As we reflect on the past year, what trends will we see in 2022?

What a year it’s been. A rollercoaster of lockdowns, rules, changing work landscapes and everything in between. In the midst of the chaos, the US inaugurated a new president, the UK hosted COP26 and the vaccine programme was rolled out across the world.

Back in 2020, when the first lockdown hit, the world of work changed in what’s likely to be the quickest shift in history. Literally overnight, we turned to our remote set-ups and there we stayed for an entire year while the country was plunged into lockdown. Looking back at that period, I would imagine many of us felt in a daze – unable to get our heads around what this might mean for our security and, of course, our health.

2020 was a year of worry and tension in many ways, but particularly when it came to the world of work. Should we come into the office? Shouldn’t we come into the office? We were pulled in almost every direction by the pandemic.

But fast forward to 2021 and there has been a real opportunity for us to reflect. We’ve acclimatised to our new situation, where the washing is hanging up and kids are playing in the background of our virtual meetings. We’ve had some headspace from the shock of the previous year to stop and think about what works for us and what doesn’t. Employees have a better understanding of their own working patterns, what they need from the office and what they gain from remote working.

If you’re a business leader, you might be ending the year wondering helplessly how to navigate the differing needs of your employees as we hear into the new year – it’s an overwhelming prospect when there are so many individual feelings to consider.

How can businesses best set themselves up for hiring success?

If there’s one thing from the pandemic that we can’t ignore, it’s that flexibility is no longer just a ‘nice to have’. Candidates are no longer considering flexibility as a bonus or benefit, if they can’t have it, they don’t want the job. However, it’s really important to understand that flexibility is so much more nuanced than one may initially think.

Yes, people want the flexibility to work from home for part of the week, and companies who don’t embrace that will suffer the consequences. But one thing we’ve really noticed here at PageGroup is that, on the other hand, there is this contingent of workers – school leavers, graduates, those searching for their second role, who are asking us: “Is this role office based? I don’t want to work from home, I want to learn from others and socialise with my colleagues like everyone else got to.”

After two years of disrupted studies or integrating into the workforce remotely, this is a big group of people crying out for a different kind of flexibility that gives them the opportunity to come in to the office whenever they want, and they need to be accounted for too.

Going into 2022, businesses need to understand that they can’t just look at the word flexibility and associate it with remote working. It’s got to cover the needs of everyone, whether that’s young people, older people, mothers, fathers or people with a disability.

Another trend I expect to continue is that, going forward, keeping current employees happy is going to be a challenge as great as attracting new ones. The candidate-led market and demand for talent in a national skills shortage is hiking up wages for those securing new roles, and that’s only going to continue.

It’s key that leaders and hiring managers manage this carefully. Attracting top talent with great salaries and even better benefits will secure you that much needed headcount, yes. But in order to keep existing talent, management also need to be considering how to keep their current workforce feeling like they are valued and receiving the compensation they deserve.

These are just a couple of things that leaders should have on their radar in 2022, but there are so many more things businesses need to consider. Workers are going to be demanding more from the world of work in the future, and the companies that get ahead of the game now will thrive. ?

Recruitment has been busier than ever this year, with most companies considering hiring new talent. It’s a really exciting time, especially considering the state of the market the year prior, when hiring was at its bleakest point since the financial crisis in 2009.

While it’s good news that so many businesses are looking to hire new talent, it’s important to be aware that the current supply of candidates does not necessarily match the demand. With that in mind, the final month of 2021 is a key time for leaders to consider what they can be doing to set themselves apart from the competition, and what other learnings they can take into the new year.?