This week in Careers, we took a look at the trends that are contributing to the changing landscape of the workplace.
I’m sure I’m not the only person who has idly fantasised about being able to stare into a crystal ball and see the future swirling around within it.
Ultimately, I always conclude that it’d do more harm than good if I could predict the future, but it’s a tempting thought all the same.
It’d be nice to be able to know about the future of your career, your relationships or even just to know for certain what the weather will be like next week.
Unfortunately, we can’t know the future in any certain terms. But that doesn’t mean we are totally left in the dark.
Astute observers, armed with good research, can spot trends emerging in all walks of life, and this week we got to hear from some in-the-know people about the trends shaping the workplace of the future.
Oisín O’Gogáin is the head of HR at Aon Ireland, and so he is very aware of how concerns about diversity and inclusion are influencing HR practices and beyond. He raised the issue of how companies can ensure they embrace diversity without merely paying lip service.
Claire Walsh also works in HR, this time for Zendesk. Having begun her tenure with the firm as an office manager, she didn’t anticipate that she would end up in HR. To her surprise, she found that the sector didn’t conform to her preconceived notions at all, which evinces just how much the industry is changing.
Increasing awareness of the gender wage gap has raised questions about how the issue could be addressed. Sarah Cunningham from Mastercard Ireland’s Women’s Leadership Network believes that flexible practices, returnships and mentoring can help support gender equality in the workplace.
We didn’t just meditate on HR trends, I might add. PTC’s UK senior vice-president, David Grammer, also told us about five product trends that engineers should keep their eye on this year.
Meanwhile, the job of a software engineer is more complex than you might assume, and innovation is a core aspect of the role, as Andy O’Sullivan of Liberty IT explained.
For more on any of these stories, follow the links below.
1. When it comes to diversity, where do you start and stop?
Diversity is one of the most important topics in the workplace right now, but how can companies ensure they’re doing enough?
2. Can returnships and flexible working close Ireland’s gender gap?
Sarah Cunningham from Mastercard Ireland’s Women’s Leadership Network looks at the ways we can help support gender equality at work.
3. Software engineer: ‘An innovation team can never work in isolation’
What does a software engineer do on a day-to-day basis?
4. 5 product design trends for engineers to watch this year
David Grammer, PTC UK’s senior vice-president, looks ahead to the product trends that engineers should watch out for in 2018.
5. ‘Sometimes, all employees need is someone to chat to and hear them out’
The HR industry is going through a metamorphosis. Here, Zendesk’s Claire Walsh discusses the latest trends in HR and how that manifests in her role.
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