Skill shortages, changing employment landscape, sustainability imposing difficulties at work
Challenges imposed by skill shortages, a changing employment landscape, and sustainability can be detrimental to many organisations.
But the top employers in New Zealand view them as opportunities instead.
"These challenges present opportunities for innovation and strategic talent development," said Mark Lewis, head of people and culture at Connetics.
Lewis was recently named as one of the Best HR Executives in New Zealand, where he had successfully reduced turnover and halted the decline of vacancies in his organisation amid a tight labour market.
"My approach has been one of innovation and strategic talent development and recognising that challenges are not roadblocks but opportunities to find new solutions," Lewis previously told HRD.
Becoming sustainable
Meanwhile, employers across New Zealand have been putting more focus on sustainability amid strong growing pressure from staff and in a bid to get a competitive advantage amid a tight labour market.
But this doesn't mean the shift is easy to achieve.
Karen Meredith, people partner and founder of PeopleEX, addressed this by launching Regenerative HR, which helped businesses to become more sustainable by using the UN sustainable development goals as a framework.
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"It's both an overwhelming challenge and the most incredible opportunity for HR to drive a focus on sustainability and teach about the different ways we can act to help the planet," said Meredith, who was also named among NZ's best HR executives.
Changing employment landscape
The transition to a new government in New Zealand has also introduced a string of legislative changes towards employers, especially on the 90-day trials and Fair Pay Agreements.
Kate Batkin, chief people and capability officer at Medenterprises Services, said their priority is remaining on top of these legislative changes to ensure compliance.
She also noted how rapidly changing technologies can impact the HR industry.
"We're already starting to use that for some of our more administrative tasks, which is exciting," said Batkin, who is also another best HR executive in the list.
New Zealand has recently seen an increase of job postings requiring AI skills, but the country's numbers on it still lag globally.