At the start of 2020, HR leaders' careful planning for technology transformation may have been dashed with the issuance of the first lockdown orders. Ron Hanscome, vice president of research in Gartner's HR practice, told HR Dive that many leaders had to figure out how to operate a digital workplace in just a few days.

After what may have been a hasty transformation, questions followed: How are employees feeling? How can HR ensure that a dispersed workforce is heard? How can HR ensure that employees are actually working?

Experts point out that last year's experience of confronting technological limitations has provided clear guidance for priorities in 2021 and beyond; employers are now focusing on performance management and a solid employee experience, even in remote work settings. But the turbulent 2020 also exposed weaknesses in the HR field, especially in data management and IT collaboration.

"Can the systems support the adjustments made after the many changes of 2020? From a performance management perspective, the situation is more complex," Forrester principal analyst Katy Tynan told HR Dive. "And it's more anxiety-inducing."

Adapting to the hybrid workplace

Tynan said that after taking stock of 2020, companies can be broadly divided into three categories.

The first category consists of industries in survival mode, such as aviation and tourism; the COVID-19 pandemic "fundamentally changed their business models." The second consists of companies in high-growth mode, such as delivery service companies. Most companies, however, are in "adaptation" mode—they had to make changes, but overall feel relatively stable.

"That's not to say these companies aren't under pressure," Tynan said. "There's a general feeling of working harder, struggling to balance family and work, and struggling to understand what the company expects of them."

Hanscome noted that in response to this situation, employers realized the need for "a more continuous approach to collecting employee feedback and managing goals." This approach extends to rewards and recognition—by giving recognition and supporting high performers—and to on-demand learning, where employees can acquire the knowledge they need while performing specific tasks.

However, the biggest shift for employers may be the structure of the workplace itself—and technology transformation is driving this change. "In some cases, travel and centralized work are still necessary, but the effectiveness of remote work and video conferencing is prompting most organizations to re-examine their previous travel practices," Gary Cole, principal at Deloitte Consulting LLP and an expert in HR transformation and digital employee experience, said in an email. He added that some organizations are even reassessing their real estate strategies due to the prevalence of remote work.

"I think it's fair to say that organizations will need to plan for a hybrid work environment," Hanscome said. He mentioned that the implications are broad: how to manage office space (such as desk booking—especially during social distancing), while managing a dispersed workforce? Hanscome pointed out that answering these questions is often not within HR's scope, highlighting the growing importance of tool management within the HR function.

To adapt to this change, employers need to supplement annual engagement surveys with pulse surveys, Hanscome said, including surveys after events such as onboarding. But this brings another problem for HR: a flood of data.

Managing the data flood

"I think HR recognizes that data is a powerful asset," Tynan said. "But they also know they're not using it well."

Due to the requirements of compensation management, HR is accustomed to maintaining databases of sensitive information such as names and addresses, but "this ecosystem has expanded dramatically," Tynan said. Employers can now collect data on learning, engagement, health, benefits, how employees work, and more, but they "don't know how to protect or use this data," Tynan said, especially because these insights are often scattered across different tools or platforms.

"When you listen to vendor presentations, they sing a nice song about having integrated data on how employees feel," Tynan said. "But most organizations can't achieve that visibility."

Hanscome said this issue is not new, but employers have improved their approach. "More people with data processing capabilities are entering the HR function," he said, but "there's still a long way to go."

Both Hanscome and Tynan noted that technology vendors have recognized this issue, including that vendors cannot operate in isolation. "What I hear from HCM vendors is that no one can be the single source of truth," Tynan said. "No one can say 'just buy our product.' So these vendors are increasingly helping customers navigate the data flood."

Professional collaboration between HR and IT

Given all of the above, HR and IT had to improve their relationship in 2020—although there is still room for improvement, Tynan said.

"In most organizations, the relationship between HR and IT is not as close as it should be," she said. "Both sides view the other as a 'veto player.'" Although both sides are working to shift toward a more service-oriented approach, "I still don't see enough relationship building between HR and IT," Tynan said.

Hanscome said HR may have thought it could "bypass IT," but the proliferation of cloud solutions in the workplace has further driven the integration of these two functions. HR's increasing reliance on cloud-based platforms—which are updated "several times" a year—further highlights the importance of HR and IT functions jointly overseeing information management.

"Part of buying cloud services is getting a continuous stream of updates, but if you don't have the resources or discipline to monitor those updates and their value, you're not getting the service you paid for," Hanscome said.

He added that fully leveraging the latest and most advanced HR technology may require a new way of thinking. The past year has shown that various workplace events, such as onboarding, need to be executed seamlessly across functions. And employers still have work to do.

"The overall employee experience, when truly embraced by the organization, forces the organization to achieve unprecedented levels of alignment, collaboration, cooperation, and communication," Cole said.

2021: The year to clean up the digital experience

Tynan said that for the HR technology space, 2021 may be marked by "cleaning up" the emergency strategies of 2020 and turning what worked into long-term plans and processes. 2021 may not be the year IT and HR become close friends—both sides will be "busy fixing everything that happened in 2020"—but the trend may reverse in 2022, she added.

Tynan said the challenge in 2021 is that the HR technology ecosystem is evolving rapidly and becoming increasingly complex. "On the positive side, you'll have more choices and tools for handling granular matters like engagement, diversity and inclusion, and learning," she said. On the downside? "Integrating all of it will be difficult."

But employers may have no choice. Cole said that for remote employees, the digital experience may be the only experience they have with the company. "Therefore, organizations with large or growing remote workforces need to design, deliver, and evolve their digital workplace and experience, incorporating well-being as well as organizational elements such as culture, values, connection, purpose, and even belonging."

Most importantly, 2021 may be about making clear that employers listen to their employees, no matter where they are. "Everyone is talking about the future of work," Hanscome said, and for some time it has been somewhat philosophical. But this year? "The future of work became much more pragmatic in 2021," he added; supporting employees after one of the toughest years in recent memory will be a top priority for many organizations.