The past 20 years have seen many changes occur within Human Resources. Moving from the back office to the forefront of the company, HR has grown in ways unimaginable two decades ago. Today, HR is involved in many more facets of a company, becoming a strategic partner rather than a tactical necessity.

There have been massive developments in employee/employer relationships. The rise of technology has helped, in terms of data management and recruiting, but perhaps one of the biggest advancements is with DEI and Mental Health Awareness. Businesses are recognizing the diversity the world has to offer and HR is helping them adapt to better understand the employee’s importance in the conversation.

We wanted to explore these changes with our colleagues and clients to see what their experiences, observations and perceptions are of the ever-changing world of Human Resources and the role it plays. The shear range of topics discussed goes to show how prevalent HR has become in today’s world.

Strategic vs. Tactical

In the last 20 years, HR has blossomed into a strategic function. “In the past, HR was perceived as a necessity to organizations and not a strategic priority,” explained Barbara Irwin, Founder and CEO of HR Advisors Group. “Twenty years ago, I was the only female at the Executive Table, and I had to work hard to get a seat at the table.”

Now, the focus is more on the big picture – how programs and initiatives align with the overall purpose and vision of the organization. “I hear time and time again that it’s all about our people,” says Irwin, and this is where HR plays a huge role.

“…the No Department”

“A small paramilitary force,” said Laurie Dreyer, Chief Development Officer at Taylor Design. According to Dreyer, this was the perception of HR 20 years ago. The department that is there to “rigidly enforce rules and policies” put out by the company. Pay the employees, handle the benefits, hire where needed, and say no often. Sadly, this perception still exists in some minds.

However, this is not the reality of what HR is today. HR is there to create an environment. To develop a work culture that keeps employees interested, excited, and motivated. They are there to listen, absorb, and respond with solutions that fit with the values of the company and the employee.

Employee Engagement

Recruitment has always been a focus for HR, but today, they are more involved than ever in the hiring process, especially at the highest levels. Talent Acquisition has transitioned into talent engagement.

Today “employees are not considered an easy commodity to come by,” said Heather Lynn, Sr. HR Consultant at HR Advisors Group. The talent pool is shrinking, and employees have a greater sense of freedom when job searching. The requirements desired by both existing and potential employees are more than they were two decades ago.

Technology

Over the course of the past two decades, the world has seen massive changes and improvements in technology. HR has been able to utilize these changes to their advantage, improving company communication, data management, and even making the hiring process much easier to handle.

Data management has seen enormous advances. HRIS systems have been developed so that data can be sorted, searched, tracked, analyzed, and maintained on a much easier scale than ever before. According to Tiffany Aukema, Sr. HR Consultant at HR Advisors Group, HR can more effortlessly “provide information to help them [companies] make good decisions.”

The introduction of social media has created a new set of challenges for HR teams to deal with. Not all are necessarily bad, however, with the new ease of access to instant communication, companies and organizations are being forced to create new policies and procedures revolving around the use of social media. On the plus side, hiring sites like LinkedIn and Indeed have allowed HR to simplify the hiring process and expand their reach to new heights.

Remote Work

On top of all the new technology has come hybrid and remote work, formerly known as telework. The COVID-19 pandemic introduced a new way for employers and employees to do their work and interact and perform their jobs in an effective and efficient way. This has caused its own set of issues, but it also comes with huge developments for the workforce. Employees have stated they are more productive, have a better sense of their mental well-being, and have a more effective work-life balance.

Hybrid work is a “combination of where’s your team, where’s your clients, where’s your project team, [and] when are you getting together,” said Dreyer. There are some jobs and projects that may still need in-person collaboration. The idea is to find a balance between the two to satisfy both the employer and the employee. Creating this formula is a win-win for everyone.

There are still improvements to be made with the merging of technology and HR. There is still no perfect end-all-be-all system that will satisfy everyone but with our future technology-driven employee population, we will see continued development of the right tools for employees and their employers.

Mental Health Awareness

According to the clients and colleagues we interviewed for this blog, they would all agree one of the major changes today for HR is the introduction of DEI and Mental Health Awareness. “The fact we can even talk about it now!” exclaimed Lynn.

One of the factors that really brought forward the awareness of mental health is the introduction of Gen Z into the workforce. Younger generations are recognizing that life need not be “work to live,” rather, it should be “live to work.” Which means they want better-quality work environments, support from employers, and improved communication.

Above all, they want mental health to be recognized as real and pertinent in all of our everyday lives. “Employers need to understand that we are human beings that have needs, [and should] not try to fit everyone into a box,” stated Allison Colantuoni, Chief HR Officer at Colliers.

In the past, the expectation was that when you came to work, you left your personal life at the door and slipped into your work mindset. Companies did not care about your personal life and mental well-being, so long as you were getting your work done.

Today employers are recognizing that personal life affects work life and vice versa. People have bad days and will unfortunately bring that to work. On the flip side, people can get burnt out and desperately need a break. HR is focusing more and more on finding solutions and benefits that fit the desires of the employees while not negatively affecting their company’s performance.

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

On top of mental health, vast improvements in DEI have been made over the past two decades. “Even 5, 10 years ago you think Women and African Americans,” said Colantuoni. DEI was previously just Diversity Training, which included the occasional one-hour training to discuss what was then a minimal understanding of the diversity of the workplace.

The problem of the past was “not understanding the complexity of everybody…[and]…not removing your own barriers to hiring people who look like you,” explained Dreyer. Diversity was seen more as a compliance mandate, rather than a fact of life.

Now, DEI has expanded to include all walks of life. From the LGBTQIA+ community to different ethnic groups, religious affiliations and more. More conversations are being held within organizations to realize that the changes of the world today affect them and “the companies who aren’t looking at DEI, trying to understand it and really make changes, are going to be left behind,” believes Colantuoni.

Generational Impact

Lastly, as previously discussed in a past blog post, the generational make up of today has and will continue to impact HR developments. Gen Z is bringing new ideas, processes, and perspectives to companies. Without HR, they will struggle to find balance and peace within the organization.

The introduction of a new generation into the workforce has always brought challenges. Twenty years ago, it was the Millennial Generation. Today it is Gen Z. The challenge will not be with the new generation themselves, rather “the challenge is getting people to buy into it,” said Aukema.

Traditionally, older generations have a difficult time adapting to new ideas presented by these younger generations. They want to hold on to what they know. Thankfully, HR is here to help mediate between each generation.

Conclusion

Now more than ever, HR’s involvement with the employee experience has been key for a company to not only retain employees but also develop and engage them. The entire perception of what HR is and does has shifted to reveal their importance to the whole of the company.

Twenty years ago, the extent of their role was payroll, benefits, vacation days, and hiring, essentially administrative duties and overall compliance only. HR was just beginning to be viewed as a strategic partner, collaborating within their organizations on creating initiatives and priorities focusing on talent.

Now, HR plays a more strategic role: planning for the future and looking at the big picture and how the workforce and workplace plays into the organization’s future success.