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THE
PULSE
OF HR
2023
Leading the Dynamic Workplace
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Business Growth
Digital HR
Making Hybrid, Work
Generational Needs
Small Business Spotlight
Report Findings
PODCASTS
The PULSE Podcast
Listen as we take a deeper dive into the most interesting findings from this year’s study.
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The 2023 Pulse of HR
Report
Discover how HR and business leaders say they’re tackling this year’s greatest challenges.
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GUIDES
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Putting Employees at the Center of Business Growth
Talent Management & Support
Digitizing HR as a Business Strategy
Optimizing HR
Making
Hybrid, Work
Building Your Best Team
Meeting the Needs of Every Generation
Recruitment & Retention
HR leaders recognize that business success depends on creating a rewarding experience for employees, and rank the following as their top concerns:
employee burnout
quiet quitting
full-time employees working another full-time job
1. Employee/manager communication
75%
2. Employee productivity
3. Employee engagement and retention
4. Employee well-being
5. Employee training and skill-building
of HR leaders said they will focus on tackling these issues in the coming year:
of HR leaders plan to make investments in HR technology in the next 12 months to tackle the following priorities:
Improving recruitment to support company goals
1
Facilitating communication between
employees and managers/management
2
Boosting their personal productivity
3
Helping leaders communicate plans
and successes to management
4
Mitigating employee burnout
5
Improving recruitment to support company goals
1
50%
Almost half of all respondents allow employees to work in a hybrid format, and plan to continue to over the next 12 months.
allow hybrid
46%
Percentage with 20+ employees
35%
Percentage with 1–19 employees
Top Reasons for Offering Hybrid Work Arrangements
1. Employee productivity
2. Employee well-being
3. Retaining talent
50%
44%
43%
However, long-term, roughly 2 in 5 respondents eventually plan to have
all employees return on site.
Focus and care is also being taken to identify and provide specific training for remote and hybrid employees —
58 percent said it’s their priority to train managers on hybrid/remote employee management and career development.
A top priority for HR leaders this year is improving recruitment to support company objectives. One way they’re doing that is by honing in on the priorities of each generation:
51%
1. Offering/promoting training opportunities
Gen Z
51%
2. Ensuring diversity
51%
3. Communicating their company mission
64%
3. Offering/promoting training opportunities
64%
2. Ensuring diversity
66%
1. Communicating their company mission
30%
3. Commitment to pay equity
30%
2. Enhancing benefits
31%
1. Communicating their company mission
51%
3. Commitment to pay equity
53%
2. Enhancing benefits
54%
1. Communicating their company mission
Millennials
Baby Boomers
Gen X
To help retain employees, HR leaders say their companies plan to offer these additional benefits within the next 12 months:
• Employee assistance programs
• Shorter workweeks
• Daycare cost assistance
• Financial counseling
• Eldercare
• Health reimbursement arrangements (HRA)
Being a smaller business doesn’t make the goals or challenges any less… big. Forty-five percent of companies with five to 19 employees say they anticipate a revenue increase this year of more than 10% over 2022. Here’s a look at what else is on their minds.
Business Challenges
Business Priorities
Work Arrangements
Adopting Digital HR
Attracting and
Retaining Employees
They're more likely than larger companies to require employees to work on-site full time.
They're less likely to offer a hybrid work arrangement.
47%
Percentage with 20+ employees
33%
Percentage with 1–19 employees
What’s on the Minds of Smaller Businesses
Small Business Spotlight
But, when they do offer flexible work arrangements, companies with 5 to 19 employees are motivated most by the desire to increase employee productivity (similar to their larger peers).
• Recruiting and talent management
• Manager training
• Benefits administration
Unlike larger companies, however, HR leaders at these smaller companies are less concerned with:
Employee well-being is their top HR priority for the next 12 months, similar to that of larger companies.
The #1 challenge is having their
full-time employees working a second job.
say they plan to digitize their HR efforts this year.
Smaller companies cite technology as important, but adoption lags slightly behind larger businesses.
9/10
larger companies
8/10
smaller companies
say they plan to do so.
The overall tactics that smaller businesses are using — or planning to use — to attract and retain talent include:
3. Offering flexible scheduling
2. Increasing pay
1. Enhancing benefits
Technological innovations, an imperative to improve staff well-being, and the dynamic economic and hiring environment are prompting HR leaders to devise creative solutions to address their HR challenges unlike ever before. At the heart of their plans is digital HR: using technology to automate and streamline HR tasks.
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Ready to put insights from this year’s Pulse of HR into action? Get started with these helpful guides.
Learn six ways you can optimize your remote team by improving communication, supporting productivity, and increasing engagement.
32%
31%
2%
6%
10%
12%
18%
22%
0%
4%
8%
12%
16%
20%
24%
26%
28%
30%
27%
26%
25%
24%
20%
18%
16%
12%
12%
10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%
22%
25%
24%
23%
22%
21%
20%
18%
16%
12%
12%
10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%
95%
94%
93%
92%
91%
90%
86%
78%
70%
62%
54%
46%
38%
30%
24%
16%
8%
0%
Have a Business Challenge You're Looking to Solve?
Whatever your business needs are, Paychex offers award-winning technology and a comprehensive suite of HR solutions to help you meet them. Learn more about our variety of products and services, and take our quiz to discover which ones might be the right fit for your business.
After years of being in "survival mode" through a global pandemic, business and HR leaders are now being challenged to get back to business in the aftermath of a major cultural shift. More than ever before, HR leaders are focused on optimizing the work experience for everyone, regardless of where work is done. Here’s a look at some of the strategies and tactics they’re using to do just that.
For more insights, download the full 2023 Pulse of HR report
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2023 Pulse of HR Podcast
Discover how you can use your payroll software to attract and retain employees, build company culture, improve operational efficiencies, and more.
2023 Pulse of HR Report
It’s not easy being able to appeal to everyone when it comes to attracting and retaining employees. Discover what each generation is looking for.
Remote Management
Hiring Guide
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5 of 5
4 of 5
3 of 5
2 of 5
1 of 5
% of businesses (with 20+ employees) prioritizing each tactic
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It’s not easy being able to appeal to everyone when it comes to attracting and retaining employees. Discover what each generation is looking for.
The Guide to Recruiting
(and Retaining) by Generation
Discover how you can use your payroll software to attract and retain employees, build company culture, improve operational efficiencies, and more.
Payroll as a Benefit:
The Competitive Advantage
Learn six ways you can optimize your remote team by improving communication, supporting productivity, and increasing engagement.
The Remote Manager's Toolkit
Ready to put insights from this year’s Pulse of HR into action? Get started with these helpful guides.
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Get All the Guides
Discover best practices for helping your managers lead and stay better connected to remote employees.
Guide to Remote Management
Discover how HR and business leaders say they’re tackling this year’s greatest challenges.
2023 Pulse of HR Report
Listen as we take a deeper dive into the most interesting findings from this year’s study.
Pulse of HR Podcast
Ready to put insights from this year’s Pulse of HR into action? Get started with these helpful resources.
Get the Resources
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