CIO OPINION
For South Africa , importance of organisational development and design , agile principles , people analytics and reporting ranked much higher than they did for global respondents .
Rudi van Blerk , Partner and Africa People and Organisation Practice
Lead , Boston Consulting Group , Johannesburg
African HR strategies need to map digital transformation and AI skills
The human resources environment going forward may be even more challenging , as we are likely to see frequent disruptions , increasing talent gaps , less fluid talent markets , and a need for digital transformation and innovation , especially around AI , according to Rudi van Blerk at Boston Consulting Group .
The uniquely challenging global events of the past few years have underscored the critical importance of people management for companies . Disruptions , including the pandemic and its aftermath , forced organisations to clearly define priorities and quickly build up specific capabilities in employee health and safety and more flexible working models .
But the environment going forward may be even more challenging , as we are likely to see more frequent and severe disruptions , increasing talent gaps , less fluid talent markets , and a growing need for digital transformation and innovation , especially around AI .
The need for digital technology will not go away , and smart , proactive investments in this area are necessary to anticipate and solve the most prominent business challenges . However , just 35 % of global human resources professionals today believe that their people management functions are using relevant digital technologies , compared to 47 % of people leaders in South Africa .
Further , 43 % of South Africa respondents agree that human resources is using data and analytics to anticipate people challenges , and 58 % cite people challenges and talent gaps as the biggest obstacle they currently face .
38 INTELLIGENTCIO AFRICA www . intelligentcio . com