Long ago, I got some great advice from one of my favorite bosses. He said at the beginning of each year, leaders should take a step back and take stock of the business, our own leadership and the trends around us. I paraphrased his advice so I could remember it: “Look back, look inside, look ahead.” 

Looking back, it’s almost impossible to remember life before COVID-19 and the global disruption that ensued just a few years ago. But the world of work has changed indelibly. Looking to the future, leaders will face unprecedented challenges in adapting their workplaces to meet new and evolving employee needs and technologies, all while navigating escalating costs and continued disruption in global markets. 

Buckle up for a continued roller coaster ride in the coming year. A combination of bold, nimble, creative yet compassionate leadership will be needed. In 2023, leaders must increasingly look within and ask how and what we ourselves need to change in order to move our organizations forward.

I offer 11 trends that will shape the world of work in the coming year. What kind of leader will you be in 2023?

1. Competition for talent: Are you ready to think outside the box when it comes to talent acquisition and retention? “As we move into 2023, companies may encounter increased difficulty in attracting skilled and qualified candidates from a sparse and competitive talent marketplace,” says a recent Forbes column. For leaders, this means upping your game in terms of competitive compensation, meaningful benefits, creating potential candidate pools through internships or alternative pipelines, and increasing development and retention efforts. 
2. Human-centered environment: Prepare to hear a great deal about creating a more human-centered culture – that means putting your team front and center. A recent Gartner trend report says, “Eighty-two percent of employees now say it’s important that their organizations see them as a whole person, rather than simply an employee.” Employees will increasingly demand a culture that promotes wellness and acknowledges the competing demands and needs in their personal lives. Considering the whole person will require leaders to think differently and adapt policies.
3. Acknowledgment of recovery and trauma: A recent Fast Company article notes that over the last few years we’ve all been through intense and often traumatic experiences together, including the pandemic, an insurrection in our capital, ongoing episodes of police violence, the war in Ukraine and continued economic disruption. “This combination of both discrete and prolonged experiences has left us trying to recover from something called collective trauma,” says the article, which goes on to explain this shared ordeal has accelerated mental health issues and burnout. Some leaders may think the idea of trauma is silly or overblown, but it is important to acknowledge this trauma is real for many people. Will you be open to using your leadership and the workplace to support recovery and healing?
4. Redefining professionalism: The ways people interact and present themselves in the business world have long been influenced by appearance, attire and accepted modes of communicating. But the definition of professionalism is changing, as many organizations recognize traditional expectations for dress or personal presentation are outdated or discriminatory. The pandemic and working from home have further accelerated changes in what is considered appropriate for the workplace. Leaders will need to ask themselves tough questions about what is really necessary for dress, personal style and ways of communicating.
5. Flexible work environments: Rather than being the exception or a perk, hybrid or flexible work has now become an expectation. A recent Forbes article says, “Workplaces in 2023 will be more diverse, distributed and virtual than ever before.” That same article cited research that showed 98% of remote workers would like to keep working remotely for the rest of their careers, at least some of the time. Leaders who want workers back in the office may need to balance the desire for in-person with the reality of recruiting and retaining workers who want choices. 
6. Developing social skills: Workers who were hit hard by the social isolation of the pandemic may need coaching on social skills. In particular, the Gartner article reports 46% of Gen Z employees they surveyed say that “the pandemic made pursuing their educational or career goals more difficult,” and 51% reported that “their education had not prepared them to enter the workforce.” As a result, many Gen Zers have missed opportunities to develop certain skills that employees traditionally developed in their first years of work, including networking, public speaking, and “the social stamina and attentiveness required to work long hours, in an in-person environment,” as the Gartner piece explained. 
7. Data versus privacy: Many companies are tapping new technologies or using types of data to support their employees or the business – including AI assistants, wearables, sensors, device trackers or requesting additional demographic or health data. While collecting information can be helpful, this data can create new risks. “Being a human organization means knowing more about people, not just employees – a shift that has the potential to violate boundaries around deeply personal and private information,” says the Gartner article. Increasingly, leaders will need to consider how to be transparent and protect employees and the organizations from leaks or inappropriate use of information. 
8. Understanding and accepting cognitive differences: The focus on neurodiversity is accelerating and has implications for recruiting, onboarding, job performance and communication. The Fast Company article says that while neurodiversity may refer to people with significantly different cognitive abilities, such as folks who might be on the autism spectrum, “There’s a bigger issue that’s relevant to every company and every employee: everyone’s brain processes information differently.” Increasingly, leaders will need to familiarize themselves with cognitive differences, and design work and workplaces to respect and accommodate all employees’ needs.
9. Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) backlash: Over the last few years, more organizations than ever have increased their DEI efforts and established serious initiatives to address corporate responsibility. But significant backlash is occurring, and not just from privileged groups. A recent HBR article on this topic says that one powerful method to combat backlash is by framing these types of initiatives to “address inequities as changing systems, rather than changing individuals.” The article recommends using data to explain stakeholder needs or inequities, laying out expectations for change, and affirming wins. Will you have the fortitude to persist on the plans you have in place, even in the face of resistance?
10. Controlling costs in a volatile environment: Get ready to make adjustments on the fly with incomplete information. Organizations are facing another year of escalating expenses, including rising labor costs, increasing health care expenses, and disrupted supply chains affected by inflation. While rising costs are not new, they come at a time when leaders must also be anticipating a possible recession, additional inflationary pressure, geopolitical risk and cybersecurity threats. Leaders should embrace agile scenario planning for cost control and risk management even as they make investments to support their workforce, drive innovation and protect against risk. 
11. Digital transformation. “Across industries, organizations are accelerating digital business transformation for long-term growth and profitability,” says Gartner’s recently released report “The IT Roadmap for Digital Transformation.” An Information Age article notes that digital transformation provides numerous opportunities to control budgets and drive efficiencies, which is increasingly important during financially turbulent times. Leaders should be ready to do more with less through automation, explore digital sustainability and use technology tailored to remote work and culture. 

As you approach 2023, take a moment to consider these trends. Then ask yourself about your own leadership. Will you challenge your own thinking and find the inspiration to adapt your organization as this unprecedented pace of change continues? Looking within can guide you on your leadership journey in 2023 and help you position your organization for success.