Complicating our adaptation to these changes is a highly competitive employment climate, whose repercussions are reflected in recent surveys indicating unprecedented productivity pressures on employees, and in the trend to outsource jobs to faraway places.
At the centre of this storm are beleaguered HR departments, which are coming under pressure to leverage companies' increasingly valuable - and strained - human assets. Nevertheless, most C-Level executives remain dissatisfied with HR's strategic contribution. There are grounds for optimism, however. There are steps forward-looking HR departments can take to keep CEOs happy by delivering the kind of strategic shift that drives competitive advantage in a rapidly changing world.
