Recommendations

Our Workforce Resilience Leaders show how organizations can better withstand disruption and create the capabilities that will help them to seize new opportunities. You can boost your own Workforce Resilience by taking action in five areas.

#1 Build an integrated workforce agility strategy

The essential foundation for workforce agility is increasing visibility of the talent you have across the business. It is a prerequisite for identifying skills gaps and enabling you to rapidly shift talent to where it is most needed. Technology is usually critical for leaders to identify how talent shortages or surpluses affect specific aspects of business performance, such as reduced productivity, increased costs, and a drop in employee engagement.

You can then use this insight to develop an integrated workforce agility strategy that incorporates both permanent and contingent talent. A successful strategy will identify where each type of talent can deliver the greatest benefits, and outline plans for either recruiting this talent externally or building it within the business—for example with training and development programs.

Critically, you should see contingent talent as having the same strategic importance as permanent talent, rather than treating them as a stop-gap solution to temporary resourcing challenges. So think about where contingent talent can work alongside permanent employees to transfer skills, and how the recruitment of contingent talent can support specific business goals, such as driving new product innovation and strengthening diversity and inclusion. Like 58% of the executives in our survey, you might also want to work with a third-party provider that specializes in recruiting contingent talent.

You can then use this insight to develop an integrated workforce agility strategy that incorporates both permanent and contingent talent. A successful strategy will identify where each type of talent can deliver the greatest benefits and outline plans for either recruiting this talent externally or building it within the business—for example with training and development programs.

#2 Recommit to DEI

Avoid DEI fatigue by assessing your progress so far and identifying what you need to do to take it to the next level. Continue to be bold and ambitious about changing, and reinforce your organization’s commitment to inclusion and belonging for all employees, whatever their background.

Remember that the argument for DEI is not simply about justice and what is right—it also creates tangible benefits for employers, for talent, and for the community at large. Diversity leads to better performance and supports workforce resilience in multiple ways, from enhanced problem-solving capabilities to reduced employee turnover and improved retention.

Many employers can benefit from addressing overlooked dimensions of diversity, such as improving employment opportunities for neurodiverse individuals and those with non-violent criminal records. It could significantly expand your access to talent.

#3 Start really listening to your employees

Our two surveys highlight a perception gap between what executives believe their organizations are doing for employees and what they are actually doing—for instance in supporting work-life balance and mental health. Having come through the crisis years of the pandemic, you will need to reset your conversations with employees and use every available channel of communication to listen to what really matters to them, and then act accordingly.

#4 Deploy digital technology

Technology has the potential to radically reshape the whole employment experience—especially hiring. No business will be untouched by digital transformation in the next decade, and no area of business will be unchanged. Your talent, HR, and people teams need to dedicate themselves to understanding the power of emerging technology, including AI and machine learning, to support the business’s goals.

And try working with partners to map the talent pool that is available to your business (including in relation to diversity) and dramatically enhance your ability to access, at speed, contingent talent that is matched to your business’s evolving needs.

#3 Start really listening to your employees

Our two surveys highlight a perception gap between what executives believe their organizations are doing for employees and what they are actually doing – for instance in supporting work-life balance and mental health. Having come through the crisis years of the pandemic, you will need to reset your conversations with employees and use every available channel of communication to listen to what really matters to them, and then act accordingly.

#4 Deploy digital technology

Technology has the potential to radically reshape the whole employment experience – especially hiring. No business will be untouched by digital transformation in the next decade, and no area of business will be unchanged. Your talent, HR and people teams need to dedicate themselves to understanding the power of emerging technology, including AI and machine learning, to support the business’s goals.

#5 Build a culture of continuous learning

Businesses are struggling to source the talent they need to meet their objectives. Enhancing the organization’s recruitment capability is often the most obvious solution, but developing talent already within the organization is equally important—or more, when competition for talent remains fierce and there is limited capacity in the market.

You might need to reassess your training and development strategies and ask whether they are fit for your purpose. Make the change needed to upskill talent via learning and development activities that are truly aligned with the business’s likely needs over the next five years.

And consider rethinking the format of your learning and development activities by using technology to ensure that programs reach diverse employees across the business. This will also help to embed diversity in your organization’s DNA.