2020 taught us a lot – on multiple levels.

For one thing, all of this new free time the majority of us had been granted while in quarantine provided ample opportunity to spend time learning new skills. Maybe you finally learned how to play that guitar that’s been gathering dust for years, or how to meditate in order to deal with the stress that tends to accompany a global pandemic, flagrant social injustices, and civil unrest. Perhaps you focused more on your professional development, picking up new competencies that would better your career.

Aside from individual self-improvement, I don’t think many would disagree that 2020 gave us a lot to think about concerning humanity as a whole. Were there aspects of the past year and a half which would cause one to be justified in questioning their faith in humanity? I won’t sugarcoat things – absolutely. Although it’s easy to focus only on the negatives, if you consider the more positive aspects such as the outpouring of support seen in communities around the world, massive crowdsourcing to help those in need, and other uplifting stories to come out of these times, it is this humble blogger’s opinion that while there is still work to be done and the negatives are still there for us to learn from, we pretty much came out on top.

So, what does this mean for HR? People are back in style.

2020’s increased spotlight on how much we depend on other people, as well as our understanding of people and what’s important, translates into the workplace as well. 2021 has seen – and will continue to see moving forward – a renewed emphasis on the human element. This will take the form of many focal points in the workplace including diversity, inclusion and equity (DEI), resilience, agility, flexible work schedules, employee health, safe work environments, and compliance. A lot of big words, but it all boils down to one truth – the future is looking bright for work, and the world.

To say 2020-21 has been a real whirlwind of a time that has relentlessly tested humanity would be an understatement. However, I believe that we can now confidently say that hope is on the horizon and we are slated to come out of this better than ever.

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to stay positive.