One such trend is the huge growth of the gig economy, writes Ed Krow of the Forbes Coaches Council and a partner with TurboExecs.
HR's challenge in dealing with this trend is to break with traditional mindsets. "Who cares if that person sits at a desk under your roof or if they're three time zones away?" Krow writes. "Who cares if that person doesn't work 9 to 5? The right person is the right person. Who brings the right skillset for the job you need done?"
While forward-thinking companies have already embraced gig workers, "the only thing keeping remote work from catching fire is HR's unwillingness to embrace it," Krow writes.
HR also needs to be willing to invest the time to help train its current workforce to handle new challenges rather than always looking outside for new talent. That means focusing on working with individuals, which is time consuming.
"The average HR person would much rather throw an entire work group into a meeting for an hour and check a training box," Krow notes. "But as fast as business is changing today, that kind of training doesn't really work anymore."