Analysis
By s1jobs
The upheaval in the labour market triggered by the pandemic may at long last be bringing human resources onto an equal footing with other mission-critical business activities such as sales, marketing and finance.
The profession’s increasing value was reflected in a recent analysis by LinkedIn of its membership data which found that HR and talent management positions accounted for four of the 20 roles with the fastest-growing number of positions during the last five years. This was led by demand for chief human resources officers, the fifth-fastest growing position in the UK between 2017 and 2021.
Career counsellor was in ninth position and diversity and inclusion manager came in 13th place, followed closely by talent acquisition specialist at 14th. Many believe that the number of diversity, equality and inclusion roles will also continue rising as employees working in one of the tightest labour markets in history call on companies to improve their accountability in these areas.
According to London-based HR coach and consultant Gemma Bullivant, this research indicates that companies are coming to the “great realisation” that human resources teams are more than just policy and compliance departments.
“Many of my clients are telling me about a significant uptick in attrition across their sector, as employees look for a company that suits their needs better,” she recently told People Management. “It has arguably never been more essential for HR to sit at the top table.”
READ MORE: No time to waste in employment reform
The shift towards a people-centric workplace operating around flexible and hybrid work patterns has accentuated the importance of HR in the “new normal”. Navigating complex human challenges has never been a straightforward task, but companies must now tackle this head-on if they hope to retain staff with the skills needed to stay in business.
The HR profession must evolve with this as well by defining and developing new skills and processes to optimise what is expected of it. Injecting the “human” element back into HR will be critical in protecting companies’ knowledge and skills capital.
HR’s corporate influence has expanded as a result of the pandemic, providing the perfect platform from which to re-balance the profession’s duties to organisations and the individuals within them. Done correctly, this should lead to the betterment of both.
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