The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly changed the working world. However, with the roll-out of vaccines underway, and hopes for a return to normal, HR teams may have to make big decisions about the future of work, and the systems needed to accommodate a post-COVID world. 

Recent research by Gartner outlines five of these such decisions: 

• Triggers for revising workforce strategies – establishing triggers for reviewing remote and hybrid workforce strategies (to avoid such strategies becoming impractical);
• Emerging technologies for onsite employees – consider opportunities to reduce the necessity for employees to perform tasks onsite;
• Redefining the office space – HR teams must decide whether corporate spaces can offer employees what other spaces cannot;
• Employment model innovation – during the COVID-19 pandemic, some companies have introduced various employment models, such as gig workers. HR will need to decide whether to continue these models going forward;
• Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) – according to Gartner, in 2021, HR leaders must evaluate their talent strategies to ensure it meets their DEI commitments 

For more on Gartner’s report (2021), see here.