A Canadian entrepreneur believes anyone can find fulfillment in work—as long as it aligns with their skills.
This alignment is something employees are encouraged to seek out, but is also something that corporations can cultivate with better hiring and management practices, according to Caitlin MacGregor.
She recently posited to MaRS Magazine that “there’s a realization we need to invest more in employees.”
MacGregor is the cofounder and chief executive of Plum, a Waterloo-based digital talent platform that connects companies to candidates since its launch in 2012.
“In the past, talent management didn’t receive as much attention as talent acquisition,” the CEO said, “but we’ve seen an increase in the number of people who are excited to use our data in talent management so that they’re better able to support employee development.”
Shifting sands are also impacting the trajectory of Human Resources priorities.
“A lot of the jobs that we’re going to see emerge over the next 10 to 20 years don’t exist in the market right now,” explains MacGregor. “Companies are going to have to up-skill those roles. Do you want to up-skill complete strangers, or do you want to up-skill the people you already have?”
She recommends aligning the workforce around operational goals.
“Supporting your people allows them to support the success of the business,” said Macgregor. “If you can align strategy, culture and people in the right roles, you’ll be able to accomplish your business outcomes far more efficiently.”
As for remote versus office work—a key difference in a competitive hiring market—the Plum chief suggests that companies consider what is being accomplished in each different environment.
“Are there specific things that are happening in-person that you can’t replicate over Zoom?” she asks. “Are you using that time to foster cross-departmental interactions and build trust?”
She suggests answering the following question: “What is the unique value proposition that you are trying to accomplish by having people in the office, and are you truly leveraging that?”
