The business world is changing rapidly. From the changing of the generational guard to rapid cloud migration, sticking with “tried and true” business strategies may no longer be an option. For companies to thrive today, it is necessary to embrace the major changes that are already here and the ones that are just around the corner.

It’s important to build on the structures and processes of your business. You will need to lead your workforce and give them what they need to thrive while facing swift, significant shifts in the working landscape.

From the McKinsey Report: Top 10 Challenges that Businesses Face Today

McKinsey conducted a recent survey of over 2500 business leaders around the world. They asked questions regarding the change-readiness of businesses today, and the results are in. This McKinsey report offers valuable guideposts for navigating the evolving business challenges of today.

Half of the respondents say their organization is unprepared to react to future shocks, and many are aware that they need to build a plan more effective than serial crisis response. Is your business ready for the next big change? Let's take a look at the top 10 challenges for organizations in 2023 and how to prepare.

1. Increase Resilience for the Next Big Change

There have been a number of major shifts in the business world in the last few years. COVID was one, followed by the shock of the Great Resignation. With Millennials now solidly in managing positions and Gen Z taking the workforce by storm, you can expect both gradual and sudden dramatic shifts in the business world in the years to come. 

It’s nearly impossible to predict what the next shock to the business world will be, whether it’s an event, a trend, or a disruptive new type of technology. However, making your company adaptive and agile in its response to changing circumstances can help to keep your feet when next the ground shakes.

2. Build a Structure for True Hybrid Work

The pandemic introduced the idea that remote, hybrid work was not as far off as everyone once said. In fact, most desk workers can work at home at least some of the time, which has opened up flexible schedules, best-hour working, half-sick days, and even better working during travel. However, many remote/hybrid work structures were built hastily from consumer-grade software and thrown-together policies.

The good news is that more than 4/5 employees who have worked in hybrid models in the last 2 years want to continue doing so. Now is the time to build a truly robust hybrid work structure. It’s time to build your schedule policies, your innovatively flexible schedules, and ensure everyone who will work remotely has the equipment and support to do so. Train managers in remote managing, train teams in remote collaboration, and embrace the ability to use hybrid flex to meet any project or personal need.

Not only will hybrid structure make your business more resilient, it will also make you more appealing to top talent.

3. Embrace Ways AI Can Help

AI is a tool for high-volume analysis more than anything else. And when it comes to modern business operations, there is plenty of room for AI to help by providing tireless, thorough, and vast analysis of your systems. AI can improve machine efficiency by noticing patterns of wear and maintenance. AI can improve marketing personalization by tracking patterns of customer preference and shopping interest. AI can optimize driving routes, assist with cybersecurity, and has recently increased its chatbot support capabilities. AIs are used in video camera security, in maintenance estimations, and are finding usefulness in corners of the business world that surprise us every day.

AI tools, in some cases, can replace the most tedious elements of your human task list which can free up valuable talent to reassign to more vital roles. At the same time, AIs never tire, can often do the work of dozens (sometimes thousands) of people at once, and will always create perfect activity reports.

Embracing ways that AI can help will empower your business to rise above and beyond what other business software can achieve for your competition.

4. New Strategies for Attracting and Retaining Employees

There’s no denying that recruitment and employee retaining strategies are evolving. With most of the workforce now millennials and Gen Z, work-life balance, meaningful work, and company values are top priorities. Compensation packages include healthy lifestyle perks and more flexibly personalized healthcare options. 

Showing appreciation, providing supportive management, and quickly adopting new technology are key to attracting and retaining employees in the modern workforce. It’s important to present a strong Employee Value Proposition in order to win the best people to your team. The right recruitment, compensation, and onboarding experience will be unique to each company, as will the culture you build to inspire productivity and longevity with your team, but building these elements using feedback and creating transparency are key to both attracting and retaining valuable talent.

5. Instill Strong People, Processes, and Technology for a Competitive Edge

Prepare your company to succeed when making sweeping internal changes. When implementing new technology or processes, you may accidentally outstrip the capabilities of your current team, but this isn’t a permanent problem and you don’t have to solve it with arduous hiring in a short labor market. While only 5% of McKinsey respondents said their organization has the internal capabilities they need, this can be fixed.

Train your teams to achieve the capabilities you need. This will help you instill strong people, processes, and technology all at the same time. Mastering this element of the corporate upgrade cycle will give you leg up on the competition who will still be scrambling to balance new technology with the need for people with new skills. 

Your younger workforce is also on your side when it comes to quickly adapting to the demands of new technology and processes. As digital natives, millennials and Gen Z professionals are ready to learn new software, try new processes, and embrace the latest technology that could innovate the business world. 

STAY TUNED FOR PART 2

In the next part of this guide, we will cover: retaining top performers, inspiring leadership, making necessary progress on DEI, building a mental health program, and providing the best tools for efficiency.

ABOUT Platinum Group

The Platinum Group is a human capital management resource, proud to provide innovative solutions to streamline operations so you can focus on managing your business. Inspired by the McKinsey report, we hope that these tips serve as a guide to help you navigate the rapidly changing business world ahead with adaptability, strength, and an empowered team of excellent people.

If you are interested in learning more about us and our isolved platform, we invite you to visit our website or schedule a demo. We are eager to understand your unique business needs and provide you with our human capital management solutions to help you streamline your operations and achieve success. A self-guided tour of isolved is also available so you can learn about isolved at your own pace.