• 69% HR’s have created or adjusted HR strategies in the last 12 months
• 39% say it’s challenging to create HR strategies that are adaptable/flexible for a continuously changing landscape
• Employee Experience strategies are at the top of the HR agenda
• Future of Work strategies have seen the biggest year-on-year change

 

New research of 400 UK and US HR professionals shows how their actions reflect work and societal changes. Seventy five percent of HR respondents have created or adjusted their HR strategies over the last year, while 72% are considering purchasing a service or product to assist with their HR strategies or initiatives in the next year.

PR in HR’s report deep dives into HR’s strategies on Employee Experience, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEIB), Talent, Future of Work and Organisational Design.

 

The HR Strategies and Buying Decisions report finds that Employee Experience strategies are currently getting the most attention, with 42% of respondents saying they’ve created or adjusted strategies in the last year, while 35% say they’ll be considering buying a service or product to assist those initiatives in the next year. Employee Experience initiatives support recruitment, retention and engagement and may include, for example, onboarding, workplace culture, processes, management, teams and tasks.

Forty-one percent of respondents say they have adjusted their DEIB strategies in the last year. While 32% plan to buy products or services to assist their strategies in the next year to help attract and retain diverse talent, and support collaboration and understanding.

 

Talent issues are also on HR’s strategic agenda. Thirty-three percent of respondents say this is a likely buying need in the next 12 months, highlighting the ongoing need to find, hire and retain the right people.

Organisational design appears to be less on HR’s radar, with just a quarter (25%) expressing this as a focus when it comes to buying considerations.

 

Kay Phelps, Director and Founder of PR in HR, experts in getting HR suppliers heard in the complex HR sector, said, “The HR sector is endlessly fascinating. It’s all about the shifting needs of organisations and their people. HR’s drivers, whether UK or US based, are impacted by societal and workplace changes, so they are tuned into a multitude of issues that may impact their organisation and its people. Current mainstream topics of conversation include wellbeing and emotional health, artificial intelligence, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, cost of living, menopause, skills gaps, productivity, flexible work, balancing family care and so much more.

“This report sheds a light on HR’s strategies and buying decisions. For instance, Future of Work strategies have seen the biggest shift when it comes to what products or services HR is buying to assist strategies or initiatives. The number of HR professionals who said they bought a product or service increased by 14 percentage points within the last year, compared to the year previously. Interestingly, in the US, the number increased by 19 percentage points, and in the UK, it increased by 9 percentage points.

 

More interesting UK and US comparisons:

 

• The UK has been most concerned with DEIB with 37% making changes to their HR strategies and least concerned with Organisational Design (27%), likely because many experienced so much change after the pandemic.
• The US has been most concerned with Employee Experience – 41% of respondents stated they have changed this strategy. They, too, were least concerned with Organisational Design (19%).
• Generally, more UK respondents intend to purchase new products and services across at least 1 of the 5 HR areas. Seventy three percent of UK respondents say this, compared to 62% of US respondents.

 

PR in HR’s report is downloadable here. It also provides HR suppliers with information and guidance on what sources are most likely to influence their perception and trust in a brand.