HR crucial in 2020

18 February 2010

HR crucial in 2020 "war for talent" says new report

The battleground for elite talent means effective Human Resources (HR) strategies will be more crucial to business than ever before in 2020, says Friends Provident in its Visions of Britain 2020, a report conducted with the Future Foundation.

The report - the first in the Visions of Britain 2020 series- found an emerging polarised workforce coupled with the decline of foreign workers in the workplace will give rise to an "elite worker"- employees in technical, professional and managerial roles. These elite workers will place new demands and expectations on employers.

This elite worker, who is highly skilled and self-motivated, will be increasingly valued and sought after by companies, becoming integral to the success of a business. 83% of the experts* surveyed agreed HR will have to become more strategic to attract and retain this workforce who will be vital to the future performance of businesses.

Gillian Fox, human resources director at Friends Provident said:

"By 2020, the balance of power between employees and employers will have shifted in favour of elite workers. This means employers will require more robust and rigorous HR strategies to shape the future success of the business. Only by fostering a culture that truly allows talented employees to prosper will employers be able to attract, recruit and more importantly retain this powerful band of employees."

Satisfying the elite worker

Higher salaries and benefits will not be enough to satisfy the elite worker. Organisations in 2020 will have to make jobs more fulfilling in order to keep them engaged as the report found that enjoying the job (48%) and job satisfaction (38%) are more important to workers than salary (30%).

HR will therefore need to play a pivotal role in supporting management and helping businesses to create working environments that foster satisfaction and stimulation in the workplace throughout an employee’s working life.

Greater investment in the workforce will also be expected by elite workers and one way companies can look to achieve this is through training. The report shows that in 2020, businesses will need to offer tailored and comprehensive training and development interventions to elite workers, providing them with an opportunity to continuously up skill and develop.

Michael Jenkins, chief executive officer, Roffey Park Management School said:

"If you think of the three P's: Promotion, Pay and Personal Development, in terms of importance [in 2020] I think it would be personal development, followed by pay, followed by promotion. I think that personal development will be a very important piece."

Measuring performance

There will be high expectations of elite workers. With the increased investment in workers by businesses, management will want to ensure and measure a high level of productivity from their employees. Therefore, in 2020 HR will be required to be more rigorous about implementing systems that monitor employee output, which will be vital as we move towards a knowledge economy. Processes that enable employers to specifically calculate a worker’s efficiency and value to their place of work will become commonplace. Central to the success of this will be clearly defined and communicated objectives at the outset.

Who will pay for training?

In 2020, elite workers are likely to be attracted to companies that offer high quality training. However this begs the question – who will pay for training and will it be the individual?

The report shows that whilst there is a demand by employees for increased training, this is currently not being met by employers because of cost.

Gillian Fox, human resources director at Friends Provident said:

"Our research shows increased training demands are not currently being met by employers but the reason behind this is not solely cost. It is more about rigorous training needs analysis being carried out and therefore budget being allocated accordingly. In the future HR will have to support businesses and help them become more rigorous about effective training needs analysis to ensure training is tailored according to employee needs."

- Ends -

Journalists requiring further information should contact:

Jo Swift, Cohn & Wolfe - 020 7331 5476

Emma Wylie, Friends Provident - 0845 268 4909

Keith Nolan, Friends Provident - 0845 641 7835

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Notes to Editors