To say that chief HR officers (CHROs) are busy in this article, we look at how CHROs can take action the COVID-19 era would be an understatement. Now, in those areas to craft a strong and durable talent more than ever, they are central to how companies strategy for the postpandemic world. are reimagining their personnel practices to build organizational resilience and drive value. Finding and hiring the right people In the earliest days of the crisis, CHROs kept During the COVID-19 crisis, changes in customer people safe while fostering connectivity and caring demand have caused a temporary spike in hiring in an intensely stressful time. In planning for and in areas such as grocery while leading to massive implementing the restart, they have been working layoffs in sectors such as hospitality. Even with to maintain morale and productivity for remote those shifts and an overall rise in unemployment, workforces while trying to figure out how and when efficient and effective hiring will continue to be to get folks back into office settings. important—especially for the scarce skills required for the next normal in areas such as IT. Those responses were to circumstances that no one had ever faced before. Now, though, the COVID- In May 2020, we surveyed more than 190 chief 19 crisis is accelerating preexisting trends in five officers and functional leaders across industries areas of talent management that are part of the to find out how they were thinking about spending CHRO playbook: finding and hiring the right people, allocation in the months ahead. Of those leaders, learning and growing, managing and rewarding 67 percent say they anticipate spending less on performance, tailoring the employee experience, permanent hiring in the next 12 months (Exhibit 1). and optimizing workforce planning and strategy. In Web <2020> Exhibit 1 Exhibit <1> of <3> Leaders say they anticipate spending less on permanent hiring in the next Leaders say they anticipate spending less on permanent hiring in the next 12 12 months. months. Expected HR-activity investment for next 12 months, % of respondents¹ Recruiting and „earning and Recogni…ing and †ngaging and Wor‡force planning‚ onƒoarding developent rewarding connecting strategy‚ and change 5 5 5 ’nsure 2 2 2 2 ‹‹ ˆnvest ore ‹‹ Ž‹ Ž‹ Ž‹ Hold flat ‰Š ‹Œ 2 2Ž 1 ˆnvest less „† “”R† 1Question: What are your expectations for how HR will invest over 5 categories in next 12 onths urvey of chief officers and functional leaders across industries n  15 ­igures ay not su to 1€€%‚ ƒecause of rounding 1 Online Labour Index, Oxford Internet Institute, 2020, ilabour.oii.ox.ac.uk. 52 What now? Ten actions to emerge stronger in the next normal September 2020