Great Britain: more than half of HR professionals trained during the pandemic (survey report)

According to the annual People Profession 2021 survey report, conducted by the professional body for HR and people development, the CIPD, 50% of UK HR professionals have upskilled in the last 12 months by undertaking training to better meet the challenges of the pandemic. A further 11% have had to reskill, meaning that a total of 61% of HR professionals have undertaken training during this crisis period. Finally, almost all of the approximately 1,500 people interviewed – working either in companies or as consultants – said that over the past year they had in some way expanded their skill sets or experienced a change in their work. “The difficult external circumstances put great demand on all of us, and people professionals have been at the forefront of the organisational response, supporting people, implementing rapid changes, and adapting and learning,” stated Peter Cheese, CIPD’s chief executive. The survey notes that, in general, work digitalisation has been the main challenge that HR has (65%), followed by the demand for flexibility (41%). However, the pandemic seems to have had a positive impact on how they perceive their own work with 86% believing it was meaningful in 2021, versus 80% in 2020.