The Future of Enterprise Demands a New Future of HR

Reimagining human resources
Jan 14, 2019 10:15 AM ET

Disruptive forces are sharply changing how we live and work, creating an imperative for enterprises to rapidly adapt. But there are several areas where the pace of change has yet to catch up with the new realities of business. Chief HR officers and their teams must take the lead with agility and sustain exponential value for the future of human resources.

The changing enterprise

Enterprises are fundamentally shifting with new business models, technologies, and changing expectations of—and by—the workforce. Often, HR teams are left straddling the needs of the legacy organization while planning for the needs of the future.

This creates unprecedented opportunity for HR to play a new and vital role in shaping the way enterprises compete, access talent, and show up in the communities where they operate. Enterprises can compete—and succeed—by changing entire business models in the field, product and services development, sales, production, leadership teams, and back office. And, of course, in the HR suite.

HR must step into a new future by shifting in four areas

Many HR leaders have renamed their functions, using terms such as "employee experience," "people," and others to signal a shift in brand. Words matter, and this isn't the first time that the rebranding of "HR" has happened at major inflection points in the history of the function.

Of course, a fresh brand can easily backfire without fundamental changes to the business outcomes that HR drives. The challenges that come with the three futures described above are plentiful. Yet with challenge comes opportunity, and HR has the chance to drive tangible impact as organizations face the futures of enterprise, workforce, and how work gets done.

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