With the changing workforce demographics and rise of technology platforms, Human Resource (HR) managers have been advised on how they could build their organisations on the new ecosystem to be future-ready.
At the 50th induction ceremony of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM), a member and chief executive of DeftAdroit Consulting, Chizoba Mojekwu, said the future of work encompasses changes in work, the workforce and the workplace.
She said since many of the boundaries that used to provide the structure of work have been dismantled, the boundaries that remained are much more focused on human dynamics and how people interact with and engage with work.
In navigating the new frontiers, she said the fundamental challenge and opportunity was to reframe how leaders think of boundaries as not just things that create limits or restraints, but as the very source for new value creation, innovation and creativity.
She said HR managers have to adopt a workforce ecosystem mindset, take a skills-based approach, create an open workforce platform and pivot from directing to orchestrating.
She highlighted nine imperatives on the ecosystem, talent, decision-making, value and structure, among others that could help HR leaders ready their organisations for the future.
According to her, culture is taking employee experience, including their workspaces to another level and learning, through reskilling and upskilling talents.
The HR expert listed talent shortage, the need for increased agility, a rise of worker agency and the shift to skill-based organisations, as some of the drivers of the transition.
Giving statistics gig economy and traditional work, as well as top reasons for working in the gig economy, Mojekwu said 55 per cent make extra money on the side, 48 per cent have the time to balance career and family needs, 48 per cent have autonomy and control while 19 per cent earns while seeking a better job.
However, she said there are implications for HR, giving instances of organisational and HR barriers to the gig economy.
She mentioned challenges of limited strategic business competencies, technical and administrative competencies, people programmes not aligning to support business objectives or desired behaviours, reactive service offerings not anticipatory, compliance issues, resistance to change and limited access to critical information, among others.
President and Chairman of the Governing Council, CIPM, Olusegun Mojeed, said the conversation on the gig economy is overdue, stating that as people management experts, they must understand the scope, impact, benefits and disadvantages of their organisations.
He said the newly inducted members came in through three certification routes after being thoroughly examined.
He urged them to wear the CIPM badge with pride as they become good ambassadors of the institute.
He enjoined them to live the CIPM code of conduct and its core values in all their professional and personal dealings.
The core values, Mojeed said are encapsulated with the acronym SCRIPT, which means Service, Creativity, Respect, Integrity, Professionalism and Teamwork.
These, according to him, are not just slogans, “They are vital shaping forces when we live by them.”
