Latest HR Trends: Talent Stagnation, Talent Management, Age-Friendly, Quiet Cutting, ChatGPT, GenerativeAI

?? Hello Everyone and Happy Sunday !

?? Welcome back to the 44th edition of Weekly People Research! ??

??Once again a fascinating week of learning! We discover new HR words in the world of work and new trends every day - the world of HR is alive and evolving with People and Leaders. Thank you for your inspiring comments!

?? In this new edition,?you will learn more about :

??Why talent management leaders and their teams are overworked and underfunded? Gartner researchers found that Talent Management are prioritizing Talent Management strategies to support "Human" Leaders !

??Why more than nine in ten employers say their company's leadership currently has one or more major concerns? Transamerica Institute in collaboration with The Harris Poll researchers found that almost nine in 10 employees consider their companies to be “age-friendly”.

??Why are employees and employers facing a critical moment of Talent Stagnation crisis in the workplace? 美国凤凰城大学 researchers found that over half of employees and employers view workers as easily replaceable.

??Why can’t employees, especially women, be themselves at work and have safe conversations with their managers? Achievers researchers found that employees who feel recognized by their manager are twice as likely to have high trust and are almost twice as likely to say they feel safe having tough conversations with their manager

??Why does the old practice of “quiet cutting” seriously affect employee engagement and performance? Monster researchers noticed that 80% have less trust or loyalty to their employer and 79% no longer feel loyal to their employer.

??Why despite the widespread use of ChatGPT in the workplace, we are still in the proof-of-concept or pilot phase of Generative AI? Pew Research Center researchers found that about a third of employees under 30 have now used ChatGPT for work.

These insights continue to evolve as we all learn more - as Dave Ulrich and we must now classify these ideas in the Taxonomy of Human Capability.

???Now, let's do a recap of the week on published research:

Progressive Talent Management Leaders are prioritizing Talent Management strategies to support "Human" Leaders !

?? Findings of researchers:

?? Talent management leaders are tracking five trends in 2024.

?? Talent management leaders and their teams are overcommitted and under resourced. Only 26% of talent management leaders anticipate increasing their team size to meet these new demands.

? While talent management teams are eager to address systemic issues with new approaches such?as skills-based talent management, 59% of employees are unwilling to change their behaviors to support their organization’s most recent organizational change. In the same time, one of the key challenges organizations will face this year is a shortage of critical skills...

?? By making managers’ jobs more manageable, talent management leaders can improve manager effectiveness up to five times more than if they focused on skills proficiency, according to a new interesting research published by Gartner using data from a survey of 231 HR leaders.

?? Recommendation of researchers:

Talent management leaders should focus on the 4 actions below to support managers:

?? Redesign the manager role to focus on?the activities with the greatest impact?on manager effectiveness.

?? Equip employees to self-discover whether management is right for them.

?? Build long-term habits, not just skills, to sustainably change manager behaviors.

?? Eliminate processes that get in the way?of managers’ highest-value work.

??My personal View:

This interesting Gartner research, shows how complicated the role of talent management leaders is this year, faced with an increasingly violent skills shortage, with a limited team, only leaders who manage to follow the 5 trends cited in this research will be able to retain the best talents in their company and therefore have a positive impact on the business.

???? What were the HR expert opinions:

Dave Ulrich Thanks again for sharing interesting research. I am always interested in how to gain a "talent advantage" which means increasing value with all stakeholders through investments in talent. The five priorities that talent leaders identify are interesting to see. Our work focuses less on personal perception of what matters, but on calculating which of ten (and there could be others) talent initiatives deliver more stakeholder value. It is interesting to compare the methodologies and the results of those exploring how talent investments can made to have impact.

Jeff Millhouse, SPHR : Happy to see this timely research summary of value-add priorities for supporting on-point people planning conversations with our key business partners. Responsible management of human capital/assets compels us to sustain a reasonable investment in (1) determining and (2) developing our people leaders and managers of today and tomorrow. Insights like these shared here by Nicolas BEHBAHANI remind us to think beyond traditional HR comfort zone mindsets of pushing typical HR calendars of administrative tasks, and lean in with analysis, advise and tools that provide skills and solutions to deliver fundamental leadership capability.

Lourdes G. Terrific insights! Part of prioritizing progressive talent management strategies that support more “human” leadership development also requires organizational effectiveness practices to redesign the jobs of these leaders as they are being asked to do so much with limited resources (e.g., manage a function, lead a team, coach and develop individual employees, deliver on a portfolio of projects, etc).

Jos van Snippenberg Valuable research again. For many years there is a growing skill gap in leadership going on. Although leadership “training” will fix these gaps, it also can be none impact on the performance of teams. I have seen millions of euro’s burned by these “quick fixes”. Building successful leaders will only work if they breath the company DNA. If they are the role model in expressing the behaviors belonging to the company values and impact intentions. So for talent management leaders the first step is to “fix the foundation”, so leadership development is valuable to all stakeholders.

Sanketh Ramkrishnamurthy : In essence, supporting Human Leaders Support isn't merely a checkbox exercise; it's a commitment to cultivating a culture of excellence where leaders thrive, innovate, and inspire.

Karlyne Marie-Rose Kanuma There's a significant opportunity to empower Talent Management Leaders in fostering authentic leadership, a crucial factor in enhancing organizational performance. While developing leadership soft skills is essential, it's not sufficient on its own. Embracing human-centered leadership demands readiness and a cultural shift within the organization to drive positive and efficient outcomes. Furthermore, organizations often overlook the skills and strengths present internally, instead favoring external searches. By focusing on both the known and hidden talents of individuals, organizations can enhance their attractiveness. It's high time for a cultural shift towards prioritizing human-centric and skills-oriented approaches.

Workforce Management and Employee Productivity are the major concerns of Business Leaders in medium and large companies!

?? Findings of researchers:

More than nine in 10 employers (94%) indicate their company’s leadership currently has one or more major concerns.

?? Almost seven in 10 employers (69%) are currently using or planning to use robotics or AI to augment their human workforce, including 94% of large companies, 89% of medium companies, and 63% of small companies.

?? Almost nine in 10 employees (87%) consider their companies to be “age-friendly”.

62% of employers cite one or more ways that employees’ mental health issues are negatively impacting their company, according to a new interesting research published by Transamerica Institute in collaboration with The Harris Poll using data ?? from a survey of 1,873 US employers and a sample of 5,730 workers in a for-profit company.

?? Recommendation of researchers:

Finally researchers conclude that amid the rapidly transforming workplace, employers can enhance their supportive business practices and benefit offerings to better align with employees’ needs by taking below actions:

1. Offer flexible work arrangements to support work-life balance ranging from employees’ personal responsibilities such as parenting, home-schooling, and caregiving, to professional development such as continuing education and volunteering.

2. Offer health and welfare benefits that promote physical, mental, and financial health and well-being such as health, disability, and life insurance; workplace wellness and financial wellness programs; and employee assistance programs.

3. Sponsor a retirement plan or join a pooled plan arrangement such as a pooled employer plan (PEP), multiple employer plan (MEP), a or a group of plans (GoP).

4. Consult with your benefits advisors and retirement plan provider to learn about the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022

5. Extend benefits eligibility to part-time workers, including health insurance and retirement plan offerings.

6. Promote the benefits your company offers, including health, wellness, and retirement benefits. Increasing awareness of these offerings could help employees increase their physical, mental, and financial well-being.

7. Encourage professional development and lifelong learning opportunities for workers of all ages to keep their skills up to date or learn new skills to help them remain employable in the evolving job market.

8. Cultivate an age-friendly work environment and adopt diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) business practices that include age among other demographic factors (e.g., gender, race, religion, sexual orientation).

9. Adopt and promote policies to accommodate workers with special needs (e.g., assistive technologies, remote work opportunities, etc.) to promote even higher workforce participation.

10. Offer pre-retirees greater levels of assistance in planning their transition into retirement, including education about retirement income strategies, retirement plan distribution options, and the need for a backup plan if forced into retirement sooner than expected (e.g., due to health issues, job loss, family obligations).

11. Enable workers to phase into retirement by allowing for a transition from full-time to part-time, working in different capacities or different locations, or having a more flexible schedule.

??My personal View:

This interesting research demonstrates that workforce management is once again at the center of leadership priorities. Priorities such as mental health, the concept such as "Age-friendly" as mentioned in this research are the obvious parameters which directly impact the business result.

???? What were the HR expert opinions:

Dave Ulrich There is a LOT to unpack in this complex data set. The data suggests some interesting findings:*profitability is a key for companies of all sizes, especially smaller ones. My question would then be which of the human capability (my term for talent + leadership + organization + HR) practices would most deliver profitability?*smaller companies have far fewer human capability concerns than larger ones, particularly around productivity and workforce management. *mental health is a major employee concern for everyone and affects productivity. I strongly agree with this... heightened by the pandemic which seems distant now.

Gemma Atkinson Seeing mental health as business wealth and supporting this through how we work is transformational.

Jos van Snippenberg Self-awareness of intentions and understanding what employees need to work in a healthy manner reduces attrition. In fact, it boosts self-confidence and enjoyment. Personalized guidance on passion, self-efficacy and growth motivation fuels satisfaction and drives results. Consistently monitoring employee needs empowers action, ensuring they exhibit optimal behavior. This approach eradicates underperformance and prevents dropout due to work-related stress.

Employees and employers are facing a critical moment of Talent Stagnation crisis in the Workplace !

?? Findings of researchers:

Employers are not looking internally and, thus, overlooking the potential to upskill and elevate their existing workforce to solve business needs, hindering progression for both workers and organizations.

?? One-third of workers feel unrecognized by company leadership.

?? Over half of employees (53%) and employers (52%) view workers as easily replaceable

?? 74% of workers recognize the necessity of learning 74% new skills to stay ahead in their career

?? Employees are able to increase their annual salary when employers invest in boosting career optimism.

? Employees feel both more productive and satisfied with their work when they are given flexibility.

By providing clearer and more personalized opportunities for workers to advance internally, employers have the opportunity to develop the dynamic talent they need from within, according to a new interesting research published by University of Phoenix using data ?? from an online survey of 5000 US employees of top 20 designated market areas between December 5, 2023 to January 13, 2024.

?? Recommendation of researchers:

Finally researchers conclude that employers can unlock talent potential by proposing the actions below:

1?? Personalization: Offer flexible working arrangements to boost productivity and mental well-being.

2?? Clear career paths: Provide visibility into upward mobility, networking, and mentorship opportunities

3?? Invest in upskilling: Prioritize workers' desire for ongoing skill development through accessible educational resources.

4?? Financial incentives: Invest in career optimism which can lead to significant savings for both employers and workers.

??My personal View:

This outstanding research demonstrate that we are at the stage of Talent Stagnation crisis in the workplace but it's an opportunity for employers to capitalize on that optimism and develop the dynamic talent they need from within by providing more opportunities for their workforce to advance internally.

???? What were the HR expert opinions:

Dave Ulrich I am not sure of the research (e.g., how they got to such specific numbers on impact of careers), but I think the findings are interesting. They offer four tips for helping someone personalize their career: skills development, internal mobility, career paths, mentorship. These ideas might help any business or HR leader create a menu development options in a individual development plan. The grid we have used is and includes the four levers, plus a few more. I like that their research explores how enabling employees to increase their competencies is often a key to positive outcomes. Thanks for sharing.

Maritsa Inglessis It's not surprising that workers feel unrecognized by company leadership if they're viewed as easily replaceable. What a disappointing statistic!

Neha Asthana Thank you for highlighting such a crucial & pivotal challenge workplaces today are facing/ are in line to face soon. With:1> Roles changing so dynamically almost every alternate year2> L&D teams not being invested in enough by many companies to be able to solve for upskilling employees in real time3> Not hiring competent enough TA Leaders to build out intuitive, data driven hiring that hires future ready talent.4> Career pathing being a reactive exercise rather than a well planned proactive as well as adequate practice by HR Teams .Companies face a grim stalemate.

Clare Langley In my experience a proper development culture needs two things to underpin it: 1. An acceptance by the company that everyone will benefit from development, but some of those you develop will go on to use their skills elsewhere (especially in SMEs when opportunities do not always time right with readiness) 2. An understanding by employees that development is a 2-way street in which they are also invested, and this does not always look like something formal or a ‘program’. A culture which understands these things and which champions elements such as those the researchers highlight, and others such as those from RLB should be able to harness internal talent and improve engagement, performance and retention. It can, however, be challenging to draw a straight line in the data for the ROI of development initiatives, especially if you accept that some of the people you develop will deliver the return to another employer. Thanks for highlighting.

George Kemish LLM MCMI MIC MIoL The fact that workers feel unrecognized by company leadership if viewed as easily replaceable does indeed provide a disappointing statistic. Given the skills shortages, that have been well publicized, employers need to look at producing their own 'home grown' talent and to nurture people in order to gain the human performance required to improve growth for both the organization and the individual whilst adding value for all stakeholders.

Dara Bidwell, SHRM-CP The research certainly resonates with my experiences in HR at a medium sized organization, especially when the headcount exceeds 100 and it becomes harder to personalize at scale without good infrastructure. Lack of systems or high friction policies may make an employee feel like a cog in the operation which is easily replaceable. I think it also depends on the value business leaders place on short term tactical actions (a high emphasis on tactical wins which may temporarily boost productivity but hurts the organization's ability to retain employees who cannot see where the ship is going). If managers sole focus is short term productivity goals which sacrifice the time needed to develop relationships with their teams - both the manager and the employee lose out. HR has an opportunity to reduce the friction with initiatives and policies so employees and managers can take advantage of opportunities available to grow careers without an HR intervention. And business leaders should resist the urge to rob Peter to pay Paul when balancing productivity needs and employee needs.

Employees, especially women, can't be themselves at work and have conversations safely with their managers due to a lack of Trust!

?? Findings of researchers:

Most of employees (62%) want to be able to have hard conversations at work, but one-third don’t feel safe doing so with their managers.

?? Employees who feel recognized by their manager are twice as likely to have high trust and are almost twice as likely to say they feel safe having tough conversations with their manager. So recognition frequency increases trust and safety at work.

?? Gen Z and Millennial respondents are 34% more likely than older generations to say they don’t feel safe having these conversations with their managers.

?? Women are less likely to feel safe at work and less than one-third say they bring their whole selves to work, according to a new interesting research published by Achievers using data ??from a survey of 1500 US and Canadian employees during March 2024.

?? Recommendation of researchers:

Achievers researchers found three specific ways that business and people leaders can help employees build stronger relationships and connections:

?? Connection tools: Access to matching tools for meeting coworkers increases the likelihood of having strong relationships at work by 33%

?? Frequent recognition: When asked what would help them feel more connected at work, employees’ number one answer is feeling meaningfully recognized.

?? Mental health support: Employees who say they are supported in caring for their mental wellbeing are twice as likely to feel a strong sense of connection at work.

??My personal View:

This interesting research on the lack of trust between employees and managers demonstrates that this lack of recognition of managers can explain this gap particularly in the two populations of Gen Z and Women. The solutions provided by researchers to foster connections are interesting but leaders really need a real culture of recognition in the organization and not forget that a strong sense of trust and safety starts at the manager level.

???? What were the HR expert opinions:

Hannah Yardley Not surprising to see that 1/3 of people say “there is no one at work they can have fun with”, when we haven’t fixed the fundamental problems around trust. We can’t start with ping pong tables and hope that we are building a genuine sense of belonging with employees

Dave Ulrich Interesting research, thanks again. I like the focus on "recognition" as a foundation of a trusting relationship. Recognition comes in many forms... from simple (knowing personal characteristics like name and hobbies) to more complex (appreciating work and inviting ideas to improve work). Partha Neog has done and is doing good work in this area. I also lament the loss of "trust" at work that is the foundation of a positive work setting. Stephen M. R. Covey.

Klicia Oliveira Wilson, MSc The way we view the world outside of work seeps into our work relationships and to change this scenario in the workplace requires intentional effort from people leaders. Matching tools are a great start and can be supercharged with structured interactions.

Clare Langley Interesting to see such focus on trust here. It has long been held that employees stay or leave a manager, and a good, trusting relationship is key. However, organizations also need to ensure they are supporting managers to be clear about what is and is not OK: the personal relationship should be backed up by the organizational one. Too often I’ve seen managers put in a position where they have not been clear about what their organization will support and have therefore over- or under-promised. Small wonder in these situations that there is lack of trust. Clarity on policies and procedures, line manager training and good communications and support from leaders to managers to employees throughout the organization can help with this.

Dr. Bhanukumar Parmar I've recently been immersing myself in the world of Gen Alpha, Gen Z, & Gen Y, exploring the games they enjoy playing. It's fascinating to see how they are accustomed to accumulating rewards points in their daily lives, whether through gaming, credit card usage, or food apps. This mindset has now transitioned into the workplace, where they seek recognition & rewards for their efforts. It’s essential for organizations to align their employee recognition programs with the principles of gamification to keep employees engaged & motivated. Just like in games, where every win or milestone is celebrated with rewards points, employees should feel appreciated for their hard work and dedication.

George Kemish LLM MCMI MIC MIoL Yet again we are seeing that word 'Trust'. Treating people as individuals and providing one-on-one development and individualized feedback is a good starting point when it comes to creating a relationship that establishes trust.

Jelena Joksovic More needs to be done by building employees capacity to be on ‘top of the game’ on all levels starting with recruitment for secondary competencies such as flexibility, self control, mental toughness etc. and then moving up to other areas including wellbeing; it would be good to take that data and show how it’s being used to guide policies like?hybrid remote work, mental health etc. Employees will feel more empowered and will perform to their full without cost to them selves, their families and organizations they work. It’s a win for organizations and for employees.

Deena Priest Leaders who can take a coaching approach with their people are more able to build psychological safety and trust. However, there is also a limit to what an employee is prepared to share with a leader and this is where external coaches are valuable.

Olivera Andjelkovic That's why I always say - if you're putting someone in a managerial role, assess them first and provide them with a suitable leadership training. So, so many companies go with a flow and just assume people are skilled or mature enough to become managers...

Ali Uren ?? Create genuine opportunities to understand and learn more about each others intent and motive. This is the building blocks for trust. Be willing to move from workplaces that are built on being transactional to ones that are personalized.

Liz Rider We could rethink how we work! The leader-employee dynamic is interesting. The person who decides your performance, pay, bonus, promotion is the same person you are suppose to open up to, admit mistakes and grow. Is it any wonder that impression management takes place and trust is missing? When Time Etc. replaced their managers with coaches not only did productivity rise, employees were happier. They were able to develop.

The old practice of "Quiet Cutting" seriously affects Employee Engagement, Performance and leads to Attrition!

?? Findings of researchers:

?? This term has appeared in management articles since last year and in some research after the Quiet Quitting trend.

?? 77% of workers have witnessed quiet cutting at their company, and 58% say they have been impacted by it.

?? 80% have less trust or loyalty to their employer and 79% no longer feel loyal to their employer.

But only 18% of employees would quit immediately, according to a new interesting research published by Monster using data from US employees during March 2024.

?? Recommendation of researchers:

Researchers have found that workers react in different ways if they realize they are being affected by Quiet cutting:

?? Talk it out

?? Adapt

?? Leave

?? Do nothing

??My personal View:

This research highlights this old practice of "Quiet Cutting" that appeared last year and create a climate of fear and mistrust between employers and employees. This phenomenon impacts employee engagement and can seriously affect the reputation of the company as well so organizations need transparent communication and ethical practices in workforce management to eradicate this bad behavior.

???? What were the HR expert opinions:

Dave Ulrich Thanks for sharing research on the impact of quiet cutting on those cut. which are not a surprise. An unexpected demotion, lack of opportunity. reduce role, and lower compensation leads to the employee losing confidence in management as data shows. , the organization and oneself.. This new term, like other "new" terms (quiet quitting, great resignation, etc.) new ways of dealing with old problems... how to manage headcount in a declining business. There have been other (now old) "new" terms for this process: downsizing, right sizing, restructuring, workforce reduction, layoffs, (RIF), etc.) Often business cycles exist where employees need to be let go. What is more interesting to me is how to manage this is a more positive way, for both employees who leave and stay and for the organization. Bev Kaye and I called this managing in a recession and identified some legacy practices that can be adapted to today's situation Hopefully the practices in this present research can be coupled with our findings to help even difficult choices to downsize a positive experience for the employee and organization.

Jos van Snippenberg A tendency what is not in favour of any stakeholder. It reminds me to a story of a client that illustrates the power of fostering a strong company culture through meaningful dialogue. The leader of the company, recognized the importance of building trust and engagement among the employees. To achieve this, he implemented the "Value Dialogue," a structured conversation aimed at understanding the passion, self-efficacy and motivation to grow of each team member. All the leaders were able to discuss the root cause of what influenced employee sentiment.

ILDIKO BUJAKI I strongly agree with your personal view. In this heavily disrupted world where uncertainty affects every area of life and different generations have to face diverse challenges with their careers, “Quiet Cutting” definitely widens the gap between employees and employers. Fear and distrust often generate a flow of gossiping inside and outside of the company which is another risk factor to harm the company’s reputation and Employer Brand.

Despite the widespread use of ChatGPT in the workplace, we are still in the proof-of-concept or pilot phase of generative AI !

?? Findings of researchers:

ChatGPT has reached critical mass adoption faster than other modern innovations but that doesn't mean a massive productivity gain at all !

?? About a third of employees under 30 have now used ChatGPT for work!

The spread of generative AI is impressive not only in terms of geographic breadth but also speed of adoption across industries.

?? Generative AI’s potential is vast, yet years of scaling are needed for full productivity benefits.

?? While many employees notice an improvement in productivity, more than one-third of generative AI-using employees report no change or a decline in productivity after adopting generative AI, according to two new interesting research published by Oliver Wyman Pew Research Center using data ?? from a survey of 10,133 U.S. adults during February 7 to February 11, 2024.

?? Recommendation of researchers:

Researchers found three potential reasons people might use ChatGPT:

1?? For work

2?? To learn something new

3?? For entertainment

??My personal View:

As demonstrated by the analysis of these 3 wonderful pieces of research that I have just shared with you, we must carefully analyze the evolution of the adoption of Generative AI applications in the world of work and the impact on HR. Despite the articles on this subject, we are still at the proof-of-concept stage according to researchers and the productivity gains are not yet up to par. Just because there is mass adoption doesn't mean productivity is spectacular.

???? What were the HR expert opinions:

Dave Ulrich Thank you for sharing this post and our views on GenAI progress. As we move up the S-curve, GenAI will likely use information to move from Artificial Intelligence that improves efficiency to Augmented or Informed Intelligence that shapes decision making. Thanks for sharing!

Lisa Carlin Personally I’ve found Gen AI to save me hours of work each week, and plenty of creative shortcuts which I share with my clients and write about…I see AI as one tool of many to accelerate strategic projects and productivity. Everyone needs to find their own preferred way keep their skills relevant and updated!

Jos van Snippenberg As always the main question to ask: what is value? In terms of AI, i am sure that it will make things easier. In daily life ChatGpt broadens already the scope of ideas, and helps to strengthen the way how text is defined. In my opinion it's a toolbox in development that is in favor for many occasions.

Pete Grett Absolutely fascinating insights on the adoption and impact of Generative AI in the workplace!

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