Forces shaping in the business environment over the next decade will have implications for the education and training of the workforce. Changing population demographics, new models of service delivery, evolving scopes of practice and technological innovations are changing the number and mix of human resources required, as well as the kinds of skills needed.

The increased emphasis on life-long learning stems from several factors. First, globally, career mobility is on the rise. Second, the focus on continuous quality improvement underscores the need to keep up with the latest research and improvements in practice. Third, the proliferation of knowledge makes it vital for employees to have access to resources to keep abreast of advances in scientific knowledge and to acquire new skills.

A high quality workplace benefits all stakeholders. Healthy and high quality work environments lead to an engaged workforce with high rates of satisfaction, retention and low absenteeism, which in turn lead to improved corporate performance. Employee engagement doesn’t just happen, it is the result of planning and forethought and careful attention to what matters most to the people who work for a company. Employee engagement is the outcome of creating a work environment where people want to come and stay. One of the most critical factors in employee satisfaction, commitment and retention is the quality and effectiveness of managers, particularly one’s direct supervisor. A key process to understanding employee engagement is to follow people as they join, stay and leave a company and identify practices that create a healthy and high quality workplace where people join, stay and strive.

Overwhelming Change = Underwhelming Results. As company’s strive to become better, employees are usually the biggest opportunity and the biggest obstacle to change. It’s not that people are opposed to new ways of working. They are just overwhelmed by the number of change initiatives and often feel as if they are all alone in shouldering the burden. In a business environment where change is the only constant, companies must be really good at change. Whether the challenge is merger integration divestiture, new IT systems, new operating processes, new regulation, or a new business, it is necessary for the workforce to deal with change. Key processes to achieve this include building and overseeing change management capacity; and providing change management guidance and services.

Creating a work environment to maximize the capacity of a company’s existing workforce is critical to keeping the company fiscally efficient, effective and satisfying to work in. Advances in technology and communication are enabling entirely new ways of doing business, including virtual teams, flexible hours, job sharing and telecommuting. Workers can now be connected and productive at all hours of the day, from anywhere.

A key process is organizational design and/or restructuring functions and departments to respond effectively to internal departments and external agencies.

Globally, several factors will effect a company’s workforce. Demographic, economic, sociopolitical and technological changes are all converging. The result will be a continuing struggle to fill job openings with quality new hires. A key process is the development of a comprehensive workforce plan to provide managers and leaders with the tools and information to implement and executive activities that support the optimal number, mix and distribution of employees.