mental, financial health of their people to attract new talent to engage and retain their existing workforce, ranging from instituting expanded leave and retiree work policies to enhancing flexible work schedules and targeted wellness programs.  

AI and machine learning in the workplace will move beyond its experimental phase to enhance the employee experience. Today’s workforces can expect next-gen technologies to become further embedded in their day-to-day responsibilities, leaders can utilize this by creating more personalized consumer experiences for employees ranging from how your salespeople access mobile customer records to how your C-Suite makes data-based decisions.  In doing so, human contribution and competence will be more essential and fulfilling than ever before.

Employers – especially in the technology sector – are increasingly finding that there is a substantial shortage in talent that is making them go beyond traditional recruitment efforts. Your future workforce isn’t limited to the next graduating class – take this as an opportunity to tap into employee networks/alumni ecosystems and harvest the power of the gig economy.

Company purpose is as much a part of your talent recruitment and engagement strategy as it has ever been; consumers not only expect the companies they transact with to uphold values that align with their own but are increasingly demanding their employers do so. Whether it’s placing the utmost importance on maintaining customer data privacy and protection or being transparent, equitable and bias-free in how you conduct business, bosses will have to adjust their companies with the times while simultaneously building cultures that truly put people first.
 

Jewell Parkinson is Head of HR, Americas & APJ. She provides HR leadership for SAP Global Customer Operations and heads the regional HR Business Partner organization across North America, Latin America and Asia Pacific Japan. In this trusted-advisor role, she provides consultation on the design, delivery, and adoption of solutions that ensure SAP’s people strategy and consumer experiences yield a sustainable business impact to meet the needs of more than 45,000 employees. Connect Jewell Parkinson Follow @ParkinsonJewell