12-year age gap of managers to subordinates has negative impact on workplace:  With four generations actively participating in the workforce, there's a lot that employees can learn from each other. Instead, these age gaps may be getting in the way of progress and productivity.   In organizations where there is more than a 12-year age gap between employees and their managers, employees were 1.5 times more likely to report low productivity, according to recent research published by the London School of Economics and Protiviti. The same employees were also three times more likely to be unsatisfied with their jobs. Technology is driving much of that disconnect and is forcing employers to keep up with the demands of their younger demographics. Recent data from software company Riverbed revealed that 91% of decision makers say they need to provide more advanced digital experiences to meet the needs of millennials and Gen Z employees. Without them, 63% believe it could impact a company's productivity or its reputation. While embracing technology is a good thing overall, older generations increasingly feel out of touch with their younger workers because the pace of technological change has increased.  Source:  EBN 3/5/24

Leadership development is top priority among CHROs: HR leaders across the world have placed the development of effective leaders as their top priority this 2024, according to a new report from The Hackett Group.  The report, which garnered responses from over 375 executives, found that 65% are prioritizing the development of "effective leaders for a changing business and workplace." This is the second year in a row that leaders are prioritizing this objective, according to the report. Meanwhile, the full list of objectives for HR executives include:

• Develop effective leaders for a changing business and workplace;
• Create and maintain a high-performing organizational culture;
• Act as a strategic advisor to the business;
• Recruit and retain staff in key business positions with critical skills;
• Align workforce planning and strategy to business planning;
• Improve talent management capabilities;
• Address key talent and critical skills shortages;
• Improve employee, manager, and candidate experiences; and
• Adapt talent acquisition strategies to dynamic labor markets.

Source:  HR Director 3/4/24

Turnover is expected to be higher in 2024: 33% of U.S. hiring managers believe employee turnover will increase at their company in 2024, leaving a financial impact and burdening remaining employees, according to a February 28 report from Express Employment Professionals and The Harris Poll.  Among those who anticipate higher turnover, hiring managers pointed to top reasons such as better pay or benefits elsewhere (38%), increased workplace demands (35%), employees resigning (33%), employee feelings of being overworked (31%) and a competitive job market (26%). In the November survey, 1,007 U.S. hiring decision-makers said turnover cost their companies an average of $36,295 annually in lost productivity and rehiring costs. More than 20% said that the number climbs to $100,000 or higher for their company.   In addition, hiring managers pointed to other reasons for turnover in 2024, including employees being terminated, better perks being offered elsewhere such as summer Fridays or unlimited vacation days, employees retiring, and a better company culture elsewhere.  Source:  HR Dive 3/4/24

More white-collar workers live further from work: Many Americans now live roughly twice as far from their offices as they did prepandemic according to a new study from economists at Stanford and Gusto. The economists studied employee and employer address data from nearly 6,000 employers across the country and found that the average distance between people’s homes and workplaces rose to 27 miles in 2023 from 10 miles in 2019, more than doubling.  The share of people who live 50 or more miles from where they work rose sevenfold during the pandemic, climbing to 5.5% in 2023 from 0.8% in 2019. This phenomenon — expanding the distance between work and home — has been driven primarily by white-collar workers whose jobs can be done remotely, according to the study. It is one largely concentrated among people who earn more than $100,000 and work in jobs like tech, finance, law, marketing, and accounting. The workers moving away from city centers are often people in their 30s and 40s, who have young children and may want larger homes, rather than those in their 20s and 60s. The group also includes a significant number of workers who were newly hired during the pandemic.  Source:  NYTimes 3/4/24

Another reason why employee flexibility should be part of workforce planning:  74% of Americans under 45 believe flexible gig workers will eventually drive America's economy, not traditional full-time workers, according to a recent survey conducted by workforce management platform Jitjatjo. Unlike the traditional 9-to-5 employees, gig workers — such as delivery drivers or freelancers — generally have more control over their schedules, which leads more than half of respondents to think gig workers are happier than office workers, according to Jitjatjo's survey. But what gig workers make up for in flexibility, they lose in benefits. Currently, 54% of gig workers don't have access to employer benefits, according to gig work insights platform Brodmin, while only 40% have medical insurance and 20% receive life insurance. Yet the current administration’s approach to take away independent contractor status from these gig workers to ensure benefits and tax payments is taking a toll on employers and the ability to provide flexibility to the new workforce.  In fact, 45% of all workers report a lack of benefits is the biggest challenge to being a contingent worker, Jitjatjo found. If gig work met those needs, however, 44% of U.S. respondents across all age groups would consider leaving their full-time role for more contingent work.  Source: EBN 2/9/24