The HR profession is not static - it is constantly evolving to fit the changes to the working environment. New processes are designed to reflect the changing values and norms of society; new policies are in place to reflect laws and governing statutes; best practices evolve to reflect an agile working culture... and so on. Through the semester we will look at several trends that are impacting the HR profession. For example, one trend is leading in a VUCA environment. Another trend is responding to a diverse workforce. Another is flex hours.

Your major term project (worth 30% of your final grade) is designed to get you to dig deeper in emerging HR trends. (For your facilitation of a CoP you will be discussing trends, and you are welcome to use topics discussed in that assignment, but this assignment goes even deeper as you individually design solutions and process improvements to respond to these trends.)

Requirements

Select a trend that you are interested in and would like to learn more about. You will then prepare the following two documents to support this trend:

1. Research Report

Provide a written report describing the trend including evidence-based research that supports this selected topic as an emerging trend in HR. Then, describe a suitable HR response to this trend. What can HR "do" to respond to this trend? (new policies and procedures? creating new job descriptions? new training programs? memorandums of understanding to specific departments? awareness posters?) Think creatively! (This section is only 2-3 pages.) Please use APA citations for research.

2. Response

Then actually create the response! (new policies and procedures? creating new job descriptions? new training programs? memorandums of understanding to specific departments? awareness posters?... etc.)

Your response should position HR as a strategic partner within an organization facing the trend you selected.

Feel free to make up a fictitious organization if that helps with your creativity, or use an existing organization.

Think of this section like this: You have gone to your director and told them you just read an article about this trend and you think that the HR department needs to get ahead of the trend by ........(building awareness, creating processes, amending recruiting procedures... etc. whatever you think the response should be.) Your director thinks you might be onto something but wants to see a mockup of what you mean before they go ahead with the idea. They ask you to create the document you are describing so they can have a look and see what they think.

Submissions

Your submission will be in two parts: (1) 2-3 research report describing the trend and your suggested HR response, and then (2) the actual "response" document. The response itself is the substantial piece of your project: this response needs to be a suitable response to the trend you selected.