HR trends for 2024 that you should know about

The current crisis is radically changing most organizations. HR departments in particular are being called upon to react flexibly, proactively and in a results-oriented manner to the new circumstances. HR managers of the future will have to do much more: big data, analytics, transformation and change topics are just part of the to-do list for HR departments.

In this article, you will get an insight into which trends are important for HR managers this year and what the trend development for 2024 looks like. We also have a little how-to for you on how you can successfully introduce these HR trends in your company.

Past HR trends in 2024

Hybrid working models

Since the start of the pandemic in 2020, we have seen time and again that employees can work from home without any problems. Working from home is now part of everyday working life, making hybrid working models increasingly attractive and a long-standing HR trend. However, this trend naturally also brings new challenges that HR managers have to deal with:

• How can the internal tension between white and blue collar be prevented?
• How can the corporate culture still be lived and maintained together in an increasingly digital world?
• As an employer, how can you ensure that your employees don't feel excluded when working from home?

HR becomes a shaper

New challenges such as remote work, digitalization, the war of talent, etc. are making the HR department more important - from "administrator" to "designer". It no longer deals exclusively with routine tasks, such as preparing payroll accounting or processing vacation requests. The focus is now also on designing and supporting transformation and change processes, particularly in the fields of leadership and organizational development.

Employee wellbeing

One of the major trend topics in 2024 is employee well-being, also known as employee wellbeing. Particularly in today's world, where the boundaries between work and private life are becoming increasingly blurred in the home office, stress-related symptoms such as concentration disorders are on the rise. This is why topics such as work-life balance and stress management are on the agenda. Employee wellbeing describes the social, mental, emotional, physical and economic health of employees.

5 Types of Employee Well-being

Automation of core HR processes

In 2024, the focus will be on automating core HR processes. Digitalization will continue to be particularly important in the areas of administration and recruiting. Administrative tasks such as time recording, payroll accounting or the administration of personnel data can be automated using digital tools such as HRworks, Factorial etc. can be automated. Employee self-service tools will become much more important and thus reduce the administrative workload for the HR department. A lot of time can also be saved in recruiting if tasks such as recording and evaluating applications or correspondence with candidates are automated using software and AI.

An overview of HR-software can be found on OMR Reviews with brief descriptions and user ratings.

Leadership development

Due to trends such as remote work, managers need to change the way they work and think. Leading employees remotely and maintaining contact with them requires different leadership skills to those required for traditional on-site work. The role of managers as important multipliers for values and culture should also not be forgotten. They have a role model function and should carry the company mission forward, which in turn is made difficult by hybrid working.

In future, companies will therefore have to invest in leadership development as an absolute must-have. The most important task for team leaders will be to learn what role they have in modern, hybrid teams, what is expected of them and how to behave appropriately in difficult situations.

Promoting diversity, inclusion and anti-racism

The topics of diversity, inclusion and anti-racism are nothing new for companies. However, it is no longer enough to change the logo to rainbow colors from time to time or to briefly display the topics. Gender roles, discrimination and stereotypes no longer have a place in the modern working world. Many companies have recognized this this year and are increasingly thinking about which measures they can use to specifically promote diversity. As a result, an increasingly open corporate culture is developing, which in turn increases the attractiveness for potential applicants.

Corporate purpose

The topic of purpose is on everyone's lips this year. It is closely linked to corporate culture, but in my view, corporate purpose is a trend in its own right. Gen Z and Y want more than just dull work and earning money. They want meaningful work and choose their employer according to their "purpose". Corporate purpose is about what drives a company, regardless of turnover, growth and profit. Purpose, on the other hand, relates to the person themselves. The question often arises as to what gets us out of bed in the morning.

The formulation of a corporate purpose must not be an empty phrase, but must be authentic, tangible and socially relevant.

Current HR trends 2024

The new world of work has finally arrived: New work is becoming the new normal. Many employees are enjoying remote work, workation and much more. The new way of working has become an integral part of everyday life. Other trends from 2023 will also remain as trends for 2024. In my opinion, the following two topics in particular will become even more of a focus for HR managers in the future: employee wellbeing and leadership development. These three trends for 2024 follow:

E-learning

It is becoming increasingly important for employees to expand their personal skillset and have a training and development concept available for continuous learning within the company. Digital learning will continue to gain in importance, as e-learning allows employees to determine their own learning times, learning locations and learning content.

People analytics

Digitalization will profoundly change human resource management in many areas. The volume of available data is constantly increasing, existing data is becoming more heterogeneous and the speed of data transmission and processing is increasing. People analytics is about the process of collecting, analysing and organizing data from the HR department. This is done with the aim of improving the productivity of the company's employees.

Be it analyzing the corporate culture or identifying key employee skills: In the future, people analytics tools will become increasingly popular and represent another trend in the coming years.

IT expertise as a new success factor for HR

Due to the increasing digitalization trend in the HR sector and the growing use of HR software, the importance of IT expertise in the HR department continues to grow. This also means that HR and IT departments will have to work more closely together in the future. In order for this collaboration to function smoothly, IT skills will be an absolute prerequisite for HR staff. Who knows - maybe even completely new HR IT job fields will develop from this? The future is definitely exciting!

How do you successfully implement HR trends?

Introducing trends is no easy task, because there is no shortage of stumbling blocks when it comes to implementation. A short how-to should help you to successfully implement HR trends in your company:

1. First, you should look into HR trends in order to identify trend potential for your company.
2. The next and most important step is to get the management or management level on board. In order to have the best possible basis for convincing them of your plans, you should work out a clear strategic direction for the company and incorporate the selected HR trends.
3. As soon as you have the go-ahead for implementation, clear and transparent communication about your plans with managers is particularly important.
4. Now you can finally get started with the project planning: Here I can recommend the OKR method! This method will help you enormously in setting goals.
5. Last but not least, the entire team can finally be informed about the plans. During the implementation phase, listen to feedback and suggestions from your employees - after all, the changes should be something positive for your team.

Conclusion

Transformation is absolutely on trend and nobody should shy away from change and further development. Even if it sounds like a lot of work at first, it's worth it for both the employees and the company as a whole. To put it in Gandhi's words:

"Be the change you want to see in the world!"