Recommendations

Our Workforce Resilience Index reveals how leading organizations are building talent strategies that enhance workforce agility, capability, and inclusion, and position them to succeed in a fast-changing business climate.

Looking to enhance your workforce resilience? Start here:

#1 Shape a talent strategy for the future by examining your level of workforce resilience

A clear-eyed assessment of your organization's current level of workforce resilience is a crucial foundation for taking steps to improve it. If your organization was ranked on the Index, would you be a Resilience Leader, a Laggard, or Mid-market Performer?

Review your current talent strategy to identify weaknesses and areas of risk as your business moves into the era of AI. Assess your ability to redeploy talent, enabling the business to pivot quickly when new needs and opportunities emerge. Ensure you are using digital technology to provide a reliable, real-time view of all aspects of workforce resilience—including data on your workforce skills profile, employee engagement, DEI, and the success of learning and development programs.

#2 Be responsive to worker expectations by providing learning opportunities and supporting flexibility to empower employees

This year’s survey shows that executives recognize employees’ strong desire for career progression and development opportunities and are working to provide more agile training programs. This will be even more important as AI disrupts the workforce. Employers should redouble efforts to provide more agile training opportunities and enable better skills development.

Senior leaders also need to recognize that talent values flexibility and autonomy in terms of when and where they work. Leaders should think carefully about the pros and cons of reducing flexibility, considering the effects on the workforce as well as the customer. This approach should include more diverse contracts and better opportunities for contingent talent. This is also an important route to supporting inclusion, helping reach deeper into the talent pool and attracting workers who require a more flexible working structure.

#3 Refresh your commitment to DEI

Avoid DEI fatigue by assessing progress and identifying next steps. Continue to set high aspirations and reinforce the organization’s commitment to universal inclusion.

In addition to the social benefits, organizations should recognize the business case for a stronger commitment to DEI. Diversity drives better performance and supports workforce resilience in multiple ways, from enhanced problem-solving capabilities to reduced employee turnover.

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

#4 Capitalize on AI by bringing employees with you in the transition

Employees know that AI has the potential to disrupt the labor market deeply. While many are unsettled due to a lack of clarity on applications of the technology, most recognize that AI could significantly enhance their work, not only boosting performance, but improving job satisfaction.

Senior leaders need to build on that insight by showing talent how AI will free them from repetitive tasks and empower them to do more rewarding, value-creating work.

That includes providing timely training on new AI systems, enabling employees to capitalize on the technology, as well as involving employees deeply in the design and deployment phases of new AI and digital systems.

In short: let your employees be part of the AI revolution, rather than feeling like victims of it.