As 2016 comes to a close, we consider some interesting business research from publications and firms around the world. Business research allows the industry to better understand human and employee behavior, develop programming that increases productivity and performance, and improve workplace culture.

Here’s the business research highlights we found:

1. The positive impact of a “fun” workplace. A new scholarly article in the Journal of Vocational Behavior found that “fun” workplace activities actually promote informal learning practices. While management support for fun did not appear to correlate with outcomes, the fun activities themselves did. The implications? “The key practical implication is that organizations should consider fun as a viable strategy to promote informal learning beyond traditional learning supports.”
2. Likely trends in 2017. Business News Daily caught up with Glassdoor exec Andrew Chamberlain to ask about potential trends for 2017. His answers include increased data science in HR departments (such as the recent ROI report on our Increasing Personal Effectiveness program from one of our clients), more tech roles, and increased hiring.
3. The “gig” economy and entrepreneurship. The 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Report published by Amway finds that millennials have a more favorable attitude toward entrepreneurship than do adults over 50.
4. Struggling with workplace conflict? New research indicates that forgiveness as a part of conflict resolution results in improvements in health and productivity in the workplace.
5. Office feedback: more is more. A study this year found that 65% of employees do not feel that they receive adequate feedback from their managers. This statistic suggests that investing some time and resources in feedback as part of management development is a wise move for employee retention and increased productivity.
6. Increased demand for leadership development. As the boomer generation continues to retire from the workplace, more leadership roles stand to be filled by younger generations. A report cited by Forbes finds that “56% of executives report their companies ‘are not ready to meet leadership needs’ – while only 7% report organizations ‘have accelerated their programs for millennials.'”

What business research did you find particularly interesting and relevant to your business operations this year?

Employee Development Systems delivers results-oriented training programs that increase productivity, effectiveness, & performance. Contact us today to find out what we have done for other organizations and how we can help yours.