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10 New Year Resolutions for HR Professionals
These New Year’s resolutions won’t help you lose weight or get more sleep. But they can improve employee engagement, decrease employee churn, and help you achieve your goals with more effort and less stress.
10 New Year Resolutions for HR Professionals
In the spirit of the season, we present Pet Benefits’ New Year’s Resolutions for HR Professionals. These winners are HR-focused to help you hit your KPIs with less effort and stress.
1. Make Data-Driven Decisions
“Companies with mature data practices achieve 2.5x better business outcomes across the board.”
- Heap.io
Guesswork is so last decade. With the data-gathering and analytical tools available today, facts can support every decision. Knowing the numbers and stats for employee turnover, engagement, and performance helps HR teams make better decisions about hiring practices, performance evaluations, and promotions.
2. Prioritize Employee Mental Health
Almost half the respondents to a Fiverr survey said improving their mental health/well-being was a priority for their career heading into 2024.
- Yahoo!Finance
Mental health benefits were a leading voluntary benefit trend in 2023 and will continue to be so in 2024. But it’s not enough to talk about well-being and work-life balance. This year, resolve to “walk the walk” by creating a culture where employees can disconnect after work hours. Make sure your mental health support is accessible, destigmatized, and human.
3. Support Employee Learning
“6 out of 10 U.S. employees believe they need to learn new skills to succeed at their jobs.”
- Forbes.com
Upskilling employees is the key to an engaged, agile team. Commit to identifying skills gaps and training opportunities. Then, follow through with effective, immersive educational and development programs. Not only will your employees be happier, but your team will have internally developed talent when needed.
4. Supplement Your HR Toolbox
“The more seriously you take your growth, the more seriously your people will take you.”
- John Maxwell
It’s not only employees who benefit from upskilling. HR professionals can up their game by improving communication, active listening, mediating, conflict resolution, and relationship-building skills.
5. Revise Performance Evaluation Systems
“77% of HR executives believe performance reviews aren’t an accurate representation of employee performance.”
- SHRM
That statistic is from 2015, so if your company is still stuck in the annual review hamster wheel, it’s time to move on! Traditional performance reviews gobble up time without producing positive outcomes. Instead, consider weekly informal check-ins or 360-degree feedback mechanisms. Also called “multi-rater feedback,” 360-degree-feedback combines insights from an employee’s boss, team members, and even clients for a complete picture, unbiased by any single contributor’s views.
6. Enhance Employer Branding
“Companies that invest in an employer brand are 3x as likely to make a quality hire.”
- Brandon Hall, author of The True Cost of a Bad Hire
Your employer brand is your reputation among current and prospective employees. It’s a composite of their experiences at every touchpoint, from interviews to pay and benefits to promotions. Beyond attracting top talent, your employer brand also contributes to your image for customers, investors, and stakeholders. In 2024, focus on improving onboarding, fostering a positive workplace culture, and encouraging employees to share positive feedback on social media.
7. Establish Guidelines for Ethical AI Use
86% of HR, business leaders, and their teams use generative AI at work.
- CYPHERlearning
Generative AI is only going to get more entrenched as a workplace tool. It’s crucial to establish safe practices now before sketchy usage runs rampant. AI guidelines should ensure fairness, transparency, accountability, privacy protection, and compliance with evolving data privacy laws.
8. Stay Up-to-Date With Labor Laws
“The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) administers and enforces more than 180 federal laws.”
- DOL
Have you ordered your 2024 Labor Law posters? Federal and state regulations are constantly changing, from minimum wage requirements to retirement plan eligibility and restrictions on non-compete clauses. Staying up to date is critical for remaining in compliance and properly educating employees about their workplace rights.
9. Invest in HR Technology
“89% of HR leaders plan to increase or maintain HR technology budgets in 2024.”
- Gartner
Staying relevant means staying current with the latest software and tools. Almost all the resolutions mentioned above can be streamlined with HR tech:
- HR Analytics and Predictive Tools forecast employee turnover, identify skill gaps, and give insights into workforce planning.
- Employee Engagement Platforms measure and improve employee engagement through surveys, feedback mechanisms, and data-driven insights.
- Learning Experience Platforms (LXP) allow employees to access training materials and courses.
- Performance Management Software offers continuous feedback, goal tracking, and performance reviews.
- AI-driven HR Chatbots answer employees’ routine HR-related questions.
10. Offer Innovative and Optimized Employee Benefits
78% of employees would stay with their current employer because they like the employee benefits program.
- LinkedIn Pulse
Top-notch employee benefits are key to employee satisfaction. Are your benefits understandable, flexible, and affordable? Optimize your benefits for budget, employee retention, and inclusion. This year, explore unique voluntary benefits such as student loan repayment assistance, personalized wellness perks, and pet benefits.
Benefits Pro reports that 63% of pet owners believe pet-friendly benefits make them more likely to stay with their company. For 2024, resolve to delight employees (and yourselves!) with Wishbone and Total Pet Plan, the most accessible, easy-to-implement pet benefits for every pet family!
Happy New Year from Pet Benefits Solutions!
