Relax with some feel-good tunes to wrap up the year!
2020 has been an incredibly challenging year for companies, and particularly HR departments.
Here's a bit of festive fun and cheer for your COVID-19 Christmas.
Let's wrap up this year with some tunes.
It’s fair to say that 2020 is a bit of a blur for those in the HR industry.
The past twelve months have been incredibly challenging on several fronts: going fully remote, dealing with a virtual workforce, onboarding and offboarding employees online, all while making sure company culture didn’t suffer in the process.
While we realize this is no laughing matter, we wanted to lighten the mood and bring you a bit of festive fun: a timeline of COVID-19 developments with a twist. Yes, you’ve guessed it: here’s your HR year in music.
Remember January? Well, that’s when the first confirmed COVID-19 cases outside of China were reported. Back then, most of us were still blissfully unaware of how this new virus would affect our lives and work. Coronavirus seemed like a distant problem and for the most part, many were focused on the “Here” and “Now.”
UNLEASH was ramping up to its Spring 2020 event in London and looking forward to welcoming our HR friends and family who would wow us with their amazing projects and insightful predictions for the future.
In February, the situation was still unfolding but world experts began to set priorities for COVID-19 research during a two-day forum in Geneva, Switzerland.
Things escalated quickly in March. Italy, at the time one of the worst hit countries in Europe, became the first nation to implement a nationwide lockdown on March 10.
The following day, on March 11th, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic.
As the month went on, countries continued to report an increase in daily cases and companies, sometimes following government advice, began to ask people to work from home.
By April, the vast majority of the international workforce was working remotely, and the economic toll of the pandemic was beginning to show.
In early April, 6.6 million Americans filed unemployment claims in just one week.
HR leaders were now dealing with a virtual workforce; applying for government financial support; furloughing staff, or, in the worst cases, laying people off in a matter of just days and weeks.
On 25th May, the video of George Floyd’s arrest and murder ignited widespread international protests.
As a result of this truly tragic event, the HR community was forced into self-reflection, and many acknowledged the need to transform organizations from the inside out. Companies published ‘Black Lives Matter’ statements and HR teams expressed their commitment to improving diversity and inclusion quotas.
At the same time, HR teams were also dealing with a new challenge: employees suffering from extended isolation from the workplace and the subsequent impact on mental wellbeing.
Fortunately, though, diversity and inclusion and mental health continued to be an HR priority for the rest of the year.
Three months after most companies went fully remote, HR began planning for the future.
For the most part, remote and flexible working environments became the ‘norm’ and HR leads started to plan strategically to remain agile and adaptable.
HR leaders began to look at more long-term strategies like upskilling, reskilling, mentorship programs, and remote learning opportunities — as well as figuring out what a safe return to the workplace would potentially look like.
The “it will be over by summer” rhetoric was quickly dissipating, and the realization we were in this for the long-haul became apparent.
Importantly, the 30% Club expanded its diversity targets for FTSE 350.
More bad news in August as the UK officially went into recession.
August is prime vacation season in Europe and as employees considered the possibility of a Summer holiday, HR was once again forced to find viable solutions. This time with regards to sick pay and quarantine requirements.
On another note, data revealed how the pandemic was impacting the younger generation by slowing career progression as a result of significant redundancies and unemployment.
By the end of the month, the US had surpassed six million COVID-19 cases.
After some relaxation of lockdown restrictions during the Summer, many nations see an spike in cases.
HR also started appreciating the extended impact the pandemic will have on the economy and businesses.
For example, 8 out of 10 charities believed that the coronavirus pandemic would negatively impact their ability to deliver on planned objectives over the next twelve months, and we looked at the challenges for nonprofit HR departments.
Study results highlight that the resultant impact of the Coronavirus pandemic could be as much as two million women leaving the workforce.
It’s at this point that HR realizes that people may not be able to return to the office as soon as expected. Decision-makers grappled with issues ranging from workplace community and culture, through to information security and workers’ desire to continue working remotely long-term.
The US Presidential election comes to a close and Joe Biden is the new President-elect.
News about a potential COVID-19 vaccine are coming thick and fast — and the UK sees a rise in the real living wage. The industry begins to think about what 2021 will look like in terms of work.
UNLEASH releases its ‘Why HR Projects Fail‘ report which found that a mere 16% of initiatives were successful and publishes exclusive video series with Stephen Fry and Mark Blyth.
COVID-19 inoculation begins around the world. Joe Biden, the US President-elect and his wife Jill, get vaccinated on live TV.
Meanwhile, the UK identifies a new variant of the virus, which is likely causing the spike in cases in London and South-Eastern England. As a result, several nations ban incoming travel from the UK.
Here’s to hoping that there’s light at the end of the tunnel and that 2021 will bring a much happier soundtrack!
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Columnist
Former editor of UNLEASH, Yessi is a seasoned tech journalist and regular contributor to Times Radio in the UK.
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