1. Millennials taking Leadership Roles
Millennials are beginning to take on leadership positions. Not only are they taking leadership roles, but the companies they are starting are changing the way we work and live. Right now, close to half of Millennials who are employed are in leadership positions. 41% have at least 3 -4 direct reports. This is a trend that we will see continue to trend up in 2016 and into 2017. Many experts agree that Millennials will take on ever increasing roles in senior leadership positions in the next few years. This is especially true given that a good number of Baby Boomers are expected to leave the workforce in 2016, 2017 and 2018. The main challenge which HR leaders and Managers will face is preparing Millennials for these leadership positions that they once held. A study by Deloitte showed that 64 percent of the surveyed Millennials felt unprepared when entering the leadership role. The most interesting aspect is that the Millennials surveyed were already in leadership positions. If you find that this pertains to your organization, this means that you need to focus on mentoring and developing millennial leaders for years to come!
2. Contract, Temporary, and Freelance workers dominate the Changing landscape of the economy.
Over the past four years, the number of US workers turning to freelancing has risen exponentially. It is a growing trend among companies and individuals that like the flexibility of working temporary & freelance. It is estimated that close to a million US workers have been joining the freelance economy annually. This surge caused the Obama Administration to introduce new independent contractor regulations in 2015 and developed ACA (Affordable Care Act) for employers. The freelance economy is expected to continue becoming a dominant section of the US workforce. Irrespective of their titles e.g. freelancers, independent contractors or temporary workers, their importance will only become more significant as the economy grows and more companies become reliable on temporary workers. Today, contingent staffers or freelance workers are those and many more types of workers, encompassing highly skilled IT specialists and consultants to light-industrial workers. This growing and increasingly multifaceted worker class is rapidly changing how companies fill jobs and the makeup their workforces.
