Workplace Trends to Expect in 2023

Posted on by Marianne Frazee

The past 3 years have seen many changes in the labor and employment field. From the evolution of remote work to a bigger focus on employee mental health and well-being, trends continue to emerge. What are some of the workplace trends to expect in 2023? According to Forbes Business Guru Bernard Marr, workplaces will look vastly different than the “9 to 5” office of yesterday.

Here are 5 of the trends we should expect to see: 

  1. A “People First” Culture with an emphasis on employee well being  
  1. Bigger focus on Upskilling, training & development  
  1. More & more companies offering remote & hybrid work 
  1. Flexible work hours and “4 day working” 
  1. Companies becoming more “Purpose-Driven”  
  1. Boosted Benefits for workers  

“People First” Culture has slowly been emerging.

At the top of the list, the “People First” Culture has slowly been emerging. This idea of creating a workplace that embraces the needs of employees has helped to reduce turnover and improve productivity. It also helps with employee retention, something that has been difficult to do in this economy. The trend towards Upskilling really took off with the uncertainty brought on by the pandemic. The use of digitalization, automation, and innovative technologies left companies scrambling to add new skills to their workforce. 

Remote and hybrid truly evolved with the pandemic.

According to a study by Management & Consulting firm McKinsey & Ipsos, “58 percent of Americans had the opportunity to work from home at least one day a week, while 38 percent were not generally required to be in the office at all.” As much as executives may want their employees back in the office, the remote work trend has stuck.

Employees’ need for greater autonomy in the workplace

Award winning Thought Leader & Future Work expert Lynda Gratton speaks about employees’ need for greater autonomy in the workplace. In her book, Redesigning Work: How To Transform Your Organization and Make Hybrid Work for Everyone, she thinks choice is the key for many workers. And autonomy goes hand in hand with flexible hours and shorter work weeks. A job that has the flexibility to attend your child’s play during work hours or have flexible time off to care for a loved one is invaluable to many employees.  

“Boosted Benefits” have been in the Recruiters arsenal this year.

Although some of these may sound a bit “over the top” and difficult for a small business to give, larger companies have been quite resourceful in offering these “boosted benefits.” Spa services and fitness plans, “bring your dog to work,” on-site childcare, continuing education assistance, etc… are just a few of the benefits companies are offering. There has been a bit of the “sky is the limit” attitude when it comes to attracting and retaining talent.  

This is truly a dynamic time for the worker. Of course, we have never been through a pandemic before. And so many of these changes have been “jump started” by the pandemic. It remains to be seen what is in store for us in 2023.  

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