HR prospects: the state of the profession

More than 400 human resources directors and senior managers talk about their hopes, fears and biggest challenges in IRS Employment Review's fifth annual HR prospects survey.

IRS surveys HR prospects . . .
Based on responses from 431 public and private sector UK organisations together employing more than 1.4 million staff, the IRS HR prospects survey reveals more clearly than ever the divide between long-term priority issues and those which require immediate action before falling back to become part of the routine workload.

As in previous years, the underlying problems of absence management, recruitment, retention and restructuring remain among the profession's core challenges. But the issue of age discrimination has leapt from nowhere in previous years to become the most widely cited priority of the year ahead for HR practitioners.

However, compliance with the age regulations does not appear to be regarded as particularly challenging. As in previous years, employers are more likely to identify restructuring, recruitment and retention as presenting the most intractable problems.

. . . while Personnel Today looks at HR's strategic impact
Meanwhile, separate research from Personnel Today reveals a sea change in how HR perceives its own strategic influence. Some 77% of the nearly 1,400 HR professionals participating in the survey say they are now close enough to their organisation's core business to wield strategic influence.

  • Age is everyone's priority - but not a cause for alarm and Age is this year's issue but the real challenges still lie elsewhere    IRS Employment Review managing editor Mark Crail presents the key findings of the survey, based on responses from 431 organisations, together employing some 1,406,628 staff.

  • Making the most of reward   Sheila Attwood presents the findings of the reward section of the HR prospects survey.

  • Managing resourcing pressures: the prospects for 2006/07    Read the findings of the recruitment section of HR prospects.

  • Employees close to revolt over constant organisational change    A preview of the key findings of the HR prospects survey section on industrial relations.

  • Getting in tune with business goals and HR says business bond is now strong enough to fulfil organisational goals    Karen Dempsey presents the findings of the separate survey undertaken by Personnel Today in association with Richmond Events, based on responses from nearly 1,400 HR professionals.

    Also

    HR's role in recruitment called into question by shock survey    Personnel Today's Georgina Fuller looks at the findings of new research from Cranfield School of Management.

    HR prospects 2005, HR prospects survey 2004, HR prospects survey 2003 and HR prospects survey 2002   Read the results of the previous four annual HR prospects surveys.

    HR fails to capitalise on human capital    New research from the benchmarking specialist Saratoga finds little evidence that HR departments are producing human capital policies.

    First line managers lack leadership skills   First line managers are being appointed more because of what they know about the operational aspects of their current job than because they show any aptitude for leadership positions, HR practitioners fear.