Over 10,000 survey respondents in 105 countries rank leadership as top obstacle in most reported trends
NEW YORK, January 10, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Nearly three years after the pandemic, business leaders are still facing a series of global, economic and social changes, all of which are impacting business and workers at lightning speed. Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Trends 2023 report, “New Fundamentals for a Borderless World,” examines how leaders are managing these challenges and how their organizations can succeed in an ever-evolving environment if they evolve with it.
Overall, respondents to the study, which included more than 1,500 executives and board members, recognize the boundaries that traditionally govern work rules — how jobs are organized, where work takes place and who qualifies for certain roles — are falling away. However, while many understand the need for new fundamentals in today’s world of work – 87% say finding the right workplace model is important to their organization’s success – only 24% feel their organizations are well prepared to address this trend. In the near term, 59% of respondents say they are focusing on next steps to rethink their workforce models. Their commitment shows that they see great potential for reward in a new approach to work, workers and the workplace. However, survey respondents ranked leadership among the top barriers to seven of the nine trends explored in the report, showing that there is still much work to be done together for organizations to develop for future success.
“Workforce, organizational and people priorities continue to be at the top of boardroom and C-suite agendas. This year’s ‘Global Human Capital Trends’ insights confirm the continued prioritization we’ve seen over more than a decade of this research. Opportunities for leaders and their teams across industries are without borders and open new frontiers in relations between workers, customers, stakeholders and leaders, he said Art MazorDirector and Global Head of Human Capital Practice, Deloitte Consulting LLP.
Reinventing Work: The End of Jobs
Although work today is primarily defined by jobs and a description of specific tasks, many consider it an outdated term. According to Deloitte’s survey of skills-based organizations, only 19% of executives and 23% of workers say work is best structured that way. This mirrors what many are already seeing in their workplaces, with 63% of executives reporting that workers are focused on teamwork and project work outside of their current job description.
“While jobs remain the primary way we define work, they are not the only way. Rigid job definitions can limit the ability of workers and organizations to be agile and innovate in the face of disruption,” he said. Michael Griffiths, principal and head of Deloitte Consulting LLP’s learning advisory practice. “By moving to a skills-based approach, these organizations can unlock the full potential of their workforce and create a workplace where people have more choice, growth and autonomy in their careers.”
With this changing idea of what makes teams most effective, organizations are looking for ways to change work and the way it is organized and inclusively accessible. For example, 93% of respondents to the trends survey said that moving away from a focus on jobs is important or very important to the success of their organization. Yet only 20% believe their organization is well prepared to tackle the challenge, representing the largest readiness gap of all the trends surveyed. If organizations decide to urgently address this gap, the additional benefits of offshoring include unlocking the potential of workers to deliver tremendous value, making it more likely that their teams will innovate and improve processes to increase efficiency.
“Organizations around the world are seizing the opportunity to raise skills far beyond ‘functional’ or ‘technical,’ focusing on building critical workforce capabilities that will enable their people to cope with near-constant change and disruption,” he said. Kate SweeneyHead of Human Capital Practice, Deloitte UK
Reinventing the workforce: The employment agency is key
In today’s online and interconnected world, public awareness of corporate America’s impact on society is playing an increasing role in workers’ decisions about where to work. For example, 2 out of 5 Gen Z and Millennial respondents in Deloitte’s survey turned down a job or task because it didn’t align with their values. In contrast, organizations that commit to a clear purpose or mission see significant benefits—half of the executives surveyed in the trends report saw increased employee retention and well-being.
“Workers today have more influence than ever before and have shown a willingness to use it to shape the work their organizations undertake and how they do it,” he said. Steve Hatfield, Director and Head of Global Future of Work, Deloitte Consulting LLP. “To be successful in this new world of work, organizations must abandon the idea of total control and work together with workers to shape the new rules and boundaries that will define their work.”
This includes rethinking the boundaries that dictate access to and use of worker data, which 83% of executives believe is critical to their organization’s success. According to the trends report, 61% of organizations describe their data ownership as “shared” or “employee-owned,” a significant departure from traditional data models characterized by organizational control.
Reimagining
the workplace: Designing work for a borderless world
As the employment agency grows and technology accelerates, organizations should challenge the idea that workplaces are just physical locations. It’s a concept that has been under pressure for some time, with the digital approach to work becoming increasingly popular even before the pandemic. While only 15% of respondents agree that the way work is designed is one of the most important attributes for creating the future of the workplace, other factors indicate how crucial it can be. In addition, respondents report that increased worker engagement and well-being are among the most significant benefits they have seen from the future approach to the workplace.
“Many workers now see the ability to determine where they finish their work – whether at the office, at home or elsewhere – as an inalienable right,” he said. Maren Hauptmannhead of human capital, Deloitte Germany. “They see this as one of the best opportunities to co-create the future of work with their organization’s leaders and to see those statements of confidence in action.”
This evolution of the workplace calls for leaders to evolve along with their workforce, evidenced by 94% of respondents who believe that leadership capabilities and effectiveness are important to their organization’s success, the highest importance rating of all trends. However, only 23% believe their leaders have the skills to manage today’s disruptions. This leadership gap is probably the result of looking at work and workers through an outdated lens. Nearly half of respondents say their organization’s leaders are overwhelmed by distractions and struggle to identify what they should prioritize.
“Instead of worrying about finding the perfect place to start, organizations should reframe disruptions as business challenges that they can use to experiment and learn from.” Craig Eaton, head of Deloitte Consulting LLP’s HR transformation practice. “By working alongside their employees to develop these policies, organizations can ensure that wellbeing is at the heart of these changes, creating better outcomes for both business and people.”
Methodology
The insights gathered for this report use Deloitte’s scenario planning methodology and are driven by research findings from a combination of social media polling, in-person polling, AI-enabled focus groups and interviews with business and people executives across industries and—for the first time in its 11-year history— Deloitte’s “Global Trends in Human Capital” report — hundreds of workers from around the world.
About Deloitte
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SOURCE Deloitte
