Each week I’m going to provide a round up of what I consider to be important and interesting articles on the future of work (not authored by me). These will include a variety of sources and topics ranging from workplace practices to robots and automation to leadership and everything in between. There’s a lot of information out there so I’m hoping that these weekly round ups will help make life a bit easier for you by giving you just the good stuff. Let’s get into it!
The Clash of Gig Economy and Traditional Labor
In this article, Don Charlton discusses how to identify and hire modern talent. The workforce is a different world now and there are all new challenges for hiring managers. Charlton says a few of the problems are applicants who are used to the freedom of gig work, hiring millennials who have been switching jobs every one to five years, and the growing use of social media in the hiring process.
It is important for hiring managers to evolve with the times and to understand the current workforce in order to know what to look for in applicants. For example, Charlton says that today’s employees have a broader range of past job titles, positions, and experiences. This makes it more difficult for hiring managers to pick out trends and consistencies in the applicant’s work history. Some hiring managers are moving away from the standard resumes and cover letters altogether as they don’t always give an accurate picture of the applicant.
21st Century HR: How VR is Changing the Face of Training
Could virtual reality make HR more efficient? According to this article there are several functions of HR that could be positively impacted by virtual reality. The first area in HR that virtual reality could be beneficial for is recruiting. Imagine if an applicant was able to get a virtual tour of the office or an in depth feel for the day to day activities in the office.
Virtual reality could also help with onboarding and training. New hires could go through the onboarding and training processes at their own speed while not taking time away from current employees. It would also allow the new hire to have a more immersive and engaging experience when they are first hired.
The article gives three steps to incorporate virtual reality into your HR department. Educate yourself on the options, budget, and techniques in order ensure the VR is implemented in the most efficient way for your company. Second, figure out which areas VR would make the most sense in your company. Third, remember that you can create your own content if you want to make the experience more specific to your company.
Why We Need to Start Talking about the Digital Skills Gap
In today’s workplace social media skills are not just preferred, in a lot of jobs they are required. In this article by Ryan Holmes he states that almost “90% of U.S. companies” are using social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. The problem is that most companies are not providing any social media training for their employees.
In order to succeed in most industries these days a social media presence is essential so it is important to bridge the digital skills gap. In order to fix the digital skills gap, Holmes suggests that companies invest in ongoing social media training for all of their employees. It can’t just be a one time thing, because new social media sites come into the picture almost daily and the sites that have been around for awhile are updated periodically.
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