An alternative Victorian inspired future where the technology of today is powered by steam plus a fun fashion style which combines Victorian elegance with a punk attitude. A future based on steam and clockwork rather than the internal combustion engine and electronics. HR leaders challenge organisations to imagine a different future not necessarily a Steampunk future but a different future and then aim to help the organisation deliver that different future. And there is no reason why it couldn’t be a fun future.
Steampunk is fun and fantasy but Victorian working conditions were not. Health and Safety was non existent, Trade Unions were in their infancy, child labour was a fact of life , working hours were excessive, pay suppressed, exploitation the norm. But some enlightened employers saw a different future where shorter hours, safer working conditions, fair pay, and education for children would deliver a more productive and therefore more profitable organisation. And subsequent history proved them right. However only when the majority of employers were pressured by Trade Unions or forced by Parliament to adopt improved terms and conditions of employment.
This is still the situation today some employers can’t imagine how pandering to employees could make an organisation more productive , how a more diverse and inclusive workforce can possible be worth the hassle, how taking employees mental health seriously can result in anything but excuses for giving up when things get tough or when they don’t like what their asked to do.
HR leaders aim to address this scepticism to show those leading the organisation how managing with compassion, treating and rewarding people fairly, making people feel included and supported will get the best out of the workforce.
The New HR like Steampunk imagines a different future one which recognises technology can drive an organisation, but increased productivity, improved performance, profitability and a sustainable future require an organisation to maximise it’s human resources.
