The future of work has already arrived: How ready are we?

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 15 (ANI/SRV Media): The Coronavirus pandemic has brought in drastic changes in the way we work, how we work, where we work and how we stay connected through technology.
HR leaders have been chalking various strategies for their employees in the past and are now preparing themselves for the post-pandemic era. Few trends that were forecasted for the near future had to be adopted on immediate basis such as work from home, remote working, digitization of workforce, upskilling and reskilling of employees, adoption of holistic well-being, etc.
On the 5th of February 2021, Sapphire Connect, an initiative of Sapphire Human Solutions which is India's premium retained executive search firm with over a decade of experience in CXO facilitations, recently concluded the First Edition of the Virtual ReThink HR Conclave.
The conclave witnessed the who's who of the HR fraternity as they gathered together to deliberate on the future of work and the trends that will drive the future workforce. In its first edition, the conclave had more than 1000 plus registration and more than 700 plus unique attendees.
The HR Fraternity saw changes of unprecedented proportions, with the rise of artificial intelligence and the growth of the gig economy. The pandemic has taught us that those organizations that don't transform will be overtaken by those that do. In order, to sustain organizations must re-strategise and become more people-centric.
Gautam Chainani, President HR - Strategic Initiatives & Workforce Automation, JSW gave us the three Ds, "The three Ds for the future of HR paradigm change are, Digital Transformation, Democratization of Data and Death of Time."
"HR is no more part of the support role but at the front end of the business function," said Manoj Kohli, Country Head, India, SoftBank. He emphasized how the HR function has undergone a dynamic transformation with digitization at its core, as they prepare themselves for the future.
The latest trends, work from home and remote work have gained much prominence over the years. The concept of a nine-to-five workday is rapidly fading. Nowadays work is not just about productivity and output; it is about flexibility, wellbeing and effective collaboration between remote and physical workers. Organizations have recognized that there is nothing more important than the health and wellbeing of employees and their families.
Virtually recruiting remote workers is the new norm for many. Internal mobility and upskilling programs are being built out, many for the first time. Diversity is finally being treated with the urgency and accountability it always deserved.
"Leaders must take the risk and diversify the talent pool, they must take bets on candidates that do always fit and establish template," said Kaku Nakhate, President & Country Head, Bank of America India.
The summit witnessed some great minds of the industry such as Dr Ritu Anand, SVP & Chief Diversity Officer, Tata Consultancy Services; Yogi Sriram, Advisor to CEO, Group Human Resources, Larsen & Toubro; Ramesh Mitragotri, Chief Human Resources Officer, UltraTech Cement; Judhajit Das, Chief Human Resources, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance; Dr Swatee Sarangi, Global Head - Learning, Leadership & Organizational Development, Dr Reddy's Laboratories; Pankaj Suri, EVP, Human Resources (India), Edelman; Amit Das, Chief Human Resources Officer, Times of India Group; Anil Salvi, MD & Group Head | Human Resources, JM Financial and much more.
In its inaugural edition, Rethink HR, introduced Speed-Connect a first-of-its-kind, strategic one-on-one meeting session, enabling organizations to meet recruitment agencies and academic institutes as they participated in meetings lasting just 15min, to extend their hiring mechanism and expand their client base respectively.
Speed-Connect was executed parallel to Rethink HR in the Breakout Area and witnessed the signing of 33 MOU's between our Employment Partners and Agency Partners/Recruitment firms and 12 MOU's signed between our Employment Partners and Academic Partners/Academic Institutes.
"Disruptive forces have changed the way we live and work, forcing enterprises to rapidly adapt and change. Yet then there is a lot to achieve and meet the expectations of new realities of business. It's time for HR leaders to take the lead and design with agility to obtain exponential value for the future of Human Resources," said Rishi Kapoor, Associate Partner & Business Head, Sapphire Connect.
The ReThink HR Conclave 2021 focused and deliberated on the future of work, the new workforce, reinventing strategies and the new normal in the post-pandemic era.
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