chrystal-ballAt its recent annual board of advisors’ meeting, board members of The Workforce Institute™ discussed their predictions about the top trends and issues that will impact the field of workforce management in 2013.

Top Trends for 2013

  1. Big Data & Analytics – Availability of an ever-increasing amount of data presents a challenge for organizations. How can they distinguish between what is interesting versus what is important? New technologies and services will help organizations find value in Big Data via function- and industry-specific analytics tools. Board members believe these tools will continue to gain attention throughout 2013 as more organizations adopt data-driven workforce management practices.
  2. Mobile – Mobile technologies will continue to transform the way organizations operate and interact with their employees, customers, prospects, and the world at large. Tablet devices have taken mobile to a new level and board members predict that new technologies in this space – coupled with increased adoption – will continue to revolutionize the way organizations manage their workforces this year.
  3. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) Compliance – More commonly referred to as “Obamacare”, PPACA compliance will be a major focus for many U.S. organizations in 2013. Leadership will need to determine what the Act means for their organization, understand associated costs, and make informed decisions about labor scheduling and utilization.
  4. Managing an intergenerational workforce – A tight economy and changing notions about the concept of retirement mean that more workers over the age of 60 are remaining in the workforce for longer. The usual challenges of attracting and retaining the right workforce are exacerbated by the increasing age difference in the workforce.
  5. Closing the skills gap – Unemployment is still relatively high, but many organizations are hiring. Depending on the business, the current applicant pool may not have the skills that employers seek. How can this problem best be addressed? Much attention will be paid to this issue this year with public/private partnerships emerging to help close the gap.
  6. War for Talent – The Great Recession put the war for talent on ice, but board members think 2013 may be the year that it heats up again. As organizations pull out of the economic doldrums and begin to perform better, employees who have been sitting tight will start looking for new opportunities. As a result, organizations will need to be ready to fight for the best and brightest talent.

Over the last two years, we have been covering the skills gap, talent attraction and retention and managing intergenerational teams. We were not surprised to see these topics comprising 50% of the trends listed above.

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Dianne Crampton is the Founder of TIGERS Success Series. She is the leader in building successful quality-focused and cooperative team culture communities. As a thought leader in the team culture movement, she has been published by Barrett Koehler, Pfeiffer (an in print of John Wiley & Sons) and Three Creeks. Her latest work, TIGERS Among Us: Winning Business Team Cultures and Why They Thrive has received international acclaim. Nominated by Merrill Lynch for Inc. Magazine’s Entrepreneur of the Year Awards for a team culture change system that helps leaders bring about desired team culture change remarkably fast, she certifies and licenses consultants, facilitators, and HR leader to use the proven TIGERS team culture system within their organization with measurable success. TIGERS helps leaders build and improve trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk, and success in teams which results in a dynamic work environment that attracts and retains very talented, quality-focused people.  Learn how to avoid the three big mistakes team building consultants make that results in becoming under paid in this complimentary live Webinar.