Geopolitics have entered the workplace. How are CHROs responding?

Key takeaways:

• Employees now worry about geopolitics and economic uncertainty at work, which is hurting employee sentiment, productivity, and mental health.
• The role of the CHRO is expanding to address these topics through honest conversations with employes, reinforcing organizational values, and upskilling the workforce.
• Deloitte’s human capital leaders support CHROs navigating these changes with a focus on workforce strategies, including upskilling, leadership alignment and culture.
  

The combination of geopolitics and trade tensions, AI, productivity challenges, and hybrid work has, not so quietly, been reshaping our modern-day workplaces. Historically, geopolitics has remained relatively separate from workplace discussions. But that’s no longer the case today.

Social media now unveils constant changes in geopolitics and technology, 24/7. Employees watch and think about world events before, during, and long after their workday. As a result, we’re seeing profound effects on employee sentiment, focus and productivity, mental health, and absenteeism.  

Employees have growing expectations for support, dialogue, and an organizational voice within the walls of their workplace.

The role of the CHRO is central to your organization’s response.

Through our discussions with CHROs in Canada, here’s a summary of what we heard.

The expanding and increasingly complex role of the CHRO

With geopolitics entering the workplace, many CHROs are leading the dialogues within their organizations and with their boards. CHROs are playing a key role in internal and external responses, communications, and actions, given the impact on current and potential employees, teams, and the organization at large:  

Today’s challenges will not be the same as the ones we will face tomorrow. Learning, unlearning, listening, and agility are essential.

CHROs share the need to monitor the dialogue across senior leadership, response strategies, and the pulse of their workforce. They must ensure their organizations take actions to support employees to succeed both in the short and long term.

CHROs are thoughtfully managing how AI is impacting both work and their workforce. It is clear that AI offers many opportunities, and it amplifies employee concerns around job displacement, reskilling and upskilling opportunities, and long-term employability, all of which create uncertainty about the future.

One CHRO talked about the need for an integrated approach to the adoption of new technologies, new ways of working, career pathing, reskilling and upskilling, and communications. Additionally, these are intertwined with ethical considerations and a focus on business outcomes.

The nuances behind AI and geopolitics are clearly different. But both, if not managed effectively, can compound the detrimental impact on employee productivity and organizational performance. The real opportunity? Addressing the concerns and sparking energy around the opportunity for personal growth, motivation to act, and confidence in strategy.

Learning from those out in front: Three actions CHROs can take now

1. Elevate communications and keep teams in the loop

CHROs are at the centre of both crisis response and ongoing workforce communications. With all we have experienced, it's the right time to take stock of whether it’s hitting the mark.

Are our channels still effective? Is our voice the right one? Is our pace fast enough? Is our narrative consistent? Are the right parties engaged and aligned? Does it reinforce purpose, values strategy, and culture?

CHROs are revisiting communication frequency, tone, and transparency. These changes call on leaders to connect with employees in ways that:

• Show humanity, empathy, and realness
• Bring clarity to instill confidence and mitigate panic
• Share relevant information and what teams need to do their work
• Paint a picture of the opportunities ahead

When done well, CHROs can temper distraction, ignite focus, and improve employee sentiment—a powerful trio top of mind for boards, executives, and leadership teams.

2. Reinforce purpose and shared values

Geopolitics at work has the power to divide and polarize. How do organizations pull people together? CHROs are well positioned to address this challenge by strengthening organizational cohesion.

The answer, according to the CHROs we spoke with, is to reinforce their purpose and shared values. How? Articulate what unites the workforce, demonstrate the day-to-day behaviours reflecting the values, and provide examples of how these have come to life

When employees see their organizations reflecting its values in their day-to-day, they’re 3.7 times more likely to be engaged at work.²

3. Create space for honest conversations and develop leaders’ skills

These challenges are real. Are senior executives and people leaders ready to lead through complexity and volatility? What do they need to feel confident? How can we develop the skills and confidence to support them at speed? Empathy, cultural acumen, problem solving through complexity, geopolitical literacy—these are all expanding the leadership skillset and requirements.

In addition to supporting the broader workforce, CHROs are preparing their leadership teams with new skills, a central theme in leadership development programs.

Questions CHROs are asking themselves today

Where can CHROs start?

Deloitte’s human capital leaders present three questions to CHROs that can serve as a compass for decision making amidst multiple priorities and a complex landscape:

1. What more, or different, can we do to harden our purpose and values in our day-to-day, to help our employees focus on impact?
2. Which workforce skills will have a disproportionate impact on our business outcomes, and how can we keep adapting while driving organizational performance?
3. Is our organization’s approach to communications improving employee trust and increasing ship connectivity?

Geopolitics have entered the workplace, and it's up to CHROs to pave the way forward. Connect with a leader below to discuss your strategy.