The workplace has undergone significant changes in the past few years and 2024 will see leaders attempting to navigate advancements in technology, changing employment priorities, and societal shifts.
While workplace culture has been a buzzword for a while now, the advancements of the next 12 months will mean an organisation will need to look at what workplace culture means with a renewed lens.
As people become more comfortable leaving roles that do not address their needs, well-being, culture, and inclusivity are no longer simply tick boxes that look good in an annual report.
Ivan Hollingsworth, founder and director of Centric Consultants shares the emerging trends that businesses must take note of if they want to create environments for people to thrive in 2024 and stay ahead of the pack. Read on to find out more…
1. Tech-driven human connection
The advancements and widespread adoption of generative AI will mean a decrease in busy work and a drop in mundane, repetitive tasks for some teams. While this is a positive opportunity to focus on creativity, innovation, and being truly human, leaders must be aware that it will leave some colleagues questioning their purpose.
A thriving culture is built of two key components: vitality, otherwise known as the sense of being alive, passionate, and excited by your work and growth through learning. Thriving employees have an edge, they are highly energised and understand that what they do every day makes a real difference to the success of the organisation.
In 2024 leaders should embrace advancements in technology and AI as a chance to free up space in their team for real human connection, creativity, and big conversations and pivot their role into being a ‘culture curator’, rather than micromanaging every step of the process.
2. Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable
Most organisations will say that they are committed to increasing diversity and inclusion in their organisations, and now that this has been on the table for a few years we are starting to see an increase in more diverse voices around the table, and that is when the hard work starts.
This year leaders need to embrace what an equitable environment looks like within their team and get comfortable with the fact that some of the conversations you have to have to get there might be a little, well, uncomfortable.
An equitable workplace goes beyond hiring a diverse range of people and instead looks at how to create a safe and inclusive environment, and listens to feedback.
While equality is about offering the same resources and opportunities to everyone regardless of background, equity requires us to recognise the differences in individual backgrounds and provide tailored support based on those specific needs.
If as a leader you are asking people to be ‘authentic’ at work, but then shutting down conversations or opportunities when they express opinions or needs that are new or different, then you are not asking people to be authentic, you are asking them to be like you, which defeats the point entirely.
3. Challenges outside of work will continue
How many times have we heard people say, “The kids of today seem to lack resilience” or “We need our employees to be a little more resilient”? In recent years, resilience seems to be one of those words that are being increasingly used to put down a person or group who aren’t conforming to a modern-day, false narrative of how we need to be brave, strong, or bulletproof, to the point that it has become toxic.
As we head into another turbulent year, outside of work there will continue to be challenges that your teams will have to navigate, this could be anything from the cost of living crisis to family break-ups, caring responsibilities, or childcare issues.
Asking your team to be ‘resilient’ in the face of these challenges doesn’t help anyone and leaders should focus on creating supportive, understanding environments that help people bounce back as quickly as possible when life throws them a curveball.
4. Culture driving business evolution
In 2024 ‘culture’ will no longer sit in a silo, headed up by a ‘Culture Champion’ who plans after-work events. This year we will see a shift to culture being the domain of all leaders throughout the organisation and seen as an integral part of business change strategy, not a bolt-on nice to have.
As Satya Nadella, managing director of Microsoft put it, “The C in CEO now stands for culture. The CEO is the curator of an organisation’s culture and anything is possible for a company when its culture is about listening, learning, and harnessing individual passions and talents to the company’s mission.
5. The generational power balance is shifting
Gen Z isn’t coming, they are already here, and in 2024 leaders need to throw off the old-fashioned ideals of the past and embrace a new way of learning, collaborating, and communicating if they want to attract and retain the best talent. Millennials are now well into their 30s and 40s with many moving into senior or established management roles.
The next generation of leaders, Gen Z isn’t just starting to enter the workforce, some are already managing teams or are in a skilled position. This new generation has different expectations when it comes to communication, workplace culture, and hierarchical team dynamics.
Organisations can’t put their head in the sand any longer if they want to future-proof their business and nurture the leaders of the future, they need to act now to create environments that stimulate connection, provide an opportunity for meaningful feedback and encourage open communication.
6. Greater pay transparency
The EU Pay Transparency Directive will be implemented in 2024 and, while this currently only applies to member states, it may increase pressure on the UK Government to legislate to match the new standards of pay transparency set by the EU.
If this does happen, it will hail a culture revolution for many organisations and leaders should act now to increase the value of the employee experience if they want to attract and retain the best talent within their organisation and not lose out to competitors.
Edited by Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily.
