Closing Remarks: Filipino Leaders’ Year-End Observations on 2023 HR Trends

Can you believe that we are already approaching the end of the year? Time does fly, and it has been truly fun and challenging while it did.?

In that light, it only seems fitting and mandatory to look back on some of the key workplace trends that influenced businesses in 2023. These are lifted from our research at Great Place To Work?, the ebb and flow of “what’s chic” in the HR world, and our intimate conversations with business leaders across industries.?

2023 Key Workplace Trends Observed

1. Quiet Hiring

In 2022, “Quiet Quitting” inundated the internet. People were burnt out — and studies show they still are. According to Gallup’s 2023 State of Global Workplace report, Filipinos took the number one spot for most stressed-out employees in Southeast Asia. 45% of the research’s respondents confirm they experience daily stress during most work days.?

In return, one of the effects was the phenomenon of “Quiet Quitting.” Employees resorted to strictly complying with the scope of their roles with the least effort possible to keep their jobs. No extra miles, just the bare minimum.?

Employers were keen on this workplace trend/sentiment and quickly identified that part of the problem was that employees needed more clarity regarding their professional development. In this constant pace of change, where are our employees exactly headed work-wise? What’s the plan, boss??

And so, “Quiet Hiring” was born. Succinctly explained, it is practicing internal talent mobility and reskilling and upskilling current employees instead of externally hiring. This paved the way for reinvigorated talent pipelines, boosted productivity rates, redefined career paths, and more positive employee morale.?

2. The Big AI

AI is indeed a big topic this year — my personal experiences resonate with this. Business partners commonly asked me to touch on the raved-about subject in the speaking engagements I led this year.?

One of those events was the Quezon City Future of Work conference, where I detailed what effectively transitions companies from being good to great by espousing physically and psychologically safe workplaces. The latter includes pursuing employees’ personal development, such as implementing training on crucial skills, like AI utilization, demanded in today’s fast-paced environment.?

Accelerated digital transformation has naturally led to more workplace automation. This translated to humans working and sharing their responsibilities with intelligent machines.

Of course, who can forget the valid fear of employees being replaced by AI? While that was initially all the buzz, the sentiments and questions now differ. The popular line of thought nowadays is that AI won’t be taking over people’s jobs, but employees equipped to utilize AI will inevitably replace people who cannot.?

Businesses have responded in various ways. Among them are:?

• Our #1 observed workplace trend: Quiet Hiring. New roles to fill? Same people, but made better. Priority was placed on upskilling staff with the skills necessary to work with AI whilst optimizing present competencies that the technology could never replicate: interpersonal communication, human creativity, and compassionate leadership.?
• Job descriptions became more progressive — now reflecting and prioritizing skills necessary and anticipated for the future of work.?
• Brainstorming how to optimize all these incredible automation opportunities and emerging skills and roles such as Data Science.?

3. Hybrid Work Models

According to Gartner’s Top 5 HR Trends and Priorities for 2024, 41% of leaders state that hybrid work setups negatively affect employees’ connection to workplace culture.??

Reboarding everyone and rebuilding employee engagement (a factor heavily connected to workplace culture) are difficulties HR leaders must address due to the transition to hybrid work from WFH. The National Society of Leadership and Success concluded in their 2022 study that Gen Z’s social skills eroded due to the pandemic. However, the 2023 trends show that everyone's social skills are impacted as companies ease into adopting hybrid work models from purely remote setups.?

Hence, HR leaders must pull out all the stops to redefine workplace culture and revamp their methods of creating positive employee experiences, regardless of whether their people are inside or outside the office.?

We see these efforts in the forms of monthly in-person recreational activities, the resurgence of physical team buildings, work set-up flexibility options, weekly team pulse checks, or, like what we’ll soon be witnessing this holiday season, the much-awaited comeback of our extravagant, Filipino-style Christmas parties.

4. Employee Well-Being

When you look at all these observations and trends, solutions are always eventually anchored on one thing: employee well-being.

How can we support our employees’ mental health? How can we be proactive in maintaining the team’s optimism? These are just some of the questions.?

The methods of achieving employee well-being have evolved. From the floppy pizza parties meant to boost morale to more dynamic initiatives that create actual positive effects. Some examples are:

• No-meeting Fridays
• PTOs created for wellness and recreational activities
• Encouraged PTOs before high-demand working periods
• Transforming office spaces to more collaborative and less stress-inducing areas, such as having cozy spots to brainstorm or rest in between work?
• Intentional interpersonal relationships between manager and employee for better discourse and understanding of needs

With employee well-being having even greater importance in today’s workplaces, one notable effect we observed is less stigma on mental health matters. Nowadays, therapy access at work via HMO benefits or available trauma counselors within the office are the norm.?

2023 Filipino HR People Priorities?

Last January, we held a humble survey on Filipino HR Leaders’ outlook for 2023 and their most significant accomplishments from the previous year. Among their responses, what was most relevant in light of the new year was their 2023 people priorities.?

Looking back, there are similarities to the people priorities of the respondents. I feel that if there were a word map for all of their generous responses, the primary keywords or phrases would be the following:?

• Upskilling/Professional development/Learning & Development?
• Talent mobility/Building a strong talent pipeline?
• Hybrid work models/RTO (Return to office)
• Process automation/Digital-enabled workforce/AI adoption/Digital transformation
• Employee engagement?
• Employer branding

Sound familiar? Yup, I thought so, too! Their answers matched up quite well with the key workplace trends we observed in 2023.?

It definitely would be interesting to see if those same respondents also share our sentiments. For this very reason, we revisited some of those HR leaders’ responses and invited them to close the loop and share their thoughts business-wise about 2023 in my closing newsletter for the year.?

We know you’re interested in what insights they shared! Read on.?

What They Said

Disclaimer: The responses shared reflect the views and opinions of the respondents and not necessarily that of the whole organization.

Alvanson So, CHRP? | Regional People Lead at Canva Philippines

1. From the lens of an HR leader, how would you describe 2023??

2023 is a year we expect companies to accelerate and keep up their momentum. Companies have finally adjusted and have acquired the necessary rhythms to redefine how their operational drumbeat should be. Many organizations are expected to have clearer goals and more positive outlooks for 2024.?

2. What have been HR’s biggest contributions to your workplace this year? ?

HR’s biggest impact this year is the maximization of talent to improve business outcomes while reducing the need to reduce staff. With many companies experiencing layoffs, our response was to slow down hiring and invest more in developing our teams, opening up internal pathways for cross-skilling, and re-evaluating team structures to deploy more people into more critical goals.?

Mari Alcantara | Recruitment Lead at REVA Global LLC

1. From the lens of an HR leader, how would you describe 2023??

I would describe 2023 as a year of significant transformation and adaptation. As a company that has embraced remote work from the start, we had to find new ways on how we can better support employee engagement and well-being in a virtual setting.?

Regular pulse surveys, including the Trust Index Survey and HR check-ins, have been instrumental in informing everyone of the changes we implemented this year and will continue to launch next year.?

By actively seeking feedback from our teams, we have identified areas for improvement and tailored our initiatives to meet their needs better. This ongoing dialogue has allowed us to foster a culture of continuous improvement and ensure that our people feel heard and valued.?

2. What have been HR’s biggest contributions to your workplace this year??

HR's most significant contribution to our workplace this year has been consistently promoting open dialogues and prompt responsiveness to our team's concerns that impact their work-life quality.?

By fostering a culture of communication and actively addressing feedback, we have created an environment where our people feel supported and valued. The commitment to dialogue and timely action have positively influenced our team's morale, productivity, and overall well-being.?

Nikkie Dela Cruz | Chief People Officer at Tech One Global Ltd

1. From the lens of an HR leader, how would you describe 2023??

As AI has been a buzzword this year, 2023 can be described as a pivotal year of doing “more” with less.?

2023, for me, was about achieving greater efficiency by embracing and integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into various HR functions. This year has become a turning point in fully utilizing AI's capabilities in HR tasks, streamlining processes, and accelerating decision-making to optimize overall efficiency.?

Furthermore, in light of the widespread layoffs in the IT industry, 2023 can also be described as a year of navigating complexities and fostering resilience within the IT sector.

2. What have been HR’s biggest contributions to your workplace this year?

Given the uncertainties and fast-paced changes in the IT sector this year, fostering and sustaining a positive workplace culture is arguably the most significant contribution to consider.?

In HR, we play an essential role in consistently reinforcing the company's values and culture and placing a strong emphasis on the organization's dedication to its employees. HR has been instrumental in cultivating an adaptable and resilient culture amidst these changes. HR has also been active in promoting a culture of continuous learning among our employees, ensuring they remain agile and well-equipped to handle evolving challenges.

Roegan Taron | Country Manager at Common Ground Coworking Space

1. From the lens of an HR leader, how would you describe 2023??

The Flexi Group is in the business of operating flexible spaces/coworking spaces, so we’ve seen our fair share of different work setups of our members.?

The most common trend we’ve seen for one of our brands, Common Ground, is the rise of flexibility regarding work schedules and the chosen work environment. This is especially true for our Philippine franchise.?

We’ve had members who actually got one of our most flexible memberships, a Hot Desk membership. They are using this membership so that they can have a different working environment, which could help them collaborate better by being in a more creative and work-conducive space.?

At the same time, we also have members who have been working from home but need to meet in person for meetings and to foster better collaboration. Lastly, we also have members who use our space as a “swing space” while their office within the area is still being constructed.?

Overall, we’ve seen a rise in members wanting more flexibility this 2023 — and we’re grateful to have helped these members.

2. What have been HR’s biggest contributions to your workplace this year??

Every company needs to have a clear set of values as it helps employees to understand what the company stands for. These values also act as a guide that rallies everyone together to achieve the company's short-term and long-term goals. HR was at the forefront of pushing our company values to be learned and remembered by everyone.

Our organization’s HR team also played a crucial role in ensuring everyone was immersed in the numerous programs throughout the year that are dedicated to our corporate social responsibility (CSR).?

Every company leader has a CSR model in mind. However, it was the HR team who influenced The Flexi Group (the group that Common Ground is part of) to prioritize the needed efforts. Our HR team pushed for a more measurable and constant positive impact on our chosen charities. Not only that, but we were also able to help the charities and influence our employees and clients to be more engaged and intentional when it comes to CSR.

Closing Remarks

How about you? How would you describe 2023 from your perspective as an HR practitioner, business owner, or employee??

We approach the new year just as we did in the beginning, with our heads held up high — hopeful and reaching for more. One thing’s for sure: there is more wisdom to clinch as we go through this never-ending journey of learning and evolving, and I, along with you, am excited for the new season and opportunities making our way this 2024. ??

Heads up! There will be more on what those opportunities and anticipations are in my first LinkedIn article next year — so make sure you’re subscribed to my monthly newsletter. ??

While fast in transit to the new year, imbibe more insights and download the Philippines’ Best Workplaces? Insights Report 2023: Onward For All here.?