Human Resource Management and other HR services have transformed a great deal since the Covid-19 outbreak. Before the pandemic hit the globe, the HR landscape was way different from what it is today. There was a sharp focus on hiring valuable talent and retaining the most productive employees.

On top of that, SMBs were also competing for the neck-to-neck to acquire the top talent available. Then, Covid happened, and everything changed. HR management across all industries is facing a wide range of challenges that need immediate attention.

HR Challenges Managers Face in Post Pandemic Era

HR professionals had never dreamt of the challenges that Covid-19 brought on them. Employees are restless, conditions are stressful, and HR managers are trying everything to keep things aligned. The major challenges they face in today’s conditions are:

Rules and Regulations

Staying compliant with government policies is always among the top priorities of HR managers. From staying updated with government rules to how companies will function in the post-pandemic era, everything matters.

For example, governments initially allowed companies to open their offices with 50% occupancy. When the second wave hit, workspaces came to a halt again. Now, they are open once again, with limited occupancy. Government decisions will be made based on how the pandemic affects the citizens, and HR managers find it hard to stay updated with all the guidelines at all times.

Solution: Follow official government handles on social media for quick updates and keep visiting the official government websites for updates.

Effective, Data-Driven Hiring

Hiring is definitely among the first thoughts that come to our minds when it comes to human resources. As an integral part of HR processes, hiring the right candidate for a role is vital for the productivity and growth of a business.

While it’s true that many capable employees lost their jobs in the pandemic, it’s also true that many not-so-capable employees were also laid off. Some companies couldn’t afford a certain profile anymore, and they had to let go of their employees. So, now it has become a challenge to identify the right candidate among all the “I was laid off due to the pandemic” job seekers.

Solution: The right approach would be to not ask why they were relieved from their previous employment. Instead, focus on the requirements that you are looking for. Use employee data in tandem with AI and machine learning to find the right employee more quickly and efficiently than before.

Onboarding and Training

With a majority of the workforce working from home due to pandemic, employee onboarding and training has turned into a major challenge for HR managers. Allocating resources for training is not easy. On top of that, matching the efficacy of in-person training in the virtual environment is also a major challenge.

Solution: A pragmatic approach would be to create an LMS where the mentor takes online sessions of the trainees and uploads videos of mentors for more specific and difficult sections. It will also help trainees to clarify their doubts regarding their role.

Employee Retention

As much as employee retention was already among the top concerns of the HR department, the post-pandemic era has not eased things for human resource managers. With various employment options available to employees today, they don’t think twice before putting in their notice periods. And you can’t retain them with salary alone, no. There are more benefits available to employees now, and they’ve realized these benefits are not difficult to get.

Solution: Employees want appreciation, recognition, and benefits, and they are right at their part. A pat on the back doesn’t mean appreciation anymore. They want material appreciation. Just the way you don’t want to see them work hard, you want to see the result of their efforts. Give your employees a much-needed break. Make them feel valued by action and not just words.

Accurate Payroll Processing

Payroll processing is more than just salary disbursement. Payroll processing, or compensation processing, to be more precise, plays w vital role in employee experience and employee satisfaction. Earlier, any employee who was present in the office for n number of days in a month used to get the relevant salary. But now, with more employees working from home, it’s difficult to keep track of how many people were working.

It sounds surprising, but that’s true. Many employees have confessed that they have not been as productive, punctual, and disciplined as they were before the pandemic hit. So, it becomes difficult for HR managers to keep an accurate record of presence, leaves, absenteeism, and furloughs.

Solution: A process monitoring system must be used to track the activity on a system when an employee logs in.

Future of HR in Post Pandemic Era

Apart from the challenges mentioned above, the future holds other responsibilities for HR managers and HR services providers across the globe:

Streamlining Remote Work

The world is turning into a local workplace over the internet. But that doesn’t mean the varying time zones will not affect the coordination and communication among various teams spread across the world. As a result, HR managers will be dedicating a lot of their time to ensuring a streamlined work from home environment for their employees.

Human-Centric Culture

Sadly, as businesses progressed, many of them started treating their employees like parts of machinery instead of focusing on “human” aspect of their resources. As a result, there was dissonance among the employees and management. However, the global pandemic turned out to be a major game-changer and suddenly, the management and top brass started realizing how important it is to keep their employees healthy, happy, and satisfied.

Conclusion

Now that you have all the important points in mind to see how HR and hiring will transform in the post-pandemic era, there’s one more thing to do. You need to understand which HR tasks you can handle on your own and which ones you’ll need to outsource. Once you’ve done that, it’s time to find the right HR services provider that suits your requirements and offers you the right solution at the right price.