Suppose you ever had the option to choose an offer from two different companies based on the workforce. Would you choose a restrictive, stagnant, and traditional one or a conducive, innovative, and experiential one? Hmm, in my case, I would obviously opt for the second option of the workforce.
Having gathered six years of HR experience in different industries, namely ISP, recruitment, manufacturing and trading, and IT, I feel that the most successful organizations are the ones that enforce a conducive, innovative, and experiential workforce. Providing the space and opportunity for encouragement and innovation and implementing the learnings from experiences in day-to-day operations drives employee satisfaction as well as organizational success.
Here, we will read through how modern workforce strategies help address and eliminate talent management challenges as I share a few moments of my journey as an HR Professional over the past six years.
How to Create a Conducive Workforce?
Every organization is formed by a group of individuals from diverse backgrounds, each having and sharing diverse perspectives and the creation of a conducive workforce begins by understanding the distinctive needs of all employees. Having said that, adopting a “no one size fits all” approach is essential and mandatory.
In my previous and first-ever role as an HR at an ISP company, we faced extremely high turnover rates, especially from entry-level employees. One day, we hired ten employees, and the other day, we had fifteen employees leaving the company without notice. The situation was critical, and after conducting exit interviews, we figured out that employees felt undervalued and overworked.
After considering numerous ways to eliminate such a huge issue, we came up with a solution of enforcing a new policy that prioritized flexible and shorter shift hours. As HR, we should always ensure that equity is balanced throughout the organization.
Soon after, an employee who was on the verge of leaving the company decided to stay back and was happy, satisfied, and motivated, which ultimately led to higher customer satisfaction rates.
Innovative Workforce and Employee Engagement
“Innovation” has become the most sought-after term in recent days. We have “Project A” coming up, so let’s be innovative. You are a “Gen Z,” so be innovative. You have “X” years of experience, so come up with innovative ideas. Aren’t these the typical dialogues that you hear?
Organizations and leaders love innovation, but it must be understood that innovation does not happen at the click of a finger. It requires support and encouragement that boosts creativity. The newer generation of the workforce, “Gen Z’s,” are brilliant, open, and straightforward about what they want, especially flexibility, work-life balance, and a clear list of their corporate responsibilities.
While working in the manufacturing and trading industry, I came up with an employee engagement program called “Fruitful Friday” to build bonds, trust and communication among the team members. On one of the Fridays, a recently joined assistant-level employee (Gen Z) proposed to me a new way of conducting the sessions, that is, considering the company principles for sessions every week. Given a thought, we changed the pattern of “Fruitful Friday”, having everyone consider the company’s know-how and principles and contribute equally to the company’s betterment.
To bring out the best in Gen Z, HR should conduct annual surveys, schedule one-on-one meetings, actively listen to them, create a comfortable space for them to share, and involve senior leaders for guidance and growth.
Building an Experiential Workforce in 2024
Learning and development (L&D) is a never-ending process. With new updates and trends emerging every day, if a company fails to enforce L&D strategies, the employees will fall behind, eventually causing the company to fall behind.
To be highly effective, L&D requires talents, leaders, and the entire workforce to come together to discuss challenges, market scenarios, and disruptions. Promoting learning and mental agility will help navigate a rapidly changing workforce effectively.
Thus, creating a conducive, innovative, and experiential workforce is an HR trend of 2024 that requires a multifaceted approach. Creating a culture of inclusion, well-being, engagement, learning, open communication, and trust helps retain employees and inspire their best work.
With my six years of experience, I can confidently say that a happy workforce is one that feels valued, trusted, and respected at work. As an HR professional, I would like to say to all aspiring and well-established HRs, people managers, team leaders, and managers in general that it is our responsibility to advocate these principles within our organization.
Let’s unite to empower everyone we work with, ensuring their voices shape a positive work environment.
