Survey

These priorities for the human resources function are key to enabling success for the business as a whole. Most HR leaders say that improving operational excellence will be critical in 2022, and far more than in prior years report that executing business transformation will be a major focus.

Employees are now starting to ask human questions about the work they perform. Why am I doing this? What is it for? How can we do it better? Many are choosing to leave their jobs. The competition to attract new talent is growing fiercer than ever.

During a year that necessitated major changes for companies around the world, more than two-thirds of respondents said that their culture helps change initiatives happen. Similarly, almost 70% who said that their organizations were able to adapt over the past year also reported that their culture has been a source of competitive advantage.

According to SHRM, approximately 20 million workers left their jobs between May and September this year—which is 50 percent more than in the same period last year, when employees were still locked down in the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Research finds that empathy is not only a nice-to-have, but the glue and accelerant for business transformation in the next era of business. Empathy’s ability to create a culture of trust and innovation is unmatched, and this previously overlooked trait must be at the forefront of businesses across all industries.

High-profile issues of harassment in workplaces seem to be hitting the news every week. But what about the issues of harassment that employees face every day, workers who pause with fear or anxiety before they step into their office or log onto their computer, concerned about what’s going to be said to them or about them, or what will be done to them?

Six in 10 workers in the U.S. approve of business leaders speaking up about social and political issues, according to the latest CNBC|SurveyMonkey Workforce Survey.