D,E&I must be a HR priority in 2022
This is according to WorkBuzz’s latest employee engagement survey.
Why You Should Care
2022 is an opportunity for companies to re-evaluate their HR priorities.
Top of their agenda must be D,E&I and hybrid working.
WorkBuzz has some tips for how to implement these effectively.
The pandemic has highlighted the importance of employee listening if you want to succeed. Having engaged employees is not only the right thing to do, but it is the business savvy thing to do, especially amid the ongoing ‘Great Resignation’.
In this context, the employee engagement platform WorkBuzz surveyed 300 HR and business leaders from across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific to find out what their main HR priorities are for 2022.
The top priority was to increase employee engagement and experience (57%), this was followed by a focus on employee wellbeing (56%), creating diverse and inclusive workplaces, and retaining talented workers (44%).
Credit: WorkBuzz, The State of Employee Engagement 2021.
WorkBuzz particularly highlighted the need for organizations to be laser-focused on their diversity, equity, and inclusion (D,E&I) strategies. It argued in the report that there are four stages to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace: learn, plan, act and realize.
Unfortunately, WorkBuzz found that the majority of organizations were stuck in the ‘learn’ stage (31) and only 6% were in the final ‘realize’ stage.
Another concern is that one in five said they had not even begun the journey towards having an inclusive and diverse workplace.
Credit: WorkBuzz, The State of Employee Engagement 2021.
The lack of progress is a real worry given the ongoing war for talent and the fact that D,E&I progress is essential to employee engagement. Leaders at organizations who had not yet started investing in D,E&I strategies reported a 50% decline in employee engagement over the past year.
While those in the ‘act’ stage saw a 45% increase in engagement, and those in the ‘realize’ stage saw a 43% growth.
As a result, WorkBuzz called on companies to continue to progress with their D,E&I strategies – but only if those policies are backed by data – and to continue listening to employees’ views on the initiatives.
Steven Frost, Founder and CEO of WorkBuzz, commented: “This research suggests that inclusive cultures create more positive employee experiences which directly impact engagement levels.
“Organizations that aren’t making efforts to nurture an environment of belonging for all, are damaging employee relations which in turn impacts organizational culture, wellbeing, and staff turnover.”
Implementing hybrid working well
The fifth HR priority identified by WorkBuzz’s survey was facilitating remote or hybrid working (43%).
It is very clear that flexibility at work is very important to talent, and therefore offering effective hybrid working strategies is essential for successful retention.
However, figuring out the best way to implement hybrid working models that are right for each organization is a real struggle.
The main concerns of HR leaders surveyed by WorkBuzz are keeping people connected with each other and their employer, protecting workers’ mental health (particularly around loneliness), and effective collaboration.
WorkBuzz recommended that companies really focus on upskilling managers and leaders to ensure they don’t unconsciously discriminate against those working from home and therefore less visible.
“Just because some employees aren’t front of view, doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be front of mind,” the report noted. “Organizations must ensure these workers’ views are taken into consideration and that their case for promotion isn’t overlooked.”
The main skills that leaders and managers will need in the hybrid world of work are empathy, emotional intelligence, and time management. The time to act is now.
