Mid way through 2023, I decided that having been in recruitment for over a decade it was time to look at an area which I have always enjoyed recruiting in but never focussed on as a “desk”.

The route from Recruitment to HR is a well-worn path and though I have no immediate plans to tread that path, the last 6 months attending HR fairs, speaking to HR professionals at all levels and getting to understand the industry has been an eye opener.

So, here are some of my takes on HR in 2023

1 – Not everyone is called Jane and lives alone with their cat.

Now this may seem a bit mean, but my background is sales and sales recruitment. From a sales perspective, the perception is that HR are a bit boring. Let me tell you, the people I’m speaking too whether that be candidates or clients are fun! Loads going on and at the heart of their role is always the improvement of the work culture and benefits for the staff.

2- Ladies Club – not in 2024!

The idea of HR being female heavy is really outdated. There are loads of fellas in the industry. XpertHR say that females outweigh males in the industry 3:1, many of the lower/entry level roles seem to have male applicants and male starters showing that this statistic may be levelling off in the coming years.

3 – AI: What the ………

Anyone who attended the CIPD Annual Conference in Manchester will tell you, specifically day 1, there was lots of AI related content. I’m all about new tech helping us out but I’m still very unsure about what will come of AI in 2024. Elon Musk and Joe Rogan talk about a Skynet scenario if left unchecked but on the other hand you have Forbes putting it top of their HR Trends for 2024.

4 - Working from Home/Hybrid/Office

What will the future hold for office work? The BBC released an article noting 80% of home workers are working longer hours and its negatively impacting their mental health. Does this take into account the time for travelling into the office as “work”? Plus another BBC article targeting office workers as being more likely to receive promotions. This may lead to the question, is working from home good for a long term career? The positives are huge, time with family, better work life balance, allows people with disabilities to work in a more comfortable environment. The negatives seem equally as important to mention; loneliness, stagnation on career development and longer working hours. All these obviously come with a many opposite examples.

5 – Employee wellbeing

Companies seem to be taking a more proactive stance on maintaining the mental and physical wellbeing of their staff. The best way to increase staff retention is to make them feel that they have it good where they are. Boosting staff engagement is fundamental in a happy workplace. Its empowering to see so many amazing companies putting their staff first. Also it helps that on average its costs a company anywhere between 50% - 250% of a salary to replace a salesperson!

There''s my top 5. I’m excited to look at what 2024 will bring. If you like article, follow me on linkedin.com/in/matt-wilkinson-4977161ab and we can have a chat about any and all things HR.