Top 5 Career Trends To Expect In 2022

The Coronavirus has changed the face of the workplace. As the COVID-19 pandemic revamps work trends, Human Resource teams must rethink employee and workforce planning, performance, management, and experience methods. As a result, employees have to keep on top of these upcoming trends and make the necessary adaptations. What are these workplace trends? Read on.

1.Growth in Remote Working. 

Results from a recent Gartner poll indicated that 48% of workers would work remotely after the pandemic compared to 30% prior to the pandemic. As companies shift towards remote work opportunities, employees will have to explore a new set of competencies that will help them collaborate digitally. HR teams will have to consider how to shift employee evaluations and performance goal-setting to remote contexts.

2. Extended Data Collection. 

A Gartner study showed that 16% of companies use technologies to monitor employees. Examples include overlooking work-computer use, virtual clocking, and employee email monitoring or examining internal chats and communications. Although a few companies look at productivity, other firms monitor employee well-being and engagement to understand the employee experience.

Prior to the pandemic, firms relied on nontraditional employee performance examination tools. However, this HR trend will shift to monitoring remote workers and collecting their health and safety data.

3. Time Will Not be the Only Key Indicator to Judge Performance.

Many managers are worried that working from home will create a decrease in productivity. However, to curb this possibility, HR teams will use the time to ascertain remote productivity. The time won’t be to check when the employee clocks in and out but to determine how long the employee takes to finish their assigned work.

4. Contingency Expansion. 

The ongoing pandemic has created nonstandard work settings while many other employees have lost their jobs. Companies bore the impact by reducing their employee budgets. After the pandemic, most companies will continue to rely on contingent workers to keep more flexibility in their workforce management. They will also consider implementing other work models that they used at the start of the pandemic, such as 80 percent pay for 80 percent work, and talent sharing. According to Brian Kropp, Senior Vice President at Gartner, 32 percent of companies are replacing their full-time staff with contingent workers. They’re doing this as a cost-saving measure. Even though this gives employers more workplace management flexibility, companies must evaluate performance management solutions that will apply to contingent employees. HR teams will have to figure out whether contingent workers are eligible for similar benefits as their full-time counterparts.

5. Transition From Efficiency to Resilience. 

Another 2019 Gartner survey found 55% of organizations focused on reshuffling supply chains, streamlining roles, and increasing workflow efficiency. Although these methods do improve performance, they also create weaknesses. An example is the system’s lack of flexibility, especially when responding to disruptions.

To create a resilient organization, companies must create structures and roles to improve flexibility and agility. They need to formalize how methods can become flexible. In addition, HR teams should create roles that are adaptive, varied, and flexible. These will require training and cross-functional knowledge.

The new workplace trends mentioned in this blog point to how the ongoing pandemic is changing the face of the workplace entirely. Companies and HR teams have to set up organizations that are flexible and responsive to remote work settings. In return, employees must adapt to these changes to gain meaningful employment.

To learn more about upcoming career trends in 2022, visit Go Job Search Africa.