3 Critical Future Of Work Trends For Recruiters And HR Managers

Workplace trends usually evolve over time. Take work from home, for instance – it is defining the way we get work done right now. More than 82% of business leaders in India believe that hybrid work is here to stay.

And global surveys indicate that more than 64% of workers would switch jobs to get away from full-time office work. Many blame COVID-19 virus for this dramatic shift. But the pandemic merely boosted its profile – the trend of remote work had been evolving slowly in tandem with the rise of the internet for more than a decade.

Likewise, there are many other future work trends whose roots we can already see taking shape at present. Since even minor changes at work can have dramatic impact on HR and recruitment, you need to keep track of the future of work trends, especially if you are an employer or HR manager.

The Impact Of Artificial Intelligence And Automation

For more than a century, successive generations of writers, philosophers, and computer scientists have raised the prospect of intelligent AI replacing humans in the workplace. And there is some credence to this sentiment – according to BBC reports, over 17 lakh jobs have been lost to robots in manufacturing between 2000 and 2019.

And with the rise of more advanced AI software and chatbots, even many white-collar jobs are now under threat. The McKinsey Global Institute estimates that nearly half the jobs currently handled by humans could get automated within the next 30 years, or even sooner, depending on the evolution of AI technology.

But this relentless march towards automation will not remove humans from the equation altogether. Instead, it will probably create new roles and job positions where humans will work alongside the AI, or even guiding the AI. But this will require humans who have the relevant skills.

Up to 37.5 crore workers could be forced to switch their occupational categories or learn new skills to stay relevant in the near future of work by the year 2030, according to the McKinsey estimates. Recruiters will not be immune to this trend. For example, the adoption of AI has changed financial services – in the past where a job needed 15 analysts, we now have 3–4 analysts overseeing an AI.

The same could also happen in recruitment, an area where humans already seek the help of computers (ATS) to deal with large volumes of data. In future, AI could end up playing a much larger role in the analysis and selection of suitable candidates, with humans in charge of giving the final approval.

The Sharpening Focus On Sustainable Business

After three years of a “La Niña” phase of cooler global weather patterns, the world is now poised to enter an “El Niño”. The last time this happened, we recorded the hottest year on record in 2016. Scientists already expect the record to be broken in the upcoming years.

From increasing droughts in India and the rest of Asia, to severe rains and storms in the southern United States, plenty of damaging extreme weather events are expected in the coming decade. The future of work is inextricably linked to the ongoing climate crisis.

Businesses need to do more – according to 2022 news reports, the majority of top companies were not backing up their promises of net-zero emissions with concrete action. With a growing number of investors, consumers, and employees starting to take climate action very seriously, this will have to change.

According to a study by Atlassian, more than 60% of employees want their employers to be more proactive about the environment and local communities. In another study by IBM, over 85% of Indians viewed environment focused companies as better employers.

At this rate, employer branding will become increasingly dependent on a company’s performance in sticking to ESG goals in the coming decade. Businesses that succeed in making a clear, measurable positive impact will have an easier time attracting new talent and in retaining existing workers.

The Challenges Posed By Demographic And Social Shifts

A striking generational shift will take place within the next decade in employment, as the older Gen X workers retire and get replaced by the Millennials and Gen Z. The demands and aspirations of the younger workers are already making a difference in the current job market.

In 2020, these two generations already accounted for close to 50% of the global workforce, while Gen X were at 37% and the Baby Boomers at 13%. By 2030, the older Baby Boomers will have retired altogether, and just 25% of the workforce will be Gen X.

As the world’s first digital-native generations, both Millennials and Gen Z are known to have a passion for remote work and freelancing. Their increasing presence in the job market presents challenges and opportunities for recruiters in equal measure.

Another critical aspect with massive implications for the future workplace is ageing. As populations in the developed West and Japan stagnate and decline, its impact will be felt in the workplace. The demand for certain sectors in health care and elderly care will also increase dramatically in the coming decade, bringing with it myriad challenges.

The situation is dramatically different in India – the country is poised to replace China as the world’s most populous nation in the immediate future. There are nearly 72.8 crore Indians below the age of 30 (approximately 52% of the population). The challenge for recruiters here will be not losing top talent to overseas brain drain, an already acute issue in 2022-23.

Largely Predictable Future Of Work Trends Still Present Formidable Challenges

COVID-19 taught us the folly of trying to predict the future – not many in 2019 would have visualised the fate that awaited the modern workplace over the course of a few years. Still, we can make some confident assumptions regarding the larger narrative of how technology will change the future of work (and the society along with it).

For some of the trends, like the disruption that will come in the wake of increased automation, we have no easy answers. But for others, we can at least prepare our organisations – growing focus on hybrid/remote work, increased commitment to sustainability, and embracing AI in HR and recruiting are all smart calls that can prepare your business to adapt to the future of work trends. To get you started, here is a handy guide from Indeed on better hiring practices for this new world of work that is looming on the horizon.