HR saw a lot of advancements – and setbacks – in 2022. Between growing economic fears, layoffs, turnover and more, a few priorities took a backseat for HR as they focused on some more pressing matters.
One of those that stalled was digital transformation and HR tech. Even though HR tech developments stalled for some companies, it’s still listed as a top priority for many HR leaders.
If you want to focus on advancing HR tech in 2023 and reap all its benefits, here are some ways to get it back on track for 2023.
HR tech in 2022 and beyond
Most respondents report their HR departments have not yet undergone digital transformation, according to McLean & Company’s HR Trends Report for 2023.
Many companies are stalling on their HR digitization, despite those who have undergone digital transformation being more likely to be high-performing in areas such as overall HR effectiveness, data-driven people decisions, workforce productivity and more.
The lull in digitization and tech advancements may be due to many barriers, with some of the most highly reported challenges being:
- Legacy processes and systems
- Insufficient budget, and
- Lack of digital strategy.
Other notable barriers included insufficient headcount, insufficient digital literacy skills and lack of leadership support.
How to do more in 2023
Despite the barriers to HR tech and digitization, it is still poised to be an important topic for HR in 2023 and beyond.
Rising trends such as gamification for recruiting and payroll automation will help take the grunt work off HR’s plate to free up time to focus on employee engagement, DEI and other top priorities. Plus, a rise in virtual reality such as the Metaverse will help HR bring together hybrid or remote employees.
To get the most out of HR digitization and technology, here are some best practices for doing more with tech in 2023.
Create a digital strategy. Only 23% of organizations have a formal digital strategy, according to the report from McLean & Company. Without a strategy, digitization can seem overwhelming and ineffective.
A well-developed formal strategy can help HR departments focus on problem areas and figure out what types of technology will best suit them, as well as help with implementing the technology and finding metrics to measure success.
Focus on employee skills. Seventy-eight percent of highly effective HR departments prioritize upskilling employees on digital literacy and technology.
Educating employees and helping them develop digital literacy and technology enablement skills can assist with building a supportive culture around digitization; plus, it can ensure employees understand digital processes and help to implement changes company-wide.
Educate leadership on the benefits of digitization. Some of the barriers HR leaders listed toward digitization included a lack of leadership support, change resistance and an unsupportive culture for digital transformation.
In order to get leadership buy-in that will trickle down to change the culture around digital transformation, it’s important to show leadership the clear benefits of HR tech advancements such as increased efficiency, streamlined processes and improved innovation.