Flexibility | Are you ready for the workforce of the future?

In a recent survey of 250 UK and international businesses commissioned by SD Worx, 33% of payroll and HR professionals say payroll can’t respond to the changing needs of the workforce. Looking just five years into the future, the way we work looks set to shift radically. While we hear buzzwords like Gen Z, the gig economy and flexi-time every day, are businesses thinking hard enough about how they can adapt?

Welcoming Generation XYZ

The face of the workforce is changing significantly, becoming more multigenerational as employee numbers at both ends of the age spectrum increase. Generation Z are here, but by 2024 the UK will also be home to 18m people aged sixty or over¹ and with the retirement age continuing to increase, older workers will be staying in employment longer. Numbers of workers aged over 50 in businesses with 250-500 staff are expected to increase by 2.5% in the next five years.

In welcoming Generation Z into the workforce, employers need to be aware that these workers not only have a wide range of skills to offer, but also an ever more diverse set of opportunities available to them. This means businesses will need to work hard to find new ways to attract and retain them.