How has HR’s role changed?

The human resources business has become far more complex over the past few years.

That’s what Helena Pagano, chief people and culture officer, Sun Life, said in her conversation with Canadian HR Reporter.

“As business has gotten more complex, the speed of change has gotten more complex,” she says in a Canadian HR Reporter’s Top 100 Leaders special.

“We’ve become the change agents, change facilitators,” she says, adding that that’s “a really critical role for HR to play more and more”.

HR was at the forefront when it comes to contending with the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the workplace.

That was one of the changes that have happened to HR, says Pagano. On top of that, “people's expectations have changed,” she says.

“A diverse workforce brings different issues and differing needs to the workplace.”

Catch the full conversation for free today right here.

HR has also had to focus on more individualized health of workers and mental health.

On top of that, purpose, culture, the workplace, the work itself, the role of the manager, the role of the leader have all been of particular concern to HR, says Pagano.

Why is data so important in HR?

Looking ahead to 10 years from now, data would be so much more important to HR practitioners, says Pagano.

“You can be a business partner by understanding the business, understanding the data, understanding the numbers,” she says.

“You need to understand how data fuels your function. You need to go into things from an HR perspective… but it's really helpful to have some data to help support that understanding as well.”

She also hopes that, in 10 years, employers would no longer be focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) because, at that point, that’s “just the way business gets done”.

Pagano also discusses the hiring challenges in Canada as well as the future of hybrid work. Catch the full conversation for free now right here.

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