I recently attended the SHRM (Society of Human Resource Management) conference in San Diego, CA, and the message was clear: the workplace is shifting fast, and HR leaders must keep up. Here are the four biggest trends I saw that every organization should be paying attention to:
Companies are finally moving away from the “old way”—screening resumes for degrees and previous job titles. That approach often rules out qualified people and slows down hiring. The ”new way” is skills-first hiring: looking at what people can actually do and how fast they can learn. It opens doors for nontraditional candidates, strengthens diversity, and gets the right talent faster. At Cloudforce, we’ve shifted how we evaluate candidates. We go beyond technical knowledge or years in a role, and focus on qualities like initiative, collaboration, and problem-solving. We’ve seen firsthand that our people come from all kinds of backgrounds and industries, and what they share is the drive to step up, work well with others, and keep learning.
AI isn’t a buzzword anymore! It’s in recruiting, analytics, performance tracking, you name it. The goal isn’t to replace HR; it’s to give us back time by automating the repetitive stuff so we can focus on strategy, coaching, and culture.
At Cloudforce, we’ve built nebulaONE®, our AI-driven product that we not only use internally but have also deployed across client organizations. It helps our teams work more productively and gives us sharper insights so we can make precise, data-informed decisions. For us, AI is something we’ve proven works in practice.
Remote, hybrid, flexible schedules … whatever form it takes, flexibility is no longer a perk. It’s an expectation. If you’re not offering it in some form, you’re going to lose good people.
For us, flexibility isn’t just about checking boxes but about trust. We know people do their best work when they can manage both their job and their life, and we’ve seen productivity and engagement grow when we give our team that space. One example is our new “work from anywhere for a week” benefit, which has been so well received that we genuinely look forward to seeing where our staff will choose to work from. As for me, I’ll be working in Europe in November, and I cannot wait.
Check out my previous blog post on our commitment to inclusion and belonging here.
We can’t just go off gut feelings anymore. Leaders expect us to show data (think turnover rates, and engagement scores) and connect it directly to business outcomes. If you’re not already bringing metrics to the table, you’re behind.
How We’re Staying Ahead
We’ve already started putting these lessons into action:
These aren’t “future trends.” They’re happening now, and organizations that adapt quickly will have a real advantage in attracting and keeping talent, and we’re making sure we’re one of them.
Yayoi is the Associate Director of Workforce at Cloudforce and a native Washingtonian (go Terps!). Since joining our team, she’s expanded her knowledge of the Cloud. She currently holds multiple Microsoft certifications including: Microsoft 365 Fundamentals (MS-900), Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900), Teams Administrator Associate (MS-700), and the aPHR (Associate Professional in Human Resources). She has also recently achieved the SHRM-CP (Society for Human Resources Management – Certified Professional) certification and actively researching and listening in on webinars focused on all things HR.
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