2022 was an important year for the world of work. Companies got a chance to execute their learnings early post-pandemic as offices started opening up again. There continued to be unprecedented changes and volatility around hybrid work, economic uncertainty, and societal issues.
While 2021 was all about navigating through abrupt changes, 2022 brought more humanity back into the workplace. We wanted to reflect back on what defined the workplace experience this past year and provide real examples of successes employers found in navigating the “new normal.”
The following workplace and employee experience themes reigned supreme in 2022:
1. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts were top of mind for all organizations.
Addressing fairness and equity was the No. 1 priority for executives in 2022. According to Gartner, the frequency with which CEOs consider equity, fairness, and inclusion has increased a colossal 658% since 2018. In fact, 80% of DEI roles were hired in just the past 18 months meaning the majority of companies are still at the starting stages of their change journeys. We expect to see further progress in this area over the coming year and beyond.
In a report by DiversityInc, Accenture topped the list of the best companies for DEI in 2022. Accenture says that it treats diversity, equity, and inclusion like other business priorities with goals, metrics, and accountability, employing a transparent top-down approach. According to Accenture, 60% of its board of directors are racially and ethnically diverse, and 50% are women, including Julie Sweet, the company’s chair and CEO. In 2016, it was the first professional services company to publish comprehensive U.S. workforce data. Since then, it has shared its workforce composition annually by gender, race and ethnicity, persons with disabilities, and veterans.
2. Hybrid work is the “new normal.”
Some 62% of employees concur that their ability to work from anywhere influences whether they continue at a job, according to the Cisco Global Hybrid Work Study 2022. Further reinforcing this theme, a recent Accenture survey found that 83% of employees believe that hybrid is the future of work’s “optimal” model. The same folks shared experiences of improved mental health, better professional relationships, and reduced burnout than people who were back working in the office full time.
Stanford economist and cofounder of WFH Research Nick Bloom, a.k.a. “the guru of remote work,” pointed to three companies that he says stood out for their success with hybrid work in 2022: Salesforce; Lazard; and Elevance Health, specifically Blue Shield of California. All three deployed a comparable mixed model that Bloom labels “organized hybrid.” In this approach, companies shift between in-office and remote work on a team-by-team basis rather than top-down.
3. Resilient leaders build resilient teams.
Dare we say 2022 was the year of strengthening resilience, especially for management? In the 2021 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends survey, 60% of participating leaders stated that leadership skills are crucial to be equipped for future uncertainties. In fact, it was their top-ranked priority for supporting preparedness. We saw that in action this past year.
In today’s environment, leaders must go beyond meeting business goals—it simply isn’t enough to be technically savvy. Effective leaders communicate well, inspire, coach, and support through work’s challenges. As the Deloitte survey states, “They must prepare for the unpredictable by coaching, teaming, and fostering workers’ ability to learn and adapt.”
Take the example of CEO of Majid Al Futtaim, a shopping mall, retail, and leisure conglomerate operating in 17 markets spanning the Middle East, Africa, and Central Asia. He had to shut down several cinemas in the middle of the pandemic. In a matter of days, he reemployed a thousand of those employees to work at grocery stores instead. Talk about resilience and change management!
If there’s one person who epitomizes resilient leadership, it’s MasterClass instructor Bob Iger, Disney’s recently reappointed CEO. Having retired after a decades-long tenure at Disney, he returned to lead the company after the current CEO was unseated abruptly. Check out Iger’s class on Business Strategy and Leadership.
4. Learning and development (L&D) needed a big makeover.
To optimally train critical skills for their employees, organizations needed to transform their L&D experience this past year. With high turnover thanks to the Great Resignation, every workforce experienced large knowledge and skills gaps. SHRM’s 2022 Workplace Learning & Development Trends report states, “Organizations are determined to fill the gaps with workforce-ready employees who have both the hard and soft skills needed to build 21st-century careers. And workplace learning and development… is their primary tool.”
The Oracle Fusion Cloud Human Capital Management Blog shared five key considerations for an upgraded employee learning experience:
- Compelling experience
- Personalized recommendations
- Skills focus
- One home for all learning
- User-generated content
Sounds just like the MasterClass at Work experience!
5. Perks and benefits better go above and beyond.
With tougher competition for talent, employers in 2022 had to reimagine and expand their benefits packages to really stand out in their recruitment and retention efforts. A 2022 MetLife study revealed that 73% of employees believed “a wider benefit offering would keep them at their present employer for longer.”
What kind of benefits? A record-breaking 91% of employers offered mental health coverage in 2022 to deal with burnout and stress from the pandemic. Telehealth, telemedicine, and family care benefits were added by more companies due to employees’ changing needs. And personalized perks became important for increasingly diverse and unique workforces.
Education and training benefits saw an uptick as well, with 65% of organizations acknowledging that professional career development benefits were important in 2022—nearly double compared to 37% in 2020 and 2021, according to SHRM’s 2022 Employee Benefits Survey. Additionally, now 78% of employers say they offer skill-building opportunities.
USA Today reported in October that Microsoft topped the “best company perks” list for its comprehensive benefits program in 2022. The company’s website has a long list of offerings, including education programs, family support, and a speaker series.
You can check off DEI, resilient leader training, remote learning, and skills benefits in one breath with MasterClass at Work. Click here to see how we can help make your employee experience the best one yet in 2023.
