A Modern Workday Skills and Talent Glossary: Terms to Shape your 2023 People Strategy [eBook]

The world of HR is always changing and innovating, in order to navigate successfully today’s HR professionals must maintain a deep understanding of the terms and trends that drive effective and successful HR strategies. 

With new phrases and terms being used every day, it can feel daunting to keep your HR lexicon up to date. So, we’ve assembled the ultimate glossary, defining top terms to know for an effective HR strategy.  

The terms included fall into the following three categories outlined by Gartner so the most popular investment areas for HR leaders in 2023:  

• HR Technology  
• Learning and Developing  
• Staffing and Recruiting  

Glossary Preview: Trending Terms in HR Tech

First on our list is the HR Technology landscape – which continues to evolve to address new talent realities driving the second half of 2023, from ongoing hybrid working, to cost control measures to increase the efficiency of people operations, and ongoing top talent scarcity.   

Coupled with the rise (and broader adoption) of artificial intelligence and machine learning for business solutions means the world of HR tech is primed for a significant evolution in both how we use, and how we talk about people technology.  

With that in mind, here are just a few trending terms in the HR Technology space:    

Agile 

As part of the back office, HR has traditionally skewed towards manual workflows, making it a reactive organization rather than one that is agile. That said, more and more HR teams are successfully embracing an agile mindset to better manage their workforce ecosystem.   

If you’re looking to embrace an agile approach but don’t know where to start, here are three principles and practices to consider:   

• Embrace a continuous improvement mindset.   
• Foster a culture of transparency and collaboration.  
• Use agile methodologies in HR processes, specifically those that center around rapid iteration, ongoing feedback, and continuous improvement.  

Pro tip: If you’re looking for detailed tips on how to make your HR team more agile? Check out our recent blog to learn more.  

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI and ML)  

Artificial intelligence refers to machines that can simulate human intelligence, specifically our ability to understand natural language. Meanwhile, machine learning is a subfield of artificial intelligence that specifically focuses on enabling computers to use patterns and data to learn, make predictions, or make decisions without explicit programming.  

HR departments can use AI and machine learning to automate various hiring processes, like resume screening and candidate matching. Teams can also use AI-powered chatbots to answer employee questions and provide near-instant support for common requests/inquiries regarding benefits and company protocols. Leading HR tech platforms (like the Workdays of the world) have been investing in new platform advances and partnerships to bring the power of AI to your existing tech stack.  

As ChatGPT proved earlier this year, there’s ample opportunity for teams to explore how to drive efficiency and automate your more manual processes to open your teams up for higher-order work. However, for most AI programs, your ability to automate is only as good as your data layer. So, step one on your AI journey might just be to look for some quick-win automation options, and make sure your data house is in order. 

Gamification 

Gamification involves using game-like elements, such as points and rewards, to motivate and engage employees. In HR, gamification approaches are a huge boon to your organizational change management game. Many teams today use gamification to drive employee participation in learning and development programs, as well as to increase engagement in performance evaluations.  

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