What is HR Analytics? A Guide
You’re asked to identify and deploy data-driven HR practices, but you aren’t exactly sure where to start. You might have some HR data stored in spreadsheets, filing cabinets, and various systems but aren’t sure what to do with it or how to make the data-driven decisions you’ve been asked to make. How can you use the data you have to help your leaders transform the organization? The answer is through HR analytics. What is HR analytics, and how does it help you make the most of data? Keep reading to find out. What is HR analytics? HR analytics, sometimes referred to as people analytics, talent analytics, or workforce analytics, collects, analyzes, and uses employee data to inform and transform HR decisions. HR analytics allows an organization to make data-driven decisions based on various types of HR data collected. Some examples of HR data that the HR team might gather as part of their analytics include headcount, compensation, work location, onboarding details, turnover rates, employee engagement, learning and development opportunities, and more. In the same way that marketers gather data about their target customers to plan campaigns and marketing efforts, HR collects data about their employees or candidates. HR teams can use HR data analytics to better understand an organization’s workforce and better plan for the business’s future success. Why use data in HR? Data might not seem like part of the puzzle when it comes to HR, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. When gathered and used in a meaningful way, HR departments have an opportunity to reap a variety of benefits from HR data. Here are some of the advantages of gathering and using HR data: You can unlock powerful insights about the employee journey. HR data can provide solid insights about your company. You can gather data on the experience as a candidate pre-hire, how candidates move through recruitment and hiring stages to become employees, and how employees experience and perceive the company culture over time. Data in these areas helps identify areas of opportunity based upon actual feedback (as opposed to guesses or assumptions) for more significant change. You can better forecast resource needs. HR teams and employers can use HR data to predict and forecast hiring and resourcing needs. Managing recruiting and hiring can also reduce employee burnout from heavy workloads, leading to higher retention rates. It’s a win-win for everybody when you use data to grasp who you need to hire and when to do so to maintain steady streams of productivity. You can make HR processes more efficient and effective. Gathering data on HR processes can help you spot ways to make things more efficient that may have otherwise gone unnoticed. These improvements will not only benefit future employees who walk through these processes, but HR will also save time and energy spent on these projects. Challenges of HR analytics Gathering data when implementing HR analytics comes with its own unique set of obstacles, as evidenced by some of the most common challenges HR professionals experience when starting to collect HR data: Data can come from many different (and potentially inconsistent) sources. No matter what specific types of analytics you focus on, you’ll likely need to pull data from various departments and tools within your organization. For example, you may need to gather compensation and payroll data from finance. When collecting data sets from different departments, it can be tricky to consolidate and unify them in one centralized place. Some data sets may not align with others depending on each department’s process for gathering and maintaining their own information. Privacy and compliance can lead to murky waters. HR professionals aren’t strangers to working with sensitive information, but abiding by privacy and compliance laws can get complicated if you have to bring in other departments (like IT, for example) for technological assistance when working with sensitive data. Not only that, but HR always has to pay attention to protected characteristics and types of data from candidates or employees that can’t be stored or used. HR professionals may not have a data analytics background or the skills needed to run with the HR analytics strategy. Generally speaking, analytical and quantitative classes aren’t a part of formal HR education programs. HR professionals dabble in the “human” side of things, not the numbers, right? The problem is that HR analytics expands beyond high-level data sets, creating a steep learning curve for those who aren’t data proficient. Some argue that HR analytics takes the “human” out of human resources. HR analytics and gathering data can allow you and your teams to make better informed and data-driven decisions, but don’t forget that HR is ultimately about human beings. It’s important to understand that data can work alongside the human elements that make HR beneficial to an organization. Examples of HR analytics in action The use of HR analytics has grown in recent years, and companies across the globe are now using HR analytics to achieve big goals. If you’re unsure how HR data and analytics can help your organization, read through these real-life examples of HR analytics in action. Google People analytics has a significant impact on major corporations like Google. Google began to think seriously about using HR analytics in 2006 to support its People Operations organization. In a project known as Project Oxygen, Google set out to better understand and define the role of managers within their organization. Using observations and data from performance reviews, productivity metrics, and double-blind interviews, Google identified eight behaviors exhibited by the company’s best managers. European telecom company McKinsey & Company helped a major telecom company develop a talent and leadership strategy to drive their recruiting efforts. After identifying key findings such as a shortage of leaders and doubts about the HR team’s credibility, McKinsey & Company helped the organization lay out a strategy based on the data findings. Ultimately, recruiting time for the telecom company was cut in half. Once the three-year plan concluded, the company’s talent pipeline was strong enough to fuel company growth for the next five years. How to implement HR analytics Are you ready to implement an HR analytics strategy at your organization? There are a few tips to keep in mind as you get started. 1. Identify a business problem that needs to be solved What are you trying to solve for? Perhaps your organization wants to boost its retention numbers or reduce onboarding time for new hires. Choose one business problem to start with and focus on only one at a time. If it makes sense for you and your team, you can create a complete list of business problems to solve and prioritize them for future reference. 2. Identify relevant data you’ll need to get started and where you can locate it You’re going to need a centralized hub to unify and store all of your data. Start by identifying what data you need, where it’s being collected throughout the company, and how to gather and consolidate it. This step will likely take you some time, but it’s sure to pay off in the end. 3. Find a mix of analytical tools that work best for you and your team HR professionals aren’t necessarily trained in analytics, and that’s okay. You’ll need to develop your team’s analytical capabilities through training and development, and then you should choose tools that make sense for your team to use. Keep in mind that you don’t have to select the fanciest, most complicated analytical tools to help you achieve your desired results. 4. Analyze and transform your data Conduct data analysis and be prepared for insights that will help transform the data and your organization. This is where various methodologies, data models, and hypotheses come into play. With these key findings and insights, you should determine recommendations to help your business improve and solve the business problem you identified at the start of the process. Communicate your recommendations clearly to the key stakeholders and decision-makers. 5. Implement data-driven changes and evaluate their success Once you’ve communicated your data-driven recommendations to the organization’s key stakeholders, you’ll need to identify what changes are agreed upon and implement them. Test your hypotheses, start preparing your organization for changes, and then put a plan in place to monitor the success of those shifts. How to use Wrike as your HR analytics software You’ll need a tool to help you organize and analyze your HR data, and Wrike is a great option to use as your HR analytics software. Here are just a few of the features that make Wrike the perfect software option for you and your team: Secure collaboration so you can maintain and store sensitive data with ease Streamlined HR process capabilities and functionality HR templates, like the Employee Onboarding and Offboarding Template Wrike Analyze for powerful, diverse analytics dashboards and enhanced reporting Are you ready to put your HR data to work? Sign up for a free trial of Wrike today.
Wrike Collaborate, Day 1: Digital Transformation, Operational Excellence, and the Future of Work
More than 375 marketers, project managers, creatives, IT professionals, and executives descended on the Hilton San Francisco Union Square for Collaborate, Wrike’s first-ever user conference. We bring you the highlights from day 1.
5 Digital Transformation Challenges and How to Overcome Them
Digital transformation has been happening since the personal computer was invented and was turbocharged when the internet came along, as people were able to communicate instantly across the globe. The “cloud” was the next big revelation, as teams worldwide could access their data securely no matter where they operated. Fast forward to 2020, and the pandemic forced many organizations to shift how they worked together overnight as digital transformation came to the forefront once again. McKinsey notes that responses to the pandemic have sped up the adoption of digital technologies by several years and that many of these changes could endure long into the future. After all, Zoom is now a household name thanks to millions of companies transitioning to remote work and embracing virtual collaboration. The workplace will continue to evolve as organizations look to work smarter and be more efficient. But what is digital transformation? What should organizations be aware of as they continue to move towards the future of work? And how can you overcome the biggest digital transformation challenges to reach success in this new environment? What is digital transformation? Digital transformation is different at every organization. It involves having an open mindset to establish new paradigms with how teams work internally with each other and externally with customers. It’s about leveraging modern technology to inform how a business is run and encompasses everything from improving business processes, to revamping your internal culture, and enhancing customer interactions. With the massive shift to digital, the increase of emerging tech has led many companies to experience digital fatigue as they adopt more apps and software to “always be on” while working remotely. It’s not just about adopting technology, though. It’s also about having a forward-thinking growth mindset. On the corporate side, being able to innovate faster and keep up with the times are at the top of the priority list of why organizations embrace digital transformation. There are many reasons why you might consider investing in technology, but successfully implementing it often comes with the following digital transformation challenges. Five common digital transformation challenges Establishing executive buy-in Getting executive buy-in is often the biggest hurdle because they may have established workflows or invested in tech that were once effective but are now outdated. The pandemic may have changed all that. At the beginning of 2020, 67% of U.S. CEOs expressed concerns about migrating all of their business to the cloud. At present, most companies have had no choice but to embrace digital technologies. That initial hesitation quickly switched to necessity — so much so that 70% of CEOs say that the creation of new digital business models and revenue streams has been accelerated by months or years due to the pandemic. Hard to argue with results like that. To keep up with the times, not giving new technology or processes a chance can be even riskier than doing nothing. Dealing with employee pushback On the flip side, your executive management team may be now challenging the status quo they established when the company was founded and going all-in on digital transformation. Just because the C-level may be convinced that disrupting business processes and investing in newer digital tools is the new way to go, doesn’t mean everyone in the organization has bought in. So, if getting executive buy-in is priority one — since they approve the budget — then getting departmental buy-in from team leaders and their employees is priority one-A. They’re likely the ones using these tools on a daily basis so they need to buy-in more than anyone. With any new tech on the job, your team might be uncomfortable using it at first. That’s normal because they’re accustomed to familiar processes and by introducing anything new, that familiarity is disrupted. “That’s the way we’ve always done it” can’t be a valid response when an organization looks to outpace its competition and scale. Just make sure the reasons for embracing digital transformation are for the long term. Remember, your digital transformation journey doesn’t belong to one individual or department. Keep employees engaged during the onboarding process by encouraging them to ask questions and be involved with the deployment. Doing this can empower them and have them feel more involved in the decision making rather than being mandated to use the new tech. Furthermore, already having (or implementing) an agile strategy can help your team navigate uncertainty as you roll out new technologies or processes during the Next Normal. You’re relying on legacy tools too much Imagine if your team was limited to pen and paper; using sticky notes to communicate, desk calendars to schedule meetings, and relying on phone calls to check in on projects. It’s hard to fathom any business in 2021 being able to scale and collaborate efficiently with such primitive methods when there’s many sophisticated solutions now available. If you’re relying on legacy tools like email and spreadsheets, which are no doubt a step above handwritten notes and phone calls, these have their own set of limitations. Your inbox and spreadsheets still have a place, but modern teams need more than these foundational tools. The biggest issues are scalability and versatility. Searching your email for project updates and asset feedback is tedious and time-consuming. Questions like, “Where is the most recent version of the demo video?” and “Which one-pager do I need to give feedback and approve?” would be difficult to resolve scouring your email inbox. With spreadsheets, not only are they mind-numbing to look at, but even with advanced formulas and formatting, they lack the versatility of cloud tools. And you can forget about saving files to spreadsheets or setting project reminders because that’s nonexistent with Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets. Features like online visual asset proofing provide widespread visibility into time-sensitive feedback along with automatic user notifications, which speed up approval times. Collaborating is easier than ever today because everything lives in the cloud. When you manage your work in a collaborative work management (CWM) solution like Wrike, it’s a master system of record that stores all your comments and file updates, automates approvals, tracks your team’s hourly rates, and a whole lot more. Plus, with built-in features like the @mention and cross-tagging, you can keep everyone in the loop. It’s your paper trail that details everything happening with ongoing and future work. When an organization’s goal is to be agile and scalable, relying on legacy tools might be “familiar” but not the best business decision. Updating your tech stack would be best for the long term, even if there are short-term struggles with getting your team onboard. Overcoming budget constraints Adopting a digital transformation mindset is necessary to innovate faster and be more resilient, but your budget may be limited to move away from legacy processes into more modern tools. Building the business case for a new technology can be intimidating because it’s often seen as your “one shot” to get budget approval. When it’s time to introduce a new technology to your team, it’s easier when there are low barriers to entry, like a software free trial. As you begin building the business case, give examples of how your team missed a deadline or is constantly experiencing bottlenecks with its work and not meeting its KPIs. Then, experiment by managing a few projects in a new software and document your team’s experience. What was superior compared to the old system? Could they track project progress better? What were the bottom-line results? Analyzing the project and answering these types of questions can go a long way in getting budget approval. Wrike Free, for instance, allows unlimited users to manage their work in a centralized hub, typical of how enterprise and hypergrowth organizations manage their work. Unlimited users means nobody on your team is excluded and gets to work out of the same platform. With 200 subtasks available, it’s a fantastic entry point for organizations looking to experience the benefits of a robust CWM system. Syncing all your tech As you consider adding new tools to your tech stack, figuring out how to make them pass the relevant data back and forth can be overwhelming. Unless you have a strong IT or technological background, dealing with APIs can be confusing and too much “tech speak.” When you work in Wrike, integration is a breeze because Wrike Integrate enables you to sync more than 400+ prebuilt connectors to cloud and on-premises enterprise applications. It also lets you connect Wrike to thousands more using universal connectors to apps with accessible APIs. What’s even better, it’s a no-code system, and very intuitive for any user skill set. Don’t let digital transformation challenges overwhelm you Whether you’re looking to adopt new technologies or revamp your business processes, don’t let it overwhelm you. When you’re ready to experience how hypergrowth and enterprise organizations manage their work with a CWM, go here to start your Wrike free trial.
How Will Recruitment Be Different in a Post-Pandemic Office?
Over the last 18 months, industries and teams around the globe have had the challenge of adapting to a newly distanced workforce. Every process has been subject to unprecedented changes and alterations, as the COVID-19 pandemic swept through the world’s businesses. Now, as organizations begin to move back towards a hybrid or office-based workforce, teams are faced with the challenge of adapting a ‘new normal’ — using what they have learned during the pandemic to make offices a safer, more productive environment for employees. Hiring and onboarding have been some of the hardest challenges when it comes to COVID-19’s impact on the global workforce. Millions of employees faced job losses and temporary layoffs, and many were forced to pivot their careers in a totally new direction. At the same time, HR teams were re-focusing their energy on remote hiring — finding interviewing, and onboarding candidates virtually Many of those who started new jobs in 2020 have still never met their colleagues in person. Now, HR teams are preparing a return to an in-person framework for recruiting and onboarding new employees. What changes should HR professionals prepare for in returning to the office? How should they approach in-person onboarding as the pandemic continues? What are the priorities that HR teams can target to improve employee experience? How has hiring and onboarding changed since the pandemic? In April 2020, the U.S. unemployment rate reached its peak of the pandemic, at a huge 14.7%, with 20.5 million people out of work. The sudden flood of newly unemployed and furloughed people into the candidate pool meant that many had to upskill or even make a career pivot to remain afloat. According to a survey of 4,000 workers by Aviva earlier this year, 60% of UK workers intend to make changes to their career as a result of the pandemic, including finding a completely different vocation (9%) or taking on a role that helps others (8%). While the prospect of unemployment can be a great motivator, it’s not the only reason that workers worldwide are considering a career change. According to Prudential Financial’s Pulse of the American Worker survey, of the 26% of workers surveyed who plan to switch jobs post-COVID, 80% are doing so because they’re concerned about career advancement. It’s up to HR and hiring managers to bridge the gap between disengaged candidates and their new career goals. Such disruption in the hiring industry can be seen as a hindrance, but it’s also a huge opportunity for innovation and growth. So how can you harness that opportunity and prepare for the return to the office? What will change when we return to the office? So, what will the post-pandemic office look like for new hires? There are a number of factors to consider when it comes to migrating back to an office environment — including social distancing measures, cleanliness and hygiene standards, and the possibility of a hybrid model for employees. The post-COVID workspace will be much more flexible, with the focus shifting from nurturing a strictly in-office culture to an emphasis on work/life balance and being adaptable to employee’s lifestyles. Managers should be aware of what they need to do to ensure a safe and supportive workspace for their team members, with hiring teams especially responsible for new hires’ first impressions of the office. Onboarding will also take on a different look for the post-COVID workforce. While hiring teams have spent the last 18 months adapting to remote interviews, digital contracts, and Zoom ice-breakers, now is the time to take what you’ve learned during the pandemic, and put it to use for a new generation of workers. How to implement in-person hiring So, what are some best practices to consider when it comes to in-person hiring? From sourcing to signing contracts, here are some of our top tips: Look past location for sourcing new talent: Hopeful candidates have been upskilling and honing their interview techniques for 18 months now, so your hiring team should have no issue finding fantastic talent for open positions. However, make sure not to fall into old habits and only stick to tried-and-tested parameters for potential hires. Look past location (remote working has been proven to work well for many industries), previous experience (many have pivoted to new career paths), and backgrounds to dig deeper into what makes a truly great candidate. How do you want your post-COVID workforce to look? If diverse, multi-skilled, practical, and problem-solving are your answers (hint: they should be), you may have to cast a wider net to find the perfect fit. Consider your candidate’s circumstances when reaching out for next steps: You’ve found a fantastic candidate and you want them to come in for an interview. But remember, we are in the ‘new normal,’ and it’s essential to be considerate of your candidate’s unique circumstances when inviting them into your office. Are they able to travel? Is the office accessible to them? Can they comfortably comply with COVID measures in the office? It’s important to hash these issues out early, as these factors will become important in the next stages. Implement a strict process for in-person interviews: When bringing multiple candidates in to interview, it’s imperative to keep your office as safe as possible while the pandemic is ongoing. Social distancing measures, proper cleaning and hygiene protocols, and contact tracing processes must be in place before interviews can take place. Ask for candidate’s feedback and be sure to take any criticisms they have on board going forward. Don’t relax your standards once hiring ends: When your candidate has signed their contract, this doesn’t mean that your COVID policy can be forgotten. A positive onboarding experience is essential to a new hire staying in your company for the long haul. Ask about the working model that is best for them, and what would make them more comfortable in your workspace. Habits to keep from remote hiring and onboarding While you may be looking forward to getting back to meeting candidates in-person, keep in mind the habits and lessons from remote hiring and onboarding that you’ve learned so far. Flexibility is key We’ve learned throughout the pandemic that innovation can be found anywhere where flexibility is prioritized. When you allow your candidates to be creative with their applications, their interviews, and their ways of working, you open your organization up to be the best it can be. Life/work balance — not the other way around The pandemic has forced organizations worldwide to reckon with the pressure they put on employees. Late nights spent at the office does not necessarily mean that your employee is being more productive or doing their best work. It’s important to prioritize a life/work balance for your new hires moving forward. What does that look like for them, and how can you facilitate that to encourage their best work? Great communication makes for great hires Working remotely has lead to teams everywhere reconsidering their communication levels. How we check in, how often, and in what way really matters in allowing your employees to feel secure and supported in their work. Remember this throughout the onboarding process for new hires — allow them to flourish, while remaining on-hand for anything they need. How Wrike can help your hiring process post-pandemic Need some extra support to navigate the changing hiring landscape? Wrike’s work management platform gives hiring managers complete transparency and control over their onboarding processes. Keep track of all job listings and potential hires with an organization-wide view of projects, all in one place Stay connected and give feedback in real-time to your hiring teams with Wrike’s collaboration tools Remote work templates allow your teams to jump right in and streamline their processes from the very beginning Give it a try with a two-week free trial.
Remote Work Survey Index Results: The Future of Remote Work
Wrike wanted to know how workers felt about their organizations’ support to help make remote work productive and sustainable. We surveyed over 1,000 full-time workers employed by organizations that gave their employees the choice to work from home. Read on to learn more about our survey results.
How Automation, Mobile, and BYOA are Changing the Way We Work
CIO.com recently interviewed Wrike Founder and CEO, Andrew Filev, on the nine forces shaping the future of IT. The article identifies automation, collaboration, and agility as three of those forces -- and they're the very forces that inform and power our work here at Wrike. But what exactly is changing in the current landscape -- not just in information technology, but across every industry? And what factors are already at play today that will influence how business gets done in the future? Current Trends Affecting Work The Growth of Cloud Services and SaaS The growth of cloud services is one trend that's impossible to ignore. Gartner says the cloud services market will grow by 18% in 2017 to almost $250 billion, and SaaS (Software as a Service) applications make up a sizable part of that. SaaS makes IT lives a little easier in some ways, but also presents new challenges. On one hand, it's easier and costs less to deploy than on-premise solutions, and it's also much easier for a business to scale the deployment as the organization grows. But IT has to find a balance with SaaS and determine how to empower employees without losing control of intellectual property and other data. The Boom in Remote and Mobile Work Another benefit of SaaS is the ease with which it accommodates remote work and mobile work, saving employees from working out from home without equipment. These two huge factors are leading many IT leaders to think not only in terms of cost and security, but also in terms of mobility when procuring and deploying new solutions for workers. The Widespread Use of BYOA BYOA (AKA Bring Your Own App /Bring Your Own Access) is another trend that IT has been facing since the rise and ubiquity of smart mobile devices. In essence, BYOA is about workers moving away from typical corporate IT stacks and instead choosing their own array of apps, based on more efficient user experiences, functionalities, and the promise of synchronization across devices. And this all occurs without the consent of IT. BYOA is now the norm for most functions within a business, and this is actually essential for a few competitive reasons: in MarTech alone, there are now 5,381 solutions, and BYOA lets teams field-test new technology on a small scale and deploy further only when it drives adoption and results. Like anything, it has its good points. One being: mobile devices increase worker productivity and enable quick collaboration in ways that were once considered science fiction. On the other hand though, the ways that workers collaborate are not always optimized for speed or security. A keen IT professional is someone who can recognize the opportunity to scale these solutions across a larger business so that these apps can increase worker productivity while complying with every security measure in place for the enterprise. The Popularity of Automation And finally, the big trend that has us all talking chatbots and self-driving cars. Automation has a huge opportunity to improve IT and business in general. Its power lies in the ability to improve the repeatability and just as importantly, the predictability of work. When considering how AI will impact professional services market, there's no underestimating the importance of readying your business for automation. McKinsey estimates that for 60% of occupations, 30% of the tasks are "automatable" and 45% of those tasks can be automated using technologies already available today. Automating these tasks will allow workers to shift their efforts towards work that is more strategic, more cognitively engaging, and drives a higher ROI. As our CEO said in the CIO article: Automation can produce more visibility, and faster communications. Together with automation, AI and work management are opening doors for improved processes within companies. Read More on Automation: Why Automation is an Opportunity Not a Threat for Creatives 9 Forces Shaping the Future of IT (CIO.com)
Working Across Borders: How COVID-19 Shattered The Confines of Physical Locations and Work
For many global employees, work has traditionally been a physical location upheld by norms around attendance, communication, and collaboration. Over the course of the COVID-19 crisis, as swathes of global office workers transitioned from physical to remote work attendance, many attitudes around work have evolved. From reigning in an out of control “always on” culture to prioritizing workplace flexibility, employees are exploring new ways of managing work. As organizations pay special attention to hybrid and remote-first hiring, it has become clear that our collective understanding of where work can take place is changing, too. Distributed work before the pandemic Though COVID-19 significantly increased the number of people working from home on a regular basis, remote work has been on the rise for years. Improved infrastructure and work management innovations have enabled digital nomads to travel while working or connecting with teams from decentralized office locations. Remote-first organizations are hardly a COVID-era phenomenon, either. Companies like Hubstaff, Doist, and Zapier have been remote-first pioneers for years, highlighting the cost and talent acquisition benefits of distributed hiring. “We can hire people wherever we want to. We don't have to compete for Bay Area talent, and instead, we get to hire the best people all over the world,” wrote Zapier co-founder Wade Foster back in 2020. “Not only does it increase the size of the applicant pool, but it adds a layer of diversity into the company.” The steady rise in remote work has also made the modern workplace more accessible overall, allowing workers with varying needs and backgrounds to access opportunities they might otherwise have missed out on just a few years ago. The structures that make distributed work possible have been a long time coming. However, if 2020 taught businesses and their employees anything, it’s that “making it work” could also mean “making it work remotely.” [caption id="attachment_466235" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash[/caption] Reconsidering work and where it happens “Effectiveness can’t be measured by the number of hours people spend in an office,” Spotify wrote in an announcement for their distributed-first work policy, Work From Anywhere. “Instead, giving people the freedom to choose where they work will boost effectiveness.” In February 2021, Spotify outlined their decision to allow employees to choose “whether they’d prefer to work mostly at home or in the office — as well as their geographic location.” Spotify’s WFA policy is by no means the “norm” for enterprise or even the company’s industry peers. Still, it does underscore the idea that work potential and effectiveness are not tied to a physical location. Employees know this, too. Many have spent the last year doing jobs they were previously told could only be done in an office. Now that tools like Slack, Zoom, and Wrike have empowered digital workspaces, organizations are adapting their approach to hiring in an environment where workplace flexibility (geographic and otherwise) is a top priority for jobseekers. Distributed hiring LinkedIn data offers additional insight into how organizations are approaching remote and distributed hiring. As of May 2021, the career networking site said that the percentage of paid “remote work” job listings on their platform was up by 457% from the previous year. The industries that saw the greatest percentage of remote work growth, according to their data, include media and communications, IT, and corporate services. Presumably, these jobs won’t just disappear once the pandemic is over, signalling a shift in how companies are thinking about talent acquisition over the next few years. In one survey of US-based HR professionals, one-quarter of respondents said they’d be willing to hire fully remote workers anywhere in the country (up from 3% pre-pandemic), with 7% saying they’d even hire globally for open roles (up from 2% pre-pandemic). Even as global vaccine rollouts see more and more office workers returning to in-person and hybrid attendance, the last year has certainly tested the strict geographical limitations of the pre-pandemic office. Looking beyond local As with any complex conversation about the ever-evolving workplace, there’s much to consider beyond changing attitudes. COVID-19 may have impacted the way we think about where work gets done, but experts warn about the tax implications of an increasingly remote workforce. Even Zapier’s Wade Foster calls this the “compliance and regulatory elephants in the room,” noting that hiring, payroll, and taxes for teams in multiple jurisdictions can be a huge undertaking. Still, we are witnessing a real-time evolution in how organizations and employees view work and where it happens. Gradually, many are moving away from the idea that you have to travel each day to a physical location to achieve work goals or connect with colleagues. By revisiting ideas about strict in-office attendance and creating more remote opportunities, organizations can access a wider talent pool of workers and increase opportunities for diverse and more inclusive hiring. Building the workplace of the future with collaborative work management The tools we use to meet objectives, collaborate with co-workers, and manage tasks are more important than ever. Wrike’s collaborative work management features empower an increasingly hybrid and dispersed workforce to manage tasks, collaborate in a flexible environment, and build systems and workflows that reflect how they achieve their goals. Learn more about how Wrike helps teams adapt to the evolution of work by creating digital hubs for innovation and enabling work management from anywhere. Try a free two-week trial and discover why 20,000+ teams trust Wrike.
Lessons from Remote Working We Shouldn’t Forget
It’s been almost 15 months since the WHO declared COVID-19 as a pandemic, the US borders closed to much of the rest of the world, and around 42% of 157 million US workers (almost 66 million) switched to working remotely full-time. While some experts argue that this has led to an unhealthy always-on culture and the rise of Zoom fatigue, we have learned a few very important lessons from remote working that we need to keep in mind as some of us choose to return to work in an office setting. As a result of the flexible remote work policies that have remained for many post-pandemic, many workers are moving to more affordable parts of their metro areas. In the cities of New York and San Francisco specifically, they are leaving the city completely, ditching high living costs for more affordable locations. But it hasn’t been the only major change the remote work revolution has brought. Even before the pandemic, achieving work-life balance had become the second most important factor for US workers in relation to choosing a company after compensation. And the blurred lines that a year of remote work (along with closed schools) brought have forced that further into focus. As Forbes shares, the increased acceptance of working from home may help our workforce to finally gain a better work-life balance. It’s no doubt that a year of remote work has changed both our lifestyles and our priorities greatly. So, what have we learned from the advantages of remote working? And what impact will that have on our decision of whether we want to be working from home or the office? A flexible remote work policy is a must for employers An interesting trend emerged when younger generations entered the workforce – they weren’t afraid to prioritize work-life balance. But what is even more important is that older employees are just as likely to want flexible working — they are just less likely to ask for it, according to The New York Times. In a report by Harvard Business School, the vast majority of the 11,000 workers and 6,500 business leaders surveyed listed expectations for flexible, autonomous work, better work/life balance, and remote work as the development most urgently affecting their businesses. Only 30% cited that they were prepared for these. And according to The Times, 50% of employees would quit if denied a flexible remote work policy, so it’s a shift that employers will need to pay serious attention to. Teams need the right tools working from home or the office Leaning into a year of remote work made it blisteringly obvious that not all employees had access to the right software. According to a report by Deloitte, employees who worked in a culture that encouraged innovation and had access to collaboration tools were 34% happier than those who did not. And although a third had requested better collaboration tools, only a third of these received a positive response to the request. Interestingly, when employees used the tools they were familiar with at home in the office, they reported increased productivity, higher engagement, and improved morale. [caption id="attachment_466139" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash[/caption] Achieving work-life balance is more important than ever When many employers initially feared that a move to working from home would lead to lower levels of productivity, study after study has found the opposite – employees get more done but only because they work longer hours. In fact, US workers are working on average three hours extra a day. The long-term result of this? Higher levels of burnout and decreased productivity. And in the short-term? Half of us (54%) are checking our devices more outside of work hours, feel more alone (24%), have gained weight (22%), and feel a decrease in our mental health (21%). The impact of these worrying trends from remote work has revealed that achieving a work-life balance is absolutely paramount for our health and happiness. It is vital that employers need to do what they can to encourage and promote this for their employees. Remote working has proved not every meeting is necessary Like it has done for achieving work-life balance, remote work has made it glaringly obvious that we need to use our time at work wisely. And often, that means clearing our calendar of unnecessary meetings. Recently, investment bank Citigroup announced a ‘Zoom-free’ Friday to ease the video call fatigue associated with our new ways of working. A large-scale study by Microsoft found that in about 30% of video meetings, employees interacted with their emails, while in 25% of meetings, they worked on other files such as documents. This was especially true for longer meetings and meetings held early in the day. Possibly the most important finding was that attendees of meetings that lasted 80 minutes or more were six times more likely to multi-task than those who were in meetings that lasted 20 minutes or less. Whether we are working from home or office, we need to be selective about how long our meetings need to be (or indeed, if the discussion requires a meeting at all). Employees need the choice of working from home or office It will come as no surprise that sharing a workspace with your children, pets, or spouse (sometimes in very small spaces) is not for everyone. The Society for Human Resources Management reminds that some employees are uncomfortable with the isolation of remote work. They share the example of The New York Times’ newspaper unit who prefer working from the office as it is what they are used to. According to The Wall Street Journal, around 25% of work time will be from home (versus 5% pre-pandemic). Meanwhile, Forbes shares a lengthy list of employers that are offering indefinite remote work. The main takeaway is that employees will inevitably have different preferences – the most important thing is that they are given a choice. We need to rethink how we use office space As a result of this choice and the reality that fewer employees will be in the office, organizations will no doubt need to rethink how they use their office space. And let’s face it, it’s a massive expense for employers – it can cost up to $595 per square foot. Even pre-pandemic, it’s estimated that around 30-40% of desks were typically unoccupied anyway. A study by WeWork found that post-COVID, most employees will want to split their time between the office, home, and other locations such as co-working spaces, libraries, or cafés. ComputerWeekly shares that a quarter of employers are planning to reduce their office space, while almost three-fifths say they planned to change meeting room layouts to make it easier for remote staff to participate in discussions, while 55% would add video-conference rooms. The biggest lesson from remote work whether we are working from home or office? This year of remote work has been the catalyst to readjust our relationship to work and how we work. In the next normal, employers will need to give employees the opportunity to decide where and how they work, prioritize work-life balance, and get the flexibility they need to do their best work.
6 Trends Shaping the Future of Work (Infographic)
Fax machines, rolodexes, and PDAs seem like ancient history, yet just 10 years ago they were ubiquitous office tools. What surprises does the next decade hold for today’s workers? As the old adage says, the only constant is change. Set yourself up for success by keeping an eye on these 6 big trends that are defining how we’ll work in the years to come. Share this infographic with your forward-thinking friends and colleagues on social media, or by posting it on your site with this embed code: Infographic brought to you by Wrike Get ready for the future of work Thousands of you expressed your opinions on how we'll work in the coming years in our recent surveys. Download the work management and mobile productivity survey reports to find out what your peers believe are the most important changes coming to the workplace, from telework to advances in tech. Why wait for tomorrow? Boost your productivity and work results today by starting a free trial of Wrike.
Is the 9-5 Job Dead? The Rise of Flexible Working in the Post-Pandemic Office
In February 2021, just two months before all US adults were to be offered a COVID-19 vaccine, Brent Heyder, the president of Salesforce, declared, “the 9-5 is dead." Even if it soon becomes safe for office-based employees to return to work in their droves, some companies are not entirely sure that the traditional 9 to 5 job is worth returning to. Instead, companies like Salesforce are giving employees the choice between: Flexible working (1-3 days in-office for collaboration, meetings, and presentations) Fully remote (for roles that do not require the office or those who live too far from one) Office-based (for roles that cannot be done from home) The company argues that ditching regular work week hours will improve employee connection, work-life balance, and equality, ultimately leading to increased innovation and better business outcomes. So, is the 9 to 5 job really dead? There is no doubt that flexible working looks likely to become a standard offering for many employers. With improvements to technology, we have seen trends such as the rise of digital nomadism flourish. Around 70% of employees expect flexible work schedules post-pandemic, and 50% say they would leave a job if it were not offered. However, the idea that “the 9-5 is dead” may be an oversimplification. According to a report by Inc., regular work week hours have always been a "modern-day illusion," and clocked time has never been a good indicator of progress or productivity. It argues that, by giving employees task ownership instead, they can complete these more efficiently with respect for both their own time and their teammates’. Inc argues that the 9-5 job is not dead because it did not really exist in the first place — most workers struggled to get their work done within the allocated time, even before the COVID-19 pandemic. By allowing flexible working and shifting our focus to outcomes and the benefits of remote working, workers can avoid burnout by using their time more wisely and setting appropriate, achievable timelines for their goals. Why working 9 to 5 hours may not suit younger employees Enabling flexible working will not only future-proof your organization to accommodate employees’ expectations, but it will also be an important move for retaining younger employees. For example, nearly one in two (45%) of millennials will choose flexibility over pay. And when the vast majority of businesses report that it costs $15,000 - $25,000 to replace a millennial employee, it could be an expensive mistake not to hear this preference. The New York Times echoes this, saying, “it’s not about jumping up titles, but moving into better work environments.” Companies such as Apple and Walmart have also begun to discuss the need to shift the focus from prioritizing shareholders to taking care of employees. An increase in flexible work schedules may also help gender equality. As more fathers and non-parents request it, there is less space for "the flexibility stigma" mothers experience to remain. A survey by Werk also found that older generations are just as likely to want flexible working — they’re just less likely to ask for it. How to move away from regular work week hours So, if flexible working is inevitable, then what is the best way to implement it? A report by Inc. advises to keep these three golden rules: Debunk the 40-hour myth. What was first introduced by Henry Ford in the early 1900s to attract autoworkers who were used to 12-hour shifts has become obsolete. In fact, having fewer hours to complete a task tends to sharpen focus. Adapt to peak-performance styles. Some people thrive by replacing their fifth working day with four 10-hour shifts, while some find that impossible. Offer your employees the opportunity to decide when and how they work best. Offer solutions to the challenges of working from home, including home office setup ideas and appropriate technology. Synchronize schedules. Ensure that teams who do need regular meetings have at least some overlap during their flexible working hours. This may not need to be every day but assess how often your team will need it. Different flexible working options Inc. outlines some of the options available for organizations hoping to move on from the concept of the 9 to 5 job below: Flexitime: Employees can choose from a range of available hours Compressed work week: The work week is compressed into fewer than five days (usually by creating four 10-hour days) Flexiplace: Employees can work virtually from home or any non-office location Job sharing: Two people voluntarily share the duties and responsibilities of one full-time position, with the salary divided according to this share Work sharing: Usually used to avoid layoffs, this introduces reduced hours and salaries for a portion of their workforce in order to maintain all employees Expanded leave: Employees can request extended periods of time away from work without losing their rights as employees – this can be paid or unpaid Phased retirement: Under this arrangement, the employer and employee agree to a schedule of gradual reduction of work commitments over a period of months or years Partial retirement: Employees can continue working on a part-time basis, with no established end date Work and family programs: Employers provide some degree of assistance to employees who have childcare or elder-care responsibilities Benefits of flexible work schedules According to job advertisement site Flexjobs, some of the benefits of leaving a 9 to 5 job behind for employees include: Improved retention: Even pre-pandemic, 80% of workers would choose a job that offered a flexible schedule over those that did not, with 80% saying they would be more loyal to their employer if afforded flexible working. Increased talent: By offering what is known to be one of the most attractive perks, offering flexible work schedules can help your organization recruit top-tier talent. Improved diversity: Not only has inclusion and equality become a non-negotiable for younger workers, building a more diverse workforce creates higher-performing teams, so it’s also smart business. Increased productivity: Even before the pandemic, remote workers worked more hours on average than in-office employees. But more importantly, shifting to a results-oriented culture enables teams to focus on getting the results they want. Improved employee engagement: One of the best ways to drive engagement is to show workers they are respected enough to be trusted with flexible working Decreased costs and environmental impact: Unsurprisingly, fewer overheads and less commuting (or at least less rush-hour traffic) have a hugely beneficial impact on cutting costs and helping climate change. How Wrike helps teams succeed with flexible working Now that the world’s workforce is starting to ditch the 9 to 5 job, we need the right software to keep up. Wrike enables teams who opt for flexible work schedules to gain 360° visibility on progress and productivity with shared dashboards, one-click Gantt charts, and advanced, automated reporting. Get started for free.
How To Disconnect From an 'Always On' Work Culture
Starting to feel burnout from your 'always on' work culture? The initial results from ‘the great work from home experiment’ were very promising, with a third of managers reporting higher productivity levels. However, the data was missing one important factor — we had embraced an 'always on' work culture, forgetting the advantages of a work from home culture. The increased productivity did not account for the fact that we began working, on average, an extra three hours a day. Or that over half of us (54%) are checking our devices more outside of work hours, felt more alone (24%), had gained weight (22%), and felt a decrease in our mental health (21%). In fact, there is evidence to suggest that the excessive use of devices and resulting sleep issues cause us to be less productive. Ensuring better work-life balance isn’t just good for employees’ health, it’s good business. It reduces stress and the likelihood of burnout, which costs the U.S. economy somewhere between $125 - $190 billion dollars a year. It’s also part of a very important work trend indicating that each new generation that enters the workforce values the importance of work-life balance more than the last. Not just that, but several countries around the world have now started to create legislation around being contacted outside of work hours, or what the European Union has campaigned for as ‘the right to disconnect.’ So, what are the most effective work-life balance tips for an 'always on' work culture? Set up ‘working hour’ settings for all apps In what one Wall Street Journal writer described as ‘a masochistic need to please bosses’, many of us may feel that we can never be too far from our work devices. In fact, a 2016 study by The Academy of Management found employees rack up eight hours a week answering emails outside of work hours. How to tackle this element of 'always on' work culture: If you’re unable to ignore your devices, at least cut the notifications. For example: Google Calendar: ’Working Hours’ enables you to set defined work hours, automatically notifying eager meeting-makers that you’ll be off at that time. Apple: Customize your do not disturb settings to automatically trigger for work emails during evenings and weekends. Slack: Setting your local time will notify colleagues that you’re likely to be offline and set expectations of when you can reply. Wrike: Creating a work schedule will automatically inform colleagues (especially international ones) that you won’t be available during scheduled PTO or public holidays if you are tagged during that time. Find allies who value the importance of work-life balance Trying to find your way out of a Friday evening meeting? Even if you’re client-facing, it’s unlikely that your clients (or indeed colleagues) want to meet at a time that they’re also winding down from the week — remember this. Fast Company recommends that you find and foster relationships with people in your network who also appreciate the value of keeping schedules within designated work hours. As the statistics suggest, an 'always on' work culture isn’t the most effective way of working for anyone. Bear in mind the impact your personality type can have Struggling with an 'always on' work culture while your manager seems to thrive? The Harvard Business Review suggests that your personality, specifically within the Myer-Briggs Type Indicator, may have a role to play. For example: Creating time and space to switch off: If you are extroverted, schedule regular, active breaks with others and leave your devices in a different room when you’re de-stressing. If you are introverted, try to limit online meetings and switch off in a quiet place where you can get absorbed in an activity. Tackling information overload: If you have sensing preferences, avoid getting lost in details and ask others for their take on a situation. Don’t obsess about getting things perfect. If you have intuition preferences, try to focus on one thing at a time. Creating boundaries:If you have thinking preferences, consider your impact on others (particularly in relation to written communication). If you have feeling preferences, try to make sure that you’re not supporting others to the detriment of your own needs. Striking the right work-life balance:If you have judging preferences, set boundaries with both yourself and others around when you’ll be available. Try to stay away from your work area during time off. If you have perceiving preferences, respect others’ boundaries by not emailing out of hours, and convert your to-do list into blocks of time. Create strict boundaries for yourself The most effective way to avoid falling victim to 'always on' work culture is to treat working from home the same way you would treat working in an office. This includes everything from starting on time to wearing noise-canceling headphones to drown out distractions (just swap chatty colleagues for partners’ annoying meetings or screaming kids). Forbes recommends thinking of your home office as if it’s five miles away and removing your work equipment from sight at night in order to reinforce the importance of work-life balance. Wrike helps teams set healthy work boundaries by encouraging asynchronous communication and collaboration. If you’re a manager, normalize taking PTO The pressure of an 'always on' work culture can often come from the perceived expectations of a manager. If you’re a manager, it’s advised that you reinforce and encourage taking paid time off. Samar Ali, CEO of Millions of Conversations, explains: “I lead by example and make sure to announce when I'm taking time off, [...], and what I plan to do to unplug. If there is one thing I recommend to all executives and employees, it is to find balance.” Reinforce that you are genuinely excited for your employees to take a break by asking about their vacations in order to break the stigma. Recognize the signs of burnout (and take action) Hopefully, with the right work-life balance tips to target 'always on' work culture, you can avoid burnout from happening to you or your teammates. However, it’s important to always be on the lookout for it. The Mayo Clinic advises that there are three common symptoms: exhaustion, cynicism, and lack of satisfaction with your work. If you do experience burnout, some things that can help are: A self-care day away from work A therapy session (here are some free mental health support options) Working with your team to agree on boundaries Learning to say no to additional projects As it’s now evident that working from home is set to make up at least some of our week into the future, setting boundaries at this stage is absolutely vital. With these tips in mind, we may finally be able to learn how to disconnect from an 'always on' culture before it costs both our economy and our health.
