In Rovinj was held jubilee The 10th consecutive HR Days conference, a two-day professional gathering that gathered more than 600 HR professionals from the region and the world in one place, organized by the MojPosao portal.
After the event-filled first day of the conference, during which we realized that without mutual connection, humanity, empathy and communication, we will not be able to overcome all the current and future challenges that the labor market presents to us, followed the second, final day of the conference, the focus of which was panel on the topic "Great Resignation: Are you staying or leaving?".
In the company of Zvonimir Galić, professor from the Faculty of philosopy, University of Zagreb Emira Duratbegović, Head of Human Resources in AS Holding Dejan Paravan, Chief Innovation Officer from the GEN-I and Marija Bogićević, HR Manager from sTECH company and Iva Penezić, HR Director Issuer & eSecurity Services from Nets CEE, we discussed today's burning problem. Through the panel discussion, we tried to find out what are the reasons for the appearance of this trend and what affects it, how we can alleviate it and what changes we must introduce so that this trend does not remain with us in the future.
"We can say that market created great resgination. What I want to say is that today people can quit their jobs and find a new job more easily than ever before," said Galić
As he explained, pandemic has created shock, that is, it enabled us to devote ourselves more to our own lives and to reconsider our desires and needs. Regardless of the fact that resigning is one of the most stressful actions a person can do, people have become aware that if they are unhappy with their current status, they can change it, but one condition must be met before that, added Duratbegović.
"If your basic life needs are met and secured, then you can start upgrading, but if the minimum is not met, then you cannot progress", explained Duratbegović.
The growing demand for labor has led to the employment of people without "adequate" knowledge.
"In a large number of economic sectors, employers do not have time to wait for the education system to produce quality personnel. It is precisely for this reason that a new one appears on the market the trend of hiring people without adequate competencies. That kind of practice is visible in the IT sector", emphasized Bogićević.
A new ways of working
Working from home has put the issue of worker loyalty under the spotlight. Our panelists agreed that loyalty is difficult to develop in people who work remotely all the time. According to them, the best way of working is the hybrid one, in which the workers are in the office for three days and from home for two, because otherwise, as Galić notes, the employer creates a transactional relationship with the worker - as much as you to me, as much as I to you.
"In order to develop trust and loyalty, people must also have that social moment. We are social beings and we need that. That is the biggest pain of working from home. It is for this reason that hybrid work is the future," added Paravan.
A new moment in the labor market was brought with them new generations which shook up the sleepy labor market quite a bit.
"If you don't show people full career development at the very beginning, they will often leave. Today, this phenomenon has become one of the pressing problems that we will have to work on in the future," said Penezić.
In this spirit, we came to the question of the so-called 'boomerang employees' which are also increasingly common on the labor market. Our panelists agreed that such employees are not problematic and that sometimes they can be a solution because they know the company, and in their absence they have acquired new knowledge and skills.
"Relationship with boomerang employees is like a relationship that you are trying to rebuild. If there was a momentary misunderstanding, then it's ok, but if there's a difference in characters, then there's no going back," concluded Galić.
What does future brings?
In addition to the interesting panel discussion, we filled the last day of the conference with numerous interesting workshops and lectures by distinguished foreign and domestic lecturers. We can freely say that the second day also somewhat reminded us that without humanity and emotions we will not be able to move forward, and empathy was the main topic of the lecture of the famous and multiple award-winning Success Coach & Trainer dr. Evi Prokopi. Through her topic "Responsible Leadership as a Key Factor for the Future of Work in 2025", Prokopi tried to bring us closer to the basic virtues that every leader should possess.
"As a leader, you must be an example to others. You need to create an environment where people will be happy to come. Always believe in your team, no matter what and never give up out of fear. Never, never forget to talk about problems, but also to celebrate every, even the smallest success and most importantly, take care of your own mental health, said Prokopi.
We closed the conference in the style of "Nostradamus", and his role at this jubilee edition took over Mihaela Smadilo, an experienced leader and director of human resources who tried to bring us closer to potential, future trends and the role of HR in an increasingly turbulent and challenging labor market. And so that the conference would not be closed without a little laughter and a catchphrase that we will all remember for a long time, made sure Johan Driessens, Enthusiasm Officer and founder of tHRibe World, a unique ecosystem of HR companies that are different, who, through his lecture on "The Immersive Employer Brand", tried to bring us closer to the subject in which he really is expert - employer branding.
"The next time someone asks you how you are, you tell them you're amazing. In this way, you will shock your interlocutor, but also create a basis for the development of communication, because why not be 'unbelievable'", concluded Driessens.
We hope you enjoyed and see you again next year!
