HR TRENDS
REPORT
2024
What HR trends are
making waves in 2024?
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CONTENTS
OF
TABLE
01
02
03
04
05
HR in 2024:
An Era of Change
Rethinking the
Approach to Skills
Delivering on the
Employee Experience
Flexibility Beyond
Remote Work
2024 Trends
Spotlights
Appendices
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How to read
this report
This report is based on data gathered from McLean &
Company’s HR Trends Survey 2024, which surveyed
1,373 business professionals in September 2023.
Graph totals may not add up to 100% due to rounding.
Key terms used throughout this report:
Organizational size
Highly proficient
Small: 250 or fewer employees
Medium: 251 to 1,000 employees
Large: 1,001 or more employees
Respondents who selected 5 or 6 out of 6 when asked
to rate their HR organization’s proficiency across
various skills or competencies.
Highly effective
Respondents who selected 5 or 6 out of 6 when asked
to rate effectiveness across various parameters.
High performing
Respondents who selected 5 or 6 out of 6 when asked
to rate performance across various parameters.
See Appendix I for a breakdown of the characteristics
of the respondents to the HR Trends Survey 2024.
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See Appendix II for the HR FTE ratio and anticipated
HR headcount change in 2024.
Association & relationship
Any time an association or relationship is referenced in
this report, it refers to a statistically significant result.
These are used to indicate which practices are disproportionately used by the most effective HR departments.
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01
HR in 2024:
An Era of Change
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Supporting change is in the top five HR priorities for 2024, up
two spots from the previous year. This may be in response to the
accelerating rate of change as well as the rise of generative AI,
which experts predict will bring even more change to the workplace. With innovation on the cusp of becoming a top priority
and the need to control labor costs moving to a top-three priority, HR will be challenged by the tension between the need to
adapt and innovate and the need to control costs.
When it comes to HR organizations, the recognition of HR’s strategic leadership has never been stronger. Yet capacity continues
to be a major obstacle and HR professionals’ stress levels have
increased dramatically year over year.
There is evidence that HR is looking to data and technology to
solve these and other challenges and that these efforts are leading to success, but 2024 will be a key year for HR to adapt to
known and unknown changes.
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HR continues to expand
its strategic leadership
HR’s involvement as a partner in planning and executing organizational strategy has
increased from 36% in 2021 to 50% in 2024.
HR’s involvement in the organizational strategy
A partner in planning
and executing strategy
60%
40%
Asked for input into
planning and involved
in strategy execution
20%
Involved in executing
organizational strategy
after it is developed
0%
2022
2021
n=746
n=758
2023
2024
n=1,025
n=1,144
Not involved with the
organizational strategy
Employees are experiencing disruption in all areas of their lives – from the acceleration
and uncertainty of technological changes to financial, political, and social pressures –
which impacts their day-to-day experiences at work. These pressures continue to highlight the integral role HR plays as a strategic partner in navigating change and disruption for organizations and employees.
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Compared to when HR is not involved, when
HR is a strategic partner, organizations are…
2.7
X
n=1,138
more likely to
be highly effective
at generating
and implementing
new ideas.
1.8
X
n=1,126
more likely to be
highly effective at
changing quickly at
scale to capitalize
on new opportunities.
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Innovation and supporting
change jump in priority
Top HR priorities for organizations in 2024
This year
Last year
01
(01)
Recruiting
02
(02)
Providing a great employee experience
Moved up
03
(04)
Controlling labor costs
Moved down
04
(03)
Developing leaders
No change
05
(07)
Supporting change
n=1,193. See Appendix III for top 10 HR priorities for organizations from 2020-2024.
Recruiting and providing a great employee experience continue to be
the top priorities for HR, as organizations focus on retaining top talent
in a competitive labor market.
While DEI has continued to decline in priority, dropping to 7th in 2024
from a high of 4th in 2021 it is so intertwined with the employee experience that organizations may no longer be considering it as a standalone initiative.
Continued economic pressures are reflected in the increased priority of
controlling labor costs.
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Technological advancements, such as artificial intelligence (AI), are accelerating HR’s focus on change and innovation, as these were the priorities which saw the biggest increase in 2024, with innovation jumping
from 9th place in 2023 to 6th in 2024.
INSIGHT
As technological innovation
experiences exponential growth
in 2024, HR’s role in supporting
change and enabling innovation
will be increasingly important to
organizational success.
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Data-driven, tech-enabled
HR approaches pay off
“In which ways is your HR organization evolving
its practices to deliver on its expected goals
n=789
and priorities?”
65
%
63
%
62
%
are making better
use of technology.
n=775
are increasing
employee
listening efforts.
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However, HR remains slow to adopt new technologies
such as generative AI, with just
28
n=730
1.2
X
1.3
X
more likely to
be high performing
at supporting change.
n=788
are leveraging data
for talent decisions.
These practices demonstrate that HR is seeking to deliver on its priorities through a data-driven approach,
enabled by technology.
%
HR organizations that
are making better use
of technology are…
of HR organizations
taking steps to implement
generative AI in 2024.
more likely to be high
performing at changing
quickly at scale to
capitalize on new
opportunities.
“There is a huge opportunity for HR to use more
data and to use generative AI to help with the
workload and allow HR professionals more time to
focus on things that add value to the organization
and employees.”
Manuelita Cherizard,
CHRO, Royal Ontario Museum
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Technology could help
solve HR capacity issues
Capacity issues
68
%
n=787
of HR respondents reported that
capacity issues were a roadblock
to delivering on priorities.
Leverage technological
advancements
In 2024, HR needs to explore innovative solutions
to deliver value despite capacity challenges.
Advancements in automation and AI enable HR to
improve efficiency and focus on strategic priorities
that provide the most value.
Resolving capacity issues with technology
requires overcoming roadblocks such as: n=787
Lack of HR budget
Skills gaps within HR
Inadequate technology
Ensuring HR has the capability
to build a business case and
demonstrate ROI is key. Shift
focus to uncovering the value
on investment – both the overall
organizational impact and the
financial return.
Upskilling HR in areas such as
digital and data literacy will
enable HR organizations to
make better use of existing
technology resources and
implement new technologies.
Many HR organizations are
impeded by legacy technology,
while others leave value on the
table by not optimizing existing
technology. Find opportunities to
make better use of what already
exists before committing to
a costly and time-consuming
implementation.
45 42 39
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%
%
%
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HR stress levels are rising
From 2023 to 2024,
HR’s reported stress
levels increased
dramatically.
“I experience higher levels of stress related
to my job today compared to one year ago.”
47%
n=789
41%
n=135
When HR and
organizational priorities
are not closely aligned,
HR staff are…
1.3
X
more likely to report an
increase in job-related
stress levels compared
to a year ago.
n=783
Create clarity by establishing alignment between
HR’s priorities and broader organizational priorities
as a step toward reducing HR stress levels.
42%
n=299
34%
n=810
Build resilience in HR
2023
2024
HR
Non-HR
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The many external factors that may be affecting
stress levels among employees disproportionately
affect HR.
HR staff are employees too! There is often a high degree of emotional labor expected of HR, as they are
called upon to help leaders and employees navigate
difficult, sometimes emotionally charged situations,
and to anticipate and prepare for future changes, all
while grappling with the uncertainty of what impacts these changes will have on their own roles.
“Put your oxygen mask on first, before helping others.”
To better support leaders and employees, especially
in times of crises and uncertainty, HR must make focusing on HR team resilience and wellbeing a priority.
Use McLean & Company’s Build a Resilient HR Team
resources to equip HR with resilience techniques
needed to support themselves and the organization.
“As an HR professional, you have to be able to turn it
off. You have to be able to step away because if you
can’t, you can’t actually take care of anybody else.”
Jules Gianneschi,
Senior Vice President of People,
America’s CAR-MART
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Alignment is highest
in medium-sized
organizations.
H R
T R E N D S
HR must align with
organizational priorities
“The priorities of my organization’s HR department are well aligned with the broader
n=1,025
organizational priorities.”
68%
Small
71%
59%
Medium
Large
Alignment between HR and organizational priorities
is strongest in small and medium sized organizations. This suggests such alignment becomes more
challenging as organizations grow, and it may also
be a function of HR in large organizations supporting
more employees per HR FTE.
Priority alignment
reflects HR’s strategic
partnership.
85
%
n=882
of HR organizations
that are strategic
partners in planning and
executing strategy have
priorities aligned with the
broader organization.
When HR’s priorities
are well aligned,
organizations are…
2.8
X
3.3
X
3.3
X
more likely to be
highly effective at
providing a great
employee experience.
n=1,078
more likely to be
highly effective at
shaping a strong
organizational culture.
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n=1,075
Measure organizational alignment
Seeking feedback and input from organizational
partners is crucial to HR’s strategic partnership
and ability to shape organizations where everyone
thrives. Use McLean & Company’s HR Organizational
Alignment Diagnostic to optimize alignment and
enable data-driven, strategic decisions.
n=1,072
more likely to be
perceived as highly
effective, which is a
challenge for many
HR organizations.
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Few outside of HR feel
HR is highly effective
Perceptions of
HR’s effectiveness
are negative.
39
%
of non-HR
respondents believe
their HR organization
is highly effective.
n=307
Improve HR’s data capabilities
In an environment dominated by rapidly changing
technology, HR’s effectiveness depends in part on
its ability to leverage data to take action aligned with
organizational priorities more than ever. This starts
with improving HR’s data literacy capabilities.
Data shows that there is a link between HR’s effectiveness at data and analytics and overall HR effectiveness:
HR organizations that
are highly effective at
facilitating data-driven
decisions are…
2.3
X
more likely to
be perceived as
highly effective.
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n=1,330
Yet McLean & Company’s diagnotstic database shows
that organizational partners are least satisfied with
HR’ metrics and analytics (McLean & Company HRSM,
2023, n=3,003).
“There’s a lot more HR data available than there
was 10 years ago, but unless HR is learning
about data and putting it into practice, there’s
going to be an evolution where the traditional HR
generalist is replaced by someone who is more
technically savvy.”
Philip Dana,
CHRO and Navy Vet
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Building trust in HR will
be key to success in 2024
Perceptions of HR’s
effectiveness and
trust are linked.
77
%
n=288
of non-HR
respondents who
perceive their HR team
as highly effective also
have high trust in HR.
However, trust in
HR is alarmingly low.
41
%
of non-HR
respondents
report having high
trust in HR.
n=295
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Trust in HR is influenced by many factors, and during
periods of change trust is tested. HR needs to understand
the root cause for the lack of trust to move forward.
While navigating change and disruption in 2024, taking a data-driven approach to decision-making and
communicating the “why” to leadership and employees will be key to building trust in HR. An important
part of this is qualitative data in the form of the employee voice.
Employees expect to be involved in initiatives that
impact them more than ever, so it’s crucial to engage with employees during the planning and rollout
phases of initiatives to capture the employee voice
and build trust.
HR organizations
with high trust are…
2.4
X
3.8
X
3.4
X
more likely to be
high performing
at recruiting.
n=1,074
more likely to be
high performing at
shaping a strong
organizational culture.
n=1,079
n=1,073
more likely to be
high performing at
developing leaders.
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What comes next?
Use McLean & Company resources to act on HR’s priorities in 2024 and prepare
HR and the organization for the accelerating pace of change and innovation.
Actions and practical resources
Align efforts with HR’s top priorities in 2024
with McLean & Company’s resources on:
• Recruiting
• Employee experience
• HR budgeting and headcount planning
To learn more about how to use technology to help HR and the
organization achieve its priorities, Develop a Holistic Digital HR Strategy.
Use McLean & Company’s HR Organizational Alignment Diagnostic
to optimize alignment between HR and the organization.
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Use the Build a Resilient HR Team resources to equip HR with resilience
techniques needed to support themselves and the organization
throughout change in 2024.
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02
Rethinking the
Approach to Skills
The rapid rate of change means many commonly used workplace
skills will change – in 2023, the World Economic Forum estimated
that 44% of core skills will change in the next five years (WEF, 2023).
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The short shelf life of many key skills has shone a spotlight on
those skills and competencies that are more durable and resilient
to change. Complicating the approach to skills is the need to account for the experiences of employees whose jobs and nature of
work are fundamentally different from each other, such as office
and non-office workers.
This section examines five key types of skills and competencies to
better understand employee proficiency in each and how their development is being prioritized by organizations. It also explores
opportunities for organizations to equip the workforce with more
durable skills and competencies to navigate the constant waves of
change and disruption.
Functional skills
and competencies
relate to:
Tasks and functions, such as talent acquisition, financial planning,
programming, production operations, data analysis, and business and
industry analysis.
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Key terms used in
this section include
Individuals, such as adaptability, resilience, change ability, decision making
and problem solving, and being planful.
Core and
leadership skills
and competencies
can exist at the
level of:
Teams, such as collaboration, communication, influencing, emotional
intelligence, and networking.
Leadership, such as managing talent, strategic execution and direction,
coaching, and leading through change.
Organizations, such as business acumen, organizational awareness,
and risk management.
Groups of skills and competencies are referred to as
“skills” throughout this report.
Types of worker
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Office workers: Employees who primarily work within
an office setting, often using computers, phones, or
other types of office equipment to carry out their tasks.
Non-office workers: Employees who primarily work
outside an office environment and whose tasks often
require the use of specialized tools and equipment
related to their profession (e.g. carpenter, doctor,
factory worker).
Highly effective
at building talent
Composite measure of respondents who scored 10 or
above (out of a maximum score of 12) when asked to
rate HR’s performance on two dimensions: enabling
learning & development and developing leaders,
each scored on a six-point scale.
Assessment of skill proficiency
Overall skill proficiency assessment scores within
an organization were determined using a weighted average across the skill proficiency responses to
each office and non-office skill question, in conjunction with the estimated percentage of employees at
the organization who were office or non-office based.
The overall skill level score within the organization
was then calculated as the average of the scores
across the five skills.
Increase Investment
Maintain Focus
Individual
Skills
H R
Priority
Task &
Functional
Skills
Leadership
Skills
Organizational
Skills
Refocus Efforts
Proficiency
Reallocate Resources
The percentage of
non-office workers who are
highly proficient in core and
leadership skills is very low
36 35
%
%
25 24
%
%
n=824
n=820
Individual skills
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INSIGHT
Team
Skills
n=815-854
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Core and leadership skills
lag for non-office workers
Team skills
n=815
Organizational skills
n=818
Leadership skills
The emphasis on task and
functional skills over all other
skills represents a risk for
organizations.
Core and leadership skills, such
as the ability to navigate change,
work collaboratively, understand
the financial implications of their
work, and lead others, are not
currently a high priority, but they
will be more crucial than ever
during times of change.
Priority is
placed on the
“how” behind
the work rather
than the “why”
Organizational skills were ranked
as the lowest priority among the
five skills measured for both
office and non-office workers
(n=815-1,001).
More emphasis must be placed on
developing employees to understand
the financial and business impact
of their work. While the technical
aspects of completing their work
may become quickly outdated, the
foundational knowledge of why it
is being done and the impact it has
on the organization will be relevant
for much longer.
Increase Investment
Maintain Focus
Team
Skills
Individual
Skills
Priority
H R
Leadership
Skills
Task &
Functional
Skills
n=966-1,001
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Office workers are least
proficient in leadership skills
Organizational
Skills
Refocus Efforts
Proficiency
Reallocate Resources
Leadership skills are lacking
despite their high priority.
Despite 7 in 10 respondents reporting leadership skills as a high priority
for office workers (n=1,000), it was the lowest scoring area, with just:
32
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%
of respondents reporting office
workers as highly proficient at leadership
skills and competencies.
n=975
Invest in leadership skills
To get started, review McLean & Company’s Management Fundamentals
training program for new leaders, and Essentials for Leaders of Leaders
training program for senior leaders.
“The person who does a job the
best usually becomes a leader
of others doing that job. And
what do people do under stress?
Things they know they’re good at.
They become micro managers,
when really leadership is what
is needed. And we do not do a
good job of teaching leadership.”
Terri Lewis,
Chief People Officer, One Call
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Skill development efforts
across all workers should
have a broader scope
Across office and non-office workers, task and functional skills are being prioritized d
­ isproportionately,
but core and leadership skills are both closely
­associated with organizational success.
Across every skill type, organizations whose employees are highly proficient are…
1.5
X
more likely to report
high overall organizational
performance.
n=797
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Proficiency in task and
functional skills remains
critical in ensuring employees
are productive, as when
employees are highly
proficient in this skill,
the organization is…
1.9
X
more likely to be
high performing at
workforce productivity.
n=835
However, a workforce with diverse skill sets leads to
diverse positive outcomes for the organization.
“In my experience, tenure in an organization alone
doesn’t always translate into understanding how
all the parts of the company connect and come
together to create value. It’s an opportunity for HR
to help develop employees with a broader enterprise
perspective, who think across functional silos to solve
the most critical challenges. This requires significant
investment in talent initiatives. It’s a business issue
that is critical to success.”
Dipankar Bandyopadhyay,
Global HR leader with experience in transformation
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When all employees
are highly proficient at…
Individual skills
Team skills
Organizational skills
Leadership skills
The organization is…
n=822-835
2.1
X
2.1
X
2.1
X
1.8
X
more likely to be high performing at the
ability to change at scale to capitalize
on new opportunities.
more likely to be high
performing at diversity,
equity, and inclusion.
more likely to be high
performing at generating
and implementing new ideas.
more likely to be high
performing at shaping a strong
organizational culture.
Expand the scope of employee development
to include more diverse sets of skills
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Organizations must recognize the value of developing
diverse skill sets to increase employees’ ability to adapt
to the organization’s changing needs and priorities.
Team skills and individual skills are critical regardless
of the physical setting of the role and are less likely to
require further skill development over time than task
and functional skills.
When employees are placed in positions of leadership
without the people leadership skills or the organizational
and business acumen to be effective, it presents a challenge
for leaders, employees, and the organization. In 2023, nearly
half of organizations found their largest skill gap in first-time
leaders (McLean & Company HR Trends Report 2023, n=826).
Leadership and organizational skills are significant areas of
opportunity when it comes to building a leadership pipeline.
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Skill proficiency relies
on HR building talent
When HR is highly
effective at building
talent, employees are:
n=807-966
2.6X
more likely to be highly proficient
in leadership skills.
However, just 25% of respondents
report their HR function is highly
effective at building talent.
2.1
X
more likely to be highly proficient
in organizational skills.
n=1,351
1.9
X
more likely to be highly proficient
in individual skills.
1.8
X
more likely to be highly proficient
in team skills.
1.5
X
more likely to be highly proficient
in task and functional skills.
To elevate the proficiency
levels of employee skills, HR
must enhance their effectiveness
at talent development.
Across every type of skill, employees’ proficiency levels
are much higher when HR is effective at building talent.
This is more pronounced when it comes to core and
leadership skills, where the gap between priority and
proficiency is greatest.
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This means that investment in HR and L&D teams
should be the starting point for any organizational
reskilling or upskilling efforts.
See McLean & Company’s Create a Learning and
Development Strategy resource to take a strategic
approach to developing employee skill proficiency,
and use the Elevate HR and Strategic HR Essentials
programs to enhance HR’s effectiveness.
Lack of effectiveness at building talent is a concern
because organizations rely heavily on building skills
internally rather than acquiring them through hiring.
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Employee skills proficiency
starts with planning
What approach are
organizations taking to acquire
each of the following skills? n=789-813
Team
Organization
Leadership
Individual
Task &
functional
3.3 X
77%
23%
2.9 X
74%
26%
2.7 X
73%
27%
2.1 X
68%
32%
1.1 X
53%
47%
Internal development
More likely
to use internal
development:
External hiring
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Plan for skills with workforce and succession planning
There will always be times when buying specific task and
functional skills will be required. Our data reflects this, as
organizations are more likely to use hiring to acquire task
and functional skills than any other category.
Selecting candidates based largely on expertise in
functional skills, though, runs the risk of those very skills
becoming outdated in a few years, requiring reskilling.
Use workforce planning and succession planning to
anticipate the skills organizations will need in the future
and build a leadership pipeline of employees with the
appropriate task and functional skills, but also the core
and leadership skills that will make them successful in all
aspects of work. Better planning will also reduce reliance
on reactive recruiting and reap the benefits of increased
internal mobility.
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What comes next?
Use McLean & Company resources to rethink the approach to skills
development and improve the effectiveness of your HR and L&D organization.
Actions and practical resources
Invest in leadership skills with McLean & Company’s Management
Fundamentals training program for new leaders, and with the Essentials
for Leaders of Leaders training program for senior leaders.
Enhance HR’s effectiveness with the Elevate HR and Strategic HR
Essentials facilitated training programs.
Use McLean & Company’s Create a Learning and Development Strategy
resource to take a strategic approach to developing employee skill
proficiency.
Create a framework to discuss knowledge, skills, and abilities by
developing a comprehensive competency framework.
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Plan for the future of skills with a Strategic Workforce Planning Toolkit.
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03
Delivering on
the Employee
Experience
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Employees’ expectations of a great employee experience have increased in recent years, and providing a great employee experience
has been a top-two organizational priority since 2022. Whether organizations have delivered on this expectation is a different story.
There is a clear case for providing a positive employee experience
that goes beyond one-off or “nice-to-have” initiatives. A more systematic and intentional approach is needed for organizations to improve employees’ perceptions of their cumulative lived experiences
within the organization.
This section examines five dimensions that contribute to employees’
lived experience. It also explores the organizational outcomes associated with a positive employee experience, along with key dimensions for organizations to prioritize.
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What is the
employee experience?
Employee experience is the employees’
perception of their cumulative lived
experiences with the organization.
But how do we measure the cumulative lived experiences of – and moments that matter to – individuals at our own organizations?
INSIGHT
Employee listening is a great approach to this, whether through surveys
like the Employee Experience Monitor or Employee Engagement Program,
or by equipping managers to have meaningful conversations with their
employees to understand their experiences of working at the organization.
Employee engagement and
employee experience are related
but different concepts that are
sometimes confused.
Employee engagement is an
outcome of the employee
experience, which is all of the
experiences that the employee
has at the organization.
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Understanding broader trends
within the employee experience
across organizations is complicated.
Five dimensions that capture a large part of a typical
employee’s lived experience were measured via responses to the HR Trends Survey 2024:
• Technology
• Culture
• Social & Relationships
• Physical Space
• Task
These dimensions are not an exhaustive list, but they
capture the major categories of moments that matter
throughout the employee lifecycle.
This section will demonstrate trends and outcomes around
organizations that are highly effective at designing
the employee experience (measured based on scores
across these five dimensions).
See Appendix IV for a more detailed account of our
approach to measuring the employee experience at
responding organizations, and see Appendix V for a
breakdown of each of the five dimensions and their scores.
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The business case for a great
employee experience is clear
A positive employee experience is linked to
multiple success measures, including overall
organizational performance.
Percentage of respondents reporting high overall organizational performance.
n=867
Difference
1.6 X
77%
48%
Organization is highly effective at designing
a positive employee experience.
Organization is not highly effective at designing
a positive employee experience.
When organizations are highly effective at
designing a positive employee experience,
they are also… n=865-874
2.5
X
2.4
X
2.3
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
X
more likely to be high
performing at quickly
changing to capitalize on
new opportunities.
more likely to be high
performing at workforce
productivity; diversity,
equity, and inclusion;
and shaping a strong
organizational culture.
more likely to be high
performing at generating
and implementing
new ideas.
“Employee experience is one of those things where
you’re not going to necessarily take an action and
see an outcome right away. It’s more of a longer-term
investment, and longer-term investments from a people
perspective are harder to get everyone’s attention.”
Manuelita Cherizard,
CHRO, Royal Ontario Museum
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The risks of not providing a
good employee experience
are just as clear
When organizations are not effective
at designing a positive employee experience,
they experience…
36
%
n=671
higher rates of voluntary
turnover compared to
organizations whose
HR function is effective
at designing a positive
employee experience.
“Employees have choices. They don’t have to choose us.
If we create an environment in which it makes it difficult
for an employee to come back and choose us every day,
we’re creating churn that doesn’t need to happen.”
Jules Gianneschi,
Senior Vice President of People, America’s CAR-MART
Respondents also report higher levels of stress
when their organization fails to provide a great
employee experience:
“I experience higher levels of stress related
to my job today compared to one year ago.”
35%
49%
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Organization is high performing at designing
the employee experience.
HR’s role in partnering with the organization’s leaders and employees to identify ways to enhance the
employee experience is larger than ever, due to
changes and complexities in the external environment. While this highlights HR’s increasing importance in contributing to organizational outcomes,
it also signals increasing demands on HR. There’s a
need for HR staff to care for their own wellbeing as
the risk of their stress and burnout will only rise with
their increased efforts in this area.
n=850
More likely to report
higher stress
1.4 X
Organization is not high performing at designing
the employee experience.
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There is work to be done
on many aspects of the
employee experience
Providing a great
employee experience is
a “must-have” activity
for the organization.
Given the benefits to individuals and organizations
of a positive employee experience, and given the increasing expectations of employees around the moments that matter to them throughout the employee
lifecycle, a great employee experience is no longer
a “nice-to-have.” The data strongly points to it being a highly important activity at which the organization and HR must excel.
However, the current state leaves much to
be desired, particularly when it comes to the
technology, culture, and task dimensions.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Percentage of respondents that report high performance on these employee experience dimensions.
Physical
space
58%
Social and
relationships
42%
Technology
31%
Culture
30%
Task
28%
n=886-938
…is strongly associated with the following organizational outcomes:
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The two lowest-scoring dimensions
are most strongly correlated with
key organizational outcomes,
indicating a missed opportunity.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion
Culture
dimension
Ability to shape a strong organizational culture
Social and environmental sustainability performance
Ability to quickly change at scale to capitalize on new opportunities
Task
dimension
Ability to generate and implement new ideas
Workforce productivity
Organizations that have providing
a great employee experience as a
top-three priority are:
30
%
29
%
more likely to be
high performing on
the culture dimension.
Organizations that prioritize the employee experience are putting it into action by providing employees with interesting and purposeful work and
enabling them to perform their tasks without
friction, while also ensuring the organization’s values and culture are resonating with employees.
more likely to be
high performing on
the task dimension.
When the employee experience is not highly prioritized, the areas that have the most impact on organizational outcomes are most likely to slip.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
n=938
n=934
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Technology is another crucial area for
improvement, as accessible and reliable
technology is central in ensuring a smooth
day-to-day employee experience.
When the organization is highly effective at:
Ensuring reliable technology to enable
frictionless completion of tasks, they are...
2.1
X
1.9
X
more likely to be high
performing at quickly
changing to capitalize
on new opportunities.
n=921
Reducing friction
in tasks, they are…
2.5
X
2.1
X
more likely to be high
performing at quickly
changing to capitalize
on new opportunities.
n=922
more likely to be high
performing at generating
and implementing
new ideas.
n=932
more likely to be
high performing at
workforce productivity.
n=938
However, the percentage of organizations
that are highly effective is just…
38
%
25
%
for ensuring
reliable technology
to enable frictionless
completion of tasks.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
n=937
n=938
for reducing
friction in tasks.
INSIGHT
Improving the employee experience doesn’t always
mean introducing new programs and initiatives. It can
be removing seemingly minor pain points that cause
employees frustration and delays when carrying out
their day-to-day tasks.
Imagine office workers completing their tasks on a
poor internet connection that disconnects frequently,
or a shift worker without access to their upcoming
week’s work schedules online. Their experience will
likely be very negative, even if many of the other
employee experience dimensions are positive.
Dig into the day-to-day experiences of employees
and don’t overlook the little things that cause friction.
Small things can cause big pain.
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Organizations must listen to
understand the experiences
of their employees
The employee experience means different things for
everyone. It encompasses multiple dimensions that
make up how each employee experiences their organization and the moments that matter throughout
their journey as an employee. As such, each person’s
perception and experience varies based on their own
circumstances and needs as well as the unique contexts in which the organization operates.
As a result, organizations must make an effort to uncover and truly understand what the employee experience of their workforce is.
Listen to employees to define,
operationalize, and articulate
the unique employee experience.
Trying to broadly “improve the employee experience”
is akin to attempting to boil the ocean – it is unfeasible
and will yield few returns.
HR functions must enable the organization to gauge the
lived experiences of employees and identify key areas
of improvement. Gathering sentiments from employees
about how they experience the moments that matter to
them will lend itself to effective prioritization.
See McLean & Company’s Employee Experience
Resource Center for a suite of resources designed to
help organizations identify, improve, and articulate the
employee experience.
“One of the things that has really changed in HR is
we are really trying to customize to the individual
employee. Their experience is different because
everyone is different, we can’t just do the things the
way that we used to.”
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Jennifer O’Brien,
Vice President, People(s) & Culture, Humber College
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What comes next?
Use McLean & Company resources to formulate an approach to begin delivering
on the employee experience.
Actions and practical resources
See McLean & Company’s Employee Experience Resource Center for a
suite of research and tools designed to provide support in enhancing the
employee experience throughout the employee lifecycle.
Take a data-driven approach to capturing employee sentiment
throughout the employee lifecycle, using McLean & Company’s New Hire
Survey, Employee Engagement Program, Employee Experience Monitor,
and Exit Survey.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Capture the employee voice and dig into the employee experience with
facilitated focus groups.
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04
Flexibility Beyond
Remote Work
The return-to-office (RTO) question is far from settled. Cutting
through the noise is a challenge for organizations that want to take
a data-driven approach to their working arrangements.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
What is clear is that many CEOs want a return to office. However, in
recent years employee expectations about what organizations offer
in terms of flexibility have evolved. The demand for flexible work is
here to stay.
This section explores different flexible work offerings beyond remote work and how organizations are making changes, or not, to
their working arrangements. It also explores the need for organizations to balance the demands of senior leadership and the expectations of employees – and be open to the idea that flexibility will not
be the same for all employees.
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R E P O R T
Many business leaders
are signaling a return
to office (RTO).
H R
T R E N D S
Organizations are taking a
“wait and see” approach
“We’re encouraging our people to get back to the
offices. We think that’s important to our culture.”
Carmine Di Sibio, 1
Global Chairman and CEO, EY
However, most
organizations are not
changing location
flexibility in 2024.
“Is your organization planning on making any
significant changes to its flexibility in location
n=728
in the next year?”
“In a creative business like ours, nothing can replace
the ability to connect, observe, and create with peers
that comes from being physically together, nor the
opportunity to grow professionally by learning from
leaders and mentors.”
81%
Bob Iger, 2
CEO, Disney
11%
8%
Teams tend to be better connected … when they
see each other in person more frequently. There is
something about being face-to-face with somebody,
looking them in the eye, and seeing they’re fully
immersed in whatever you’re discussing that bonds
people together. Teams tend to find ways to work
through hard and complex trade-offs faster when they
get together and map it out in a room.”
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Andy Jassey, 3
CEO, Amazon
1
Yahoo Finance, 2022.
2
Washington Post, 2023.
3
Amazon, 2023.
Increase
No change
Decrease
Despite the conversations around RTO, most organizations are not planning on making any significant
changes to location flexibility in 2024.
This suggests a cautious approach to RTO, with
most organizations seemingly waiting to see if it will
gain traction – and how it will impact top HR priorities like recruiting and the employee experience.
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Other flexible work options will
also be largely unchanged in 2024.
Most organizations are not taking steps to increase
flexibility in hours or time off in 2024.
88
%
89
%
of organizations are not
making any significant
changes to flexibility in
hours in the next year.
n=720
of organizations are not
making any significant
changes to flexibility in
time off in the next year.
INSIGHT
Time off and hours are big opportunities for
organizations to get creative with how they offer
employees flexibility beyond remote work.
Flexible time off is especially underused, with just
18% of office workers and 15% of non-office workers
receiving flexible time off (n=794-942).
n=725
Expand your
flexibility toolkit
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Leverage flex options like time off and hours to
enable HR to provide flexibility across different areas
of the business that manage employee expectations
and meet the demands of senior leaders.
“Flexibility is absolutely critical to retaining talent. You
may get candidates to accept jobs, but to retain them
you have to find a way to build more flexibility into
their lives. People aren’t going to put up with ‘at your
desk from 8-5, with two breaks and lunch.’ They’ll find
another job. Flexibility is becoming a critical part of
the engagement and satisfaction that employees have
with their role, regardless of what level they are.”
Terri Lewis,
Chief People Officer, One Call
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RTO is an opportunity
for HR to flex data-driven
decision-making
While most organizations are taking a “wait and see”
approach to significant flexible location changes in
the next year, for many organizations RTO is an imminent reality. For organizations and leaders looking
to implement an RTO policy, it is especially important to be flexible with flexibility, leverage internal
data to inform decision-making, and use that data to
communicate the rationale to employees.
Take a data-driven approach to RTO
There is too much noise around the pros and cons
of remote work for organizations to make informed
decisions solely based on external benchmarks or
trends. And “because I said so” won’t cut it with
employees who have options.
Organizations must look internally and listen to
employees to understand the needs of different
groups and the impact of RTO to facilitate data-driven
decision-making.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Use McLean & Company’s Return-to-Office Playbook to
develop and roll out a data-driven, flexible RTO policy
that balances organizational and employee needs.
“There are all these different narratives about remote
work out there and it feels very unknown, and
everyone’s got some statistic on it for either side.
Our take is, we know employees want flexibility and
they want to be remote, so we are actively exploring
different ways to find that flexibility.”
Gracie Mercado,
EVP, People & Culture, Macmillan Publishers
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A standardized approach
to flexibility doesn’t work
for all employee groups
Percentage of organizations that offer flexible
work options to office vs. non-office workers: n=794-942
64%
51%
41%
37%
15%
Flexible hours
Flexible location
Non-office workers
The differences in flexibility offered extend beyond
location, as office workers were provided flexible hours
and time off more frequently than non-office workers.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Creative thinking is needed, not only about what
types of flexible work are available, but also about
which employees to make each option available to.
The types of flexibility that work for office workers
may not work for non-office workers, but employees
from all groups are increasingly seeking flexibility.
18%
Flexible time off
Office workers
“Flexibility is not typically a nice-to-have for employees.
It’s a need. If I have parents at home that I’m caring for,
then I need flexibility. If I have kids that need to be taken
to school at a specific hour, then I need flexibility. If I
have a two-hour commute and I can easily get things
done at home, I need flexibility. That’s the starting
point that we should keep in mind, which means that
solutions are going to be different for different people.
There won’t be a one-size-fits-all solution.”
Andrew Saidy,
VP Global Talent, Ubisoft
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Non-office workers are less likely to receive any flexible
work options whatsoever compared to office workers.
n=794-942
36
%
25
%
of organizations
reported not
offering any flexible
work options to
non-office workers.
vs.
of organizations
reported not
offering any flexible
work options to
office workers.
“People want standards so they can say they’re
being consistent and fair. It’s difficult for leaders to
understand that being consistent and fair is more about
making sure that people feel heard and respected and
that you’re working to meet and accommodate in a
consistent manner.”
Jules Gianneschi,
Senior Vice President of People, America’s CAR-MART
Be flexible with flexibility
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Organizations must accept that flexibility will look
different in different areas. It is less about offering
the same flexibility to all employees and more
about finding flexible work options that can work for
specific groups of employees.
Use McLean & Company’s Develop a Targeted
Flexible Work Program to equip the organization with
tools to implement and sustain a targeted flexible
work program.
Different demographics
have different flex
work needs.
If there is a reduction in flexibility due to an increase
in return-to-office initiatives, this risks potential
negative impacts when it comes to diversity.
Among workers in the USA:
41
%
28
%
of women
work remotely
(BLS, 2023).
of men
work remotely
(BLS, 2023).
Among workers in Canada:
3.3
9.7
percentage point increase
from 71.9% to 75.2%
of women with at least
one child who are in the
workforce compared to
2019 (StatCan, 2023).
percentage point increase
from 59.6% to 69.3%
of women who are
immigrants participating
in the workforce compared
to 2019 (StatCan, 2023).
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What comes next?
Use McLean & Company resources to implement flexible work options that
balance the needs of the organization and employees to drive engagement and
improve attraction and retention.
Actions and practical resources
Use McLean & Company’s Develop a Targeted Flexible Work Program
resource to understand the needs of unique employee groups and uncover
flexible work options that will attract and retain talent.
Invest in leadership skills with McLean & Company’s Prepare People
Leaders for the Hybrid Work Environment resource and Equip Managers
to Effectively Manage Hybrid Teams training for people leaders.
To learn more about how to create a planned, integrated and supported
work-from-home program, Sustain Work-From-Home in the New Normal.
Create and roll out a return-to-office policy that balances employee and
organizational needs by using McLean’s Return-to-Office Playbook.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Understand employee needs when it comes to flexible work with
facilitated focus groups.
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MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
05
2024
Trends Spotlights
From generative AI to DEI and whether organizations take a public
stance on social issues, these spotlights cover topics which should
not be overlooked.
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Generative AI in HR will
gain momentum in 2024
The benefits
of AI are clear:
79
%
n=192
of respondents who are
implementing generative
AI cited increased
productivity and efficiency
as the primary reason.
However, HR has
been slow to assess
and implement
generative AI.
Assessing and
adopting generative AI
will be easier in 2024.
When asked why HR is not taking steps to implement AI, the…
1
#
n=479
reason is a lack
of time to assess
the possibilities.
Since ChatGPT launched in late 2022, the HR world
has been buzzing with the potential of the technology to reimagine how work is done and further HR’s
position as a strategic leader.
In 2024, as technology vendors embed new generative AI products into software we already use, like
our HCM platforms, it will make it easier and faster
to assess and embrace the possible use cases.
Despite this potential, HR has been slow to assess the new
technology, with just 28% of HR organizations reporting they are taking steps to implement generative AI.
However, the risks of AI remain a concern for many HR
professionals, with 32% of respondents citing risk as a
reason for not implementing generative AI (n=479).
“My HR department is taking steps to implement
generative AI.”
n=730
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
27.7% Yes
Maximize HR capabilities with AI
HR must focus its resources to maximize HR
capabilities, empower employees to leverage
the technology, and support the organization in
assessing the benefits and risks of AI.
72.3% No
Use McLean & Company’s Harness the Potential
of Generative AI resource to equip HR with the tools
to partner with key groups and individuals across
the organization.
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Despite a decline in priority,
DEI efforts are crucial to
organizational success
Organizations that
are high performing
at DEI are…
1.9
X
more likely to have
a highly productive
workforce.
DEI has slipped from its peak as the #4 HR priority for
organizations in 2021, to the #7 HR priority in 2024.
However, it is so intertwined with the employee experience that organizations may no longer be considering it as a standalone initiative.
Significant DEI work is still needed to prepare organizations for the workforce of the future, which will
consist of many different demographics.
n=1,178
My organization is prepared to support the needs
and experiences of a multidemographic workforce:
n=758-786
66%
Gender
Globally, female labor force participation is
29.2 percentage points lower than male,1 an
untapped workforce in a tight labor market.
*
32%
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
57%
Neurodiversity
15%-20% of people are neurodiverse based
on a meta-analysis of US and global studies.2
Over 40% of the US population identifies
as BIPOC or Hispanic or Latino.3
Ethnicity
55%
59%
Why being prepared is important:
National origin
Age
The percentage of workers in the US labor
force over the age of 60 doubled between
2000 and 2020.4
15% of the US labor force was born outside of
the US (CBO, 2023), while immigrants accounted
for 80% of the workforce growth in Canada from
2016-2021.5
*Note: While gender is often used interchangeably with sex at birth in data sources, this is
not ideal. Gender identity is a more inclusive term to capture the diversity of gender identities.
1
4
ILO, 2023; 2 Doyle, 2020; 3 BLS, 2022;
Fiske & Becker, 2022; 5 StatCan, 2022.
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Most organizations
take a public stance
on social issues
Does your
organization take
a public stance on
political or sensitive
social issues? n=794-942
46.5%
3.3%
26.4%
Frequently
Rarely
Sometimes
Never
More than half of respondents reported that their organization takes a public stance on political or sensitive
social issues at least in some circumstances (n=736),
reflecting the focus organizations and the public are
placing on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and
environmental, social, and governance (ESG).
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
HR leadership is often at the fore of these discussions,
with 45% of respondents stating that the CHRO or other
HR leaders are very involved when their organization
takes a public stance on a social issues (n=360).
In 2022, McLean & Company found that nearly half
of HR organizations had CSR and ESG added to their
responsibilities (McLean & Company HR Trends Report
for 2022, n=380). In 2024, expect HR’s role as risk mitigator and public face of ESG and CSR to grow as the
role of organizations in the public discourse on increasingly polarizing and political social issues continues to evolve.
23.9%
INSIGHT
Mandatory reporting on CSR and ESG areas already
exists in many regions such as the EU and US, and
organizations must stay up to date with changing
reporting requirements. Use McLean & Company’s ESG
Primer to understand ESG programs, HR’s role in them,
and their impact on organizations.
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What comes next?
Use McLean & Company resources to prepare for the various trends that will
continue to impact organizations through 2024 and beyond.
Actions and practical resources
Get HR started with AI with the AI in HR Primer.
Harness the Potential of Generative AI in HR using McLean & Company’s
resources, including the Generative AI Ideas Catalog.
Create a People-First Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategy to prepare
the organization for a multidemographic workforce.
Equip employees with the knowledge and skills they need to be allies to
their colleagues with our How to Be an Ally training.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Create a framework for determining your organization’s strategy to
respond to controversial political and social matters, or watch our
webinar on taking a stance.
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
Appendices
H R
T R E N D S
R E P O R T
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|
4 4
4 5
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Characteristics of 2024
survey respondents
Role
Organization size n=1,300
n=1,371
Small
23%
H R
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APPENDIX I
37%
250 or fewer employees
Medium
27%
251 to 1,000 employees
77%
Non-HR
Large
1,001 or more employees
HR
Respondents by industry
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
36%
Professional, scientific, and technical services
18%
Manufacturing
18%
Finance and insurance
11%
Healthcare and social assistance
9%
Other services (except public administration)
8%
Educational services
6%
Public administration
5%
Information & cultural industries
4%
Retail trade
3%
Transportation and warehousing
3%
n=1,365
*Industries selected based on the North American Classification system. Categories falling
below 3% were omitted from the visual above; reflecting 15% of the overall sample (n=211).
4 6
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Characteristics of 2024
survey respondents
Seniority
Unionization n=1,345
n=1,373
61%
21%
H R
T R E N D S
R E P O R T
2 0 2 4
APPENDIX I CONTINUED
10%
14%
69%
25%
Senior
leaders
Individual
contributors
Management
Yes
Partially
No
Location n=1,373
79%
8%
North
America
Europe
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
2%
2%
Latin
America
5%
Middle
East
2%
Asia
Africa
2%
Oceania
4 7
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HR FTE ratio and anticipated
HR headcount change
Median HR to FTE ratio by organization size n=1,300
Large
H R
T R E N D S
R E P O R T
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APPENDIX II
1:80
1,001 or more employees
Medium
1:59
251 to 1,000 employees
Small
1:40
250 or fewer employees
Anticipated change in HR headcount in 2024
100%
80%
60%
40%
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
20%
0%
2020
n=465
Growing
2021
2022
2023
2024
n=420
n=385
n=797
n=932
No change
Shrinking
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Top 10 HR priorities for
organizations 2020-2024
H R
T R E N D S
R E P O R T
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APPENDIX III
Top priorities for
organizations in 2024
Top priorities for
organizations in 2023
n=1,193
n=1,075
01 Recruiting
01 Recruiting
02 Providing a great employee experience
02 Providing a great employee experience
03 Controlling labor costs
03 Developing leaders
04 Developing the organization’s leaders
04 Controlling labor costs
05 Supporting change
05 Enabling learning & development
06 Enabling innovation
06 Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)
Fostering an environment of diversity,
07
07 Supporting change
equity, and inclusion
08 Facilitating data driven people decisions
09 Enabling learning & development
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
10 Rapidly moving internal employees
to staff strategic priorities
08 Facilitating data-driven people decisions
09 Enabling innovation
10 Providing a great candidate experience
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H R
T R E N D S
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APPENDIX III CONTINUED
Top priorities for
organizations in 2022
Top priorities for
organizations in 2021
n=826
n=850
01 Recruiting
01 Recruiting
02 Providing a great employee experience
02 Developing leaders
03 Developing leaders
03 Controlling labor costs
04 Controlling labor costs
04 Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)
05 Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)
05 Providing a great employee experience
06 Enabling innovation
06 Fostering a positive labor relations climate
07 Enabling learning & development
07 Supporting change
08 Supporting change
08 Enabling innovation
09 Facilitating data-driven people decisions
09 Enabling learning & development
10 Fostering a positive labor relations climate
10 Facilitating data-driven people decisions
Top priorities for organizations in 2020
MCLEAN & COMPANY ©
n=365
01 Recruiting
06 Facilitating data-driven people decisions
02 Developing leaders
07 Enabling learning & development
03 Controlling labor costs
08 Internal mobility
04 Supporting change
09 Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)
04 Providing a great employee experience
10 Enabling innovation
Tie
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APPENDIX IV
Highly effective
at designing the
employee experience
Composite measure of respondents who scored 80 or
higher (out of a maximum score of 96, averaging out to
a score of five on each item each scored on a six-point
scale) when asked to rate their organization’s performance across each employee experience dimension.
Employee experience
dimensions and
included items
Technology
Social and relationships
• Providing access to relevant technology and digital
solutions
• Ensuring reliable technology to enable frictionless
completion of tasks
• Improving collaboration through the use of technology
• Supporting building connections with colleagues
across the organization
• Facilitating positive relationships with their managers
• Fostering trust in the organization’s leaders
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Culture
•
•
•
•
Being transparent in the decision-making process
Embedding organizational values in day-to-day work
Ensuring an environment of inclusion
Enabling employees to prioritize their wellbeing
Physical space
• Ensuring a safe work environment
• Providing a comfortable working area
• Empowering employees to adapt their workspace
to their needs
Task
• Providing purposeful work
• Providing interesting work
• Reducing friction in tasks
The items in each dimension are aggregated to form
five separate composite measures. For example,
high performing on the technology dimension of the
employee experience is a composite measure of respondents who scored above 15 (out of a maximum
score of 18; or 20 out of a maximum score of 24 for
the culture dimension, which has four items) on each
item under the technology dimension.
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APPENDIX V
n=895-939
Technology dimension
Providing access to relevant technology
and digital solutions
47%
Improving collaboration through
the use of technology
43%
Ensuring reliable technology to enable frictionless
completion of tasks
38%
Culture dimension
Embedding organizational values
in day-to-day work
51%
Ensuring an environment of inclusion
51%
Enabling employees to
prioritize their wellbeing
45%
Being transparent in
decision-making processes
39%
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Physical space dimension
Ensuring a safe work environment
81%
Providing a comfortable working area
66%
Empowering employees to adapt
their workspace to their needs
57%
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APPENDIX V CONTINUED
n=895-939
Social and relationships dimension
Facilitating positive relationships
with their managers
56%
Supporting building connections with
colleagues across the organization
56%
Fostering trust in the organization’s leaders
48%
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Technology dimension
Providing purposeful work
59%
Providing interesting work
51%
Reducing friction in tasks
27%
T R E N D S
Andrew Saidy
VP Global Talent, Ubisoft
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Research
Contributors
& Experts
Dipankar Bandyopadhyay
CHRO with experience in transformation
Gracie Mercado
EVP, People & Culture, Macmillan Publishers
Jennifer O’Brien
Vice President, People(s) & Culture, Humber College
Jules Gianneschi
Senior Vice President of People, America’s CAR-MART
Manuelita Cherizard
CHRO, Royal Ontario Museum
Philip Dana
CHRO and Navy Vet
Terri Lewis
Chief People Officer, One Call
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Tina Busch
SVP & Chief Human Resources Officer, ATI
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Works Cited
“American Time Use Survey – 2022 Results.” Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 22 June
2023. Accessed 10 Nov. 2023.
“Understanding the Aging Workforce: Defining a Research Agenda.” Fiske, Susan
T., and Tara Becker, editors. National Academies Press, 5 May 2022. Accessed 10 Nov.
2023.
“Immigrants Make up the Largest Share of the Population in Over 150 Years and
Continue to Shape Who We Are as Canadians.” Statistics Canada (StatCan), 26 Oct.
2022. Accessed 10 Nov. 2023.
Jassy, Andy. “Update From Andy Jassy on Return to Office Plans.” Amazon, 17 Feb.
2023. Accessed 3 Nov. 2023.
“Labour Force Survey, December 2022.” Statistics Canada (StatCan), 6 Jan. 2023. Accessed 10 Nov. 2023.
O’Donnell, Grace. “Younger Workers ‘Want to Be in the Office,’ EY Global Chairman & CEO Says.” Yahoo Finance, 27 May 2022. Accessed 3 Nov. 2023.
“QuickFacts: United States.” United States Census Bureau, 1 July 2022. Accessed 10
Nov. 2023.
“Spotlight on Work Statistics n°12.” International Labour Organization, March 2023.
Accessed 10 Nov. 2023.
Telford, Taylor. “Disney to Employees: Work in the Office Four Days a Week.” The
Washington Post, 10 Jan. 2023. Accessed 3 Nov. 2023.
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“The Foreign-Born Population, the U.S. Economy, and the Federal Budget.” Congressional Budget Office, 5 April 2023. Accessed 10 Nov. 2023.
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McLean & Company is the trusted partner of HR and
leadership professionals around the world. Our memberships are designed to provide what
you need to drive the organization forward – from
full-service assessments to practical action plans, impactful training, and more.
When you pair our comprehensive resources with
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understand your situation, then guide you through
each step of the way so you get where you want to be,
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At McLean & Company, we’re passionate about empowering leaders like you to shape a workplace
where everyone thrives.
McLean & Company is a division of Info-Tech
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“Our team has already
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Diagnostics and consistent frameworks are used throughout all four options.
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Build a data-driven
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diagnostic programs
Improve employee
experience and HR processes
New Hire Survey
Ensure recruiting and onboarding programs are effective by surveying new employees.
Employee Engagement
Move beyond measuring job satisfaction with a comprehensive view of engagement.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Engagement Pulse
Take a thoughtful approach to mobilize inclusion efforts across your organization.
Employee Retention Pulse
Identify the early signs of employee turnover and develop a talent retention strategy.
McLean Employee Experience Monitor
Evolve to leader-driven engagement with a real-time
dashboard and results.
Employee Exit Survey
Understand why people leave the organization in order to proactively retain top talent.
360 Feedback
Empower employees with a holistic view of their performance to prioritize development.
Optimize the HR
department for success
HR Organizational Alignment Diagnostic
Align HR initiatives with business strategy and organizational needs.
HR Management & Governance Diagnostic
Improve HR’s core functions and drive project success.
ECYCLE DIA
GN
LIF
E
O
E
HR ORGANIZATIONAL
ALIGNMENT
Re Em
t e p l oye e
n ti
o n P uls e
Engagem
DEI Pulse ent
36
K
0 FE
E D B AC
HR MANAGEMENT
& GOVERNANCE
N ew
H ire
E
E n m p l oy
ee
gag
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W
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W rkpl
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a
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PL
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ICS
ST
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HR Strategy
Diagnostics
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Develop managers
and your HR team with
our learning solutions
MCLEAN
ACADEMY
ELEVATE
HR ONLINE
MANAGEMENT
FUNDAMENTALS ONLINE
A self-paced eLearning program
for HR professionals. The
curriculum is built around
McLean’s HR framework and
provides practical, outcome-driven
advice on tackling HRinitiatives.
A blended learning program
designed to develop a strategic
HR mindset and help HR
practitioners better respond to
the growing complexity of the
workplace of the future.
A practical, interactive,
and impactful blended
learning program designed
to develop foundational
management capabilities.
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Develop your managers with our
interactive remote training sessions.
Sample topics include:
• Inclusive leadership
• Master the 3i’s of employee engagement
• Lead through change
• Build high-performing teams
• Manage remote teams
• Master difficult conversations
• Give effective feedback and coaching
• Emotional intelligence in leadership
• Systems thinking
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As a part of your organization’s DEI journey, equip
your leaders with the skills and knowledge required
to build an inclusive culture that leverages diversity
and focuses on equity.
Partner with us to launch our flexible blended learning program that focuses on key DEI concepts. This
program is coordinated by us for your ease of use and
run by our skilled facilitators.
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DEI Foundations
for Leaders
Live Session
Introduction
eLearning
Foundations
of DEI
Reflect & apply in our
live online sessions
Explore key concepts
in eLearnings
Learn from &
support peers
eLearning
Examine Culture
& Values
eLearning
Build Psychological
Safety
Peer
Discussion
Triad
eLearning
Allyship
Foundations
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Allyship
in Action
Peer
Discussion
Triad
eLearning
EI in
Leadership
eLearning
Inclusive Leadership
Behaviors
Peer
Discussion
Triad
Learning
in Action
Activity
Live Session
Facilitated
Discussion
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Reinforced with McLean resources
& tools for ongoing application
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Leadership
Development Coaching
Maximize your leaders’ performance, potential, and engagement with our Leadership Development and Engagement Coaching offerings.
Our trained coaches work one on one with your leaders in a confidential environment to accelerate their self-awareness and development.
Help leaders
01 Build self-awareness by understanding how they are perceived by their
direct reports, peers, and manager.
02 Identify strengths and opportunities for personal growth.
03 Take control of and accelerate their own development.
TARGET GROUP
This will benefit
leaders at any level
who are open to
uncovering ways
they can become a
better leader.
How it works
This virtual coaching is available for groups of 10+ leaders in your organization. After completing a 360 Feedback Assessment, each leader will receive three
50-minute 1:1 sessions with a trained coach.
This four-month program can be supplemented with additional sessions in year
two for an additional fee. This coaching is offered to clients that:
• Use our 360 Feedback assessment, or
• Have purchased Elevate HR, or
• Have purchased Management Fundamentals.
Note: A similar coaching
program is also available
for Engagement, focusing on
team engagement results and
helping leaders hold a team
discussion and act on results.
Complete 360
Assessment
Session 1
Session 3
Session 3
When client
is ready
Within 2 weeks of
receiving results
4 weeks after
session 1
2 months after
session 2
Complete 2nd 360
Assessment
Session 4
Session 5
Session 6
12 months after
the first survey
Within 2 weeks of
receiving results
4 weeks after
session 4
2 months after
session 2
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Year 1
Year 2*
*Coaching program fees are billed annually
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Executive Counselor
Membership
The Counselor Membership
Difference Features:
You’ll get a dedicated Executive Counselor who is a former
senior HR executive and has been in your shoes.
You will benefit from two full-day annual onsite or online advisory sessions
throughout the year (along with unlimited
scheduled and ad hoc phone calls) that integrate your Executive Counselor as a
trusted part of your professional support
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development to working through a project.
Your Executive Counselor can help you
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You will gain exclusive access to an annual
HR Executive Peer Forum, where participants will explore the latest people and
culture research and make meaningful connections with CHRO peers while sharing experiences and learning from others.
Your membership includes the ability to request facilitated networking and/or special
interest groups related to your top priorities.
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Leverage your personal Executive Counselor to make
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Your dedicated
Executive Counselor will
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while increasing your
personal and functional
strategic impact. The
McLean Membership
serves your firm; the
Counselor membership
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Your customized Personal Leadership Development Plan created with your
trusted Executive Counselor will link to your personal and organizational
goals and values.
You’ll develop a custom, authentic Leadership Brand that allows you to thrive
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The 90-day “Follow Me” service provides continued access to your McLean
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Network and collaborate with fellow senior HR leaders in Quarterly Leadership Peer-to-Peer Roundtables.
Receive two tickets that can be used to attend either McLean & Company’s
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Leadership
Membership
The Leadership Membership
Difference Features:
This membership will give you the tools you need to push your
HR department further, faster. Complete major projects with the
help of a dedicated Executive Advisor who is a former HR leader.
You’ll get a dedicated Executive Advisor
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help keep you on track. We recommend you
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calls while working with our SME advisory
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Boost your own development with one 360
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Receive your choice of one ticket to McLean
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Leverage the expertise of fellow senior HR
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