Businesses consider merging IT & HR to boost engagement

Nexthink has released research indicating a significant shift may be underway in how businesses approach employee productivity and engagement, with the potential merger of IT and HR departments emerging as a solution.

The study, titled 'The Experience Silo: The Future of HR and IT', surveyed 1,100 IT leaders worldwide and revealed strong support for integrating IT and HR teams to counter declines in productivity and employee engagement. According to the research, 93% of respondents said merging the two departments would increase productivity, boost employee satisfaction, and drive engagement. 64% predicted a full merger will take place within five years, while a further 31% expect much closer collaboration between the functions.

The potential benefits of such a merger, as cited in the report, include reduced delays and improved outcomes for digital transformation projects, smoother onboarding of new hires, faster adoption of digital tools by employees, and higher levels of employee satisfaction, retention, and engagement.

Specifically, 85% of IT leaders expect fewer delays in digital transformation, 94% anticipate more successful project outcomes, and 97% believe employees would more quickly adopt new digital tools. 95% said onboarding processes would improve, and 93% anticipated gains in productivity, engagement, retention, and satisfaction.

These findings come as businesses contend with sluggish productivity and declining engagement, trends which are contributing to an estimated USD $430 billion in lost global productivity. The challenges are heightened by the increasing complexity of the digital workplace, with employees now using an average of 11 applications, up from six in 2019. IT leaders anticipate a further 43% increase in the number of workplace applications over the next three years.

Vedant Sampath, Chief Technology Officer at Nexthink, commented on the situation. "Virtually every business is facing this crisis of falling engagement and sluggish productivity, although some more than others," Sampath said. "This shows that businesses are considering radical changes in response. This isn't just about smoother onboarding or faster tech support; it's about fundamentally reimagining the workspace in a way that allows employees to bring their best selves and produce their best work."

Merging IT and HR functions would not be without challenges. Respondents cited concerns including a lack of clear ownership over new and existing responsibilities (58%), poor communication between the two departments (50%), and differing priorities (49%). Nonetheless, more than half of the surveyed IT leaders (52%) said their organisations were 'very ready' to begin merging functions to enhance digital transformation efforts.

The research also examined possible leadership for a combined department. 40% said that the new entity should be overseen by a new role, such as a Chief Experience Officer (CXO), rather than a traditional Chief Information Officer (CIO) or Chief People Officer. The anticipated remit of the merged function extends beyond traditional HR or IT responsibilities to encompass measuring and improving digital employee experience (62%), managing all workplace technology and collaboration tools including automation and AI (69%), overseeing employee digital training (61%), and providing insight into workforce analytics such as productivity scores (51%).

Sampath added, "We're moving towards a future where the employee experience is going to be just as important as the customer experience. Whether HR and IT merge or not, it's essential that businesses invest in giving their workers great experiences. Nobody is able to be properly productive if they're constantly battling delays, poorly functioning tools, and disjointed processes. The businesses that address these frustrations and properly marry people and technology will be the ones that attract top talent, reduce friction, and build high-performing, adaptive teams."