New ways of thinking about leadership and talent are required to navigate in the future as the competitive environment is profoundly changed by technological and demographic shifts. Human capital trends 2015 reveals the 10 most pressing human capital challenges facing Canadian business.

1. Human Capital Trends 2015
Canadian perspectives on
the new world of work

2. LEADERSHIP
TREND

3. LEADERSHIP
of Canadian leaders consider
leadership an important or very
important business concern.
agree it’s the most
pressing priority.
think their organization
is ready or very ready to
address the challenge.
(The good news: that’s up
from 20% in 2014).
90%
54%
33%

4. The challenge
A persistent problem:
fostering leaders at all levels
Given the increasingly complex business environment,
organizations see the effective development of leaders
as an ongoing challenge.
LEADERSHIP

5. The opportunity
Propel business strategy and
agility by deepening bench strength
• Identify and develop leaders at the middle management level; succession
planning is not just a top team exercise. Ensure the CEO and board
oversees this process to drive its effectiveness and impact.
• Accelerate the development of high-potential talent.
• Play to leaders’ strengths by targeting individual growth opportunities
and capabilities that are critical to the business strategy.
• Provide developing leaders with opportunities to “audition” for future
roles, such as secondment into another business and other stretch roles.
LEADERSHIP

6. CULTURE AND
ENGAGEMENT
TREND

7. CULTURE AND ENGAGEMENT
of Canadian corporate leaders
agree this is an important or
very important trend.
believe their organization is
at least somewhat ready to
address this trend.
That’s a marked upswing from
2014, when only 74% of
leaders felt somewhat prepared.
86%
89%

8. The challenge
Connecting culture to
business performance
Leaders must be adept at aligning the
organization’s culture to its appetite for risk
and business objectives. Getting this right can
significantly improve business performance.
CULTURE AND ENGAGEMENT

9. The opportunity
Reach from the top:
cultivate the right environment
• Be crystal clear about the culture the organization wants, its purpose, its
impact and core values. Ensure all leaders are part of forming this culture.
• Enable leaders to demonstrate the values and behaviours needed to create a
positive climate and drive business performance.
• Be deliberate about building engagement. Create spaces and forums to bring
people together to build relationships and connection to the organization.
• Implement tools and frameworks to understand and measure culture and
engagement at regular intervals.
CULTURE AND ENGAGEMENT

10. WORKFORCE
CAPABILITY
TREND

11. WORKFORCE CAPABILITY
of HR and business leaders agree
workforce capability is an important
or very important trend to watch.
of leaders are at least somewhat
ready to address the challenge —
up from 73% in 2014.
believe, however, that Canadian
organizations are not effectively
adapting to access skills in
different places.
80%
85%
49%

12. The challenge
Tapping into the
open talent economy
The evolving workplace is changing how talent
is accessed and managed, with more companies
planning to increase their use of on-demand workers
from more locations. HR must understand what skills
are – and will be – needed, and where to find them.
WORKFORCE CAPABILITY

13. The opportunity
Redefining how talent
is found and deployed
• Use talent analytics to remove the “gut feel” from
decision-making about future talent needs.
• Mine data (internal and external) to identify the best talent
pools to fit the organization’s needs.
• Identify future skill needs today in order to better understand
how to train employees and develop alternative talent pipelines.
• If you find potential, hire it.
• Redesign work to allow for the use of on-demand and virtual
workers, regardless of a physical presence.
WORKFORCE CAPABILITY

14. REINVENTING HR
TREND

15. REINVENTING HR
of Canadian business leaders
agree this is an important or
very important concern.
feel their organization
is ready or very ready to
do something about it.
of leaders rate the
capabilities of their HR and
talent programs as excellent.
81%
29%
7%

16. The challenge
Makeover time:
let go to move forward
HR must fundamentally change the services it
provides and how it delivers them. Closely aligning
with business objectives, HR needs to focus on
meeting the needs of its customers and driving the
talent experience.
REINVENTING HR

17. The opportunity
Focus on achieving
high-impact business results
• Rethink the HR service model, raise expertise and retool capabilities.
• Expect HR to understand business drivers and anticipate needs, as
well as to embrace technology, talent analytics and other new tools
that support the organization’s goals.
• Identify new core responsibilities for HR, keeping a sharp focus on
finding and enabling the talent that the business needs to thrive.
• Drop non-core (e.g. transactional) responsibilities by automating
operations, providing 24/7 self-service for employees and
implementing shared services.
REINVENTING HR

18. Read the full report
Human capital trends 2015:
Canadian perspectives on the new world of work
www.deloitte.ca
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Designed and produced by the Deloitte Design Studio, Canada. 15-2797V
Contacts
Heather Stockton
+1 416 601 6483
hstockton@deloitte.ca
Karen Pastakia
+1 416 601 5286
kapastakia@deloitte.ca