April 27, 2018
Future of work requires both tech and human touch, and the U.S. city where women are most successful
This week, research finds employers think tech will have the biggest impact on work over the next five years, but they don’t want to lose their human connections. Plus, read about the top 10 U.S. cities where women are most successful.
Tech, talent will have the biggest workplace impact in the next five years: research
New research from WorldatWork finds that employers say technology changes and availability of talent will have the biggest impact on the workplace in the next five years.
An interesting finding from the report, The Future of Work and Rewards, is that 56% of respondents said they expected technology to reduce the number of employees by 5% or less – an optimistic outlook for those organizations concerned that technology will displace workforces en masse.
This points to the idea that organizations want to use technology to bring greater efficiency to their workforces, as well as manage and develop them more holistically. Respondents said they felt that technology would have a major influence on total rewards, such as employee benefits, flexible work schedules and employee development.
As HR Dive writes of the report findings, “As organizations look to the future of work, the strategies they put in place now to enhance the employee experience and allow for flexibility could result in a significant return on investment (ROI) in just a few years.”
Related: Why a total rewards program makes sense for the future of work
The future of work still requires human connections
On a related note, MetLife’s 16th annual U.S. Employee Benefits Trends Study finds that employers and employees are embracing technology and automation, but worry about maintaining human connections.
According to the study, conducted with business intelligence and research firm ORC International, 46% of employees, and 51% of employers worry about the workplace becoming less human.
The study adds that examples of ways in which employers can create more human experiences include enabling work-life blending (see Ceridian’s tips for supporting work-life blending here), the ability to customize benefits, and a demonstrated commitment to their employees’ success, through learning and development.
This echoes a finding (cited by HR Dive) from a recent PwC study about consumers worrying that companies are losing the human touch. In that study, two-thirds of consumers wanted more human interaction, not less, in customer service.
Learn more about using technology to support holistic talent management
In which U.S. cities are women most successful?
Topping the list is Arlington, Virginia. This is according to personal finance site SmartAsset, which recently released its list of Cities Where Women are the Most Successful.
Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the report ranked 100 cities according to six factors, including percentage of business owners who are women, median earnings for full-time working women, and percent of full-time working women with earnings of at least $75,000.
According to the data, Arlington women’s median earnings are $80,265 and with 39% female-owned businesses, compared to Scottsdale (second on the list), where women’s median earnings are $56,640 with 25% of female-owned businesses.
Related: The Roundup: The conversations around Equal Pay Day
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