Every year, on 20th May, the world celebrates International HR Day. This day acknowledges the invaluable role of Human Resource (HR) professionals in shaping the workforce and bringing organizational success worldwide.
Why don’t we think of something truly unexpected for them on this International HR Day? It could be more than just presents or a weekend fiesta. Let’s brainstorm unique ideas that will truly surprise and delight our HR specialists.
We are here to organize a short knowledge tour about the history of International HR Day, including why people started celebrating it and its benefits.
What is International HR Day?
International HR Day is recognised as a day to celebrate the immeasurable value and hard work of HR in business collaboration, maintaining a complete employee life cycle, and navigating the complexities of a rapidly changing business landscape.
On this day, management and other professionals should honour them for their invaluable contributions to the company’s personal and professional growth.
Why People Celebrate the International HR Day
A question may arise in mind: Why do people celebrate HR Day? Is HR really valuable at our workplace? The answer is ‘Yes’. The celebration is to kudo employees for their uncountable efforts and dedication to managing the entire workforce, fostering a positive work culture, and driving organizational success.
Every year, on 20 May, organizations celebrate International HR Day to praise HR’s dedication, hard work, and commitment to enhancing the employee experience and promoting the overall well-being of the workforce. Additionally, it serves as a platform to highlight the importance of HR practices and strategies in achieving business objectives and building strong, sustainable organizations.
7 Best Ways to Celebrate International HR Day in 2024
1. Public Recognition
We need to understand that human resource professionals are also part of your staff. Like everyone else, they have to play a crucial role in the company’s productivity. HR teams are often responsible for making the workforce feel appreciated and motivated, but HR departments rarely get the appreciation they need.
This International HR Day, you can fill the gap by showing your human resource personnel that you value their work. The recognition is best done in public. Recognize the work of your human resource management team members in front of other employees for whom they put in hard work. It is also good to have a small cake-cutting ceremony.
2. Reward the Best
On this International HR Day, reward the HRs. It boosts their morale and inspires others to give their best at work. If you are a small business, you can also show appreciation to your HR professionals.
It does not have to be an expensive gift. Small gestures such as flowers or chocolates, a certificate, a care package, or a trophy will do well to express appreciation for the hard work they do.
3. Use Social Media
The world celebrates Human Resources Day in varied ways. One easy and impactful way is to use social media. Today, in the era of remote work and hybrid culture, people are working on the same team but scattered in different locations.
HR plays an integral role in connecting workers with other individuals and designing working practices that keep them connected. You can encourage your staff or co-workers to pay tribute to hardworking HR by talking about it in their social media posts. That will also inspire people interested in social media to do the same and join the initiative.
When more people join the initiative, it can be a great feeling for HR professionals. Send an email to your staff suggesting ways they can celebrate HR professionals. For example, they can talk about how they improve everyone’s working lives or how human resources help them improve overall productivity.
4. Gift them Efficiency
This human resource day gifts your HR professionals something that helps them to be aligned with the future. As a job role, HRs are people professionals and their work benefits workers. A technology upgrade to cloud-based HRMS software will be an impactful gift for your human resources department.
This International HR Day can be a great occasion to adopt a new future for your HR. The department has multiple responsibilities and not enough time to work on strategic elements. An HRMS software will streamline and automate the repetitive manual HR process. For example, payroll can be done with a single click, which saves your HR team a lot of time and effort.
HR shaping the new future and leading change in the hybrid world and technology has always been a huge part of the change they bring. The best part of gifting HR software is, HR personnel won’t be the only ones who benefit from the upgrade.
By gifting HRMS software to your human resources team this International HR Day, you will also upgrade your business. This will allow HR professionals to extract more actionable insight from the data with the power of simplified analytics. That way, you can bring them up to par with the rest of the HR industry and make an informed decision. That is crucial for strategically designing a new future for your business.
5. Raise Awareness
This International HR Day, it’s a good idea to educate your employees on the role of HR professionals in the company. The world celebrates HR professional and their achievements in different ways.
Gaining insight into HR leaders’ contribution to developing human capital will provide employees with a better understanding. This can benefit workers at all levels, as they will be more aware of how HR joins efforts to achieve organizational goals. It also helps everyone understand the importance of the HR profession so they can ask HR for help when needed.
6. Upskill
They say knowledge is the greatest gift you can give to someone. Like any other professional, the human resources department needs skills and training. Upskilling will help HR shape the future.
This International Human Resources Day, arrange some training for your HR employees so they will be empowered to benefit workers through knowledge such as better understanding and improved legislation interpreting skills.
This International HR Day, you can invite HR industry leaders to share their experiences and knowledge through an HR seminar. This will improve the working lives of your HR team and also help them advance in their career.
You can send an email asking your HR team for suggestions on who will be the right person or what topic they would like to educate themselves on. For example, this can be a targeted forum or HR seminar for important legislation. That will help your business, all your employees, and the HR team.
7. Throw a Party
Last but not least, good old-fashioned fun company parties to celebrate International HR Day. Irrespective of the domain organizations work in, everyone likes to party. It is a simple but effective way to celebrate Human Resources Day. Depending on the resources at your disposal, make it a small or huge event. A party will be a party of any shape and size.
Usually, the HR team throws fun company parties. This HR day, surprise them by arranging one for them. Be creative, get some fun activities, or invent games and quizzes to celebrate HR personnel’s journey in the company. That will also make them proud to be part of the HR profession and the company. In addition to that, the experience will be a part of their good memories.
What is the theme of International HR Day 2024 and its significance?
As International HR Day approaches very soon, on 20 May 2024, the European Association of People Management has announced this year’s theme to celebrate HR worldwide. In 2024, the EAPM has revealed multiple themes together; these are,
- Championing Ethical Tech & AI Integration
- Redefined Future Workplaces
- Excellence in People Leadership
- Continuous Investment in Skills and Education
Championing Ethical Tech & AI Integration
This theme recognizes the pivotal role of HR professionals in upholding transparency and ethics within the organization. Their efforts in digitalization and AI integration not only promote equality but also empower employees, fostering a sense of control and autonomy.
Redefined Future Workplaces
In this international HR day, the theme signifies HR’s ability to build a trustworthy work culture within the workplace. Their sustainable work performance and dedication offer flexibility, promote employee well-being and maintain work-life balance.
Excellence in People Leadership
This theme highlights HR’s performance in earning employees’ trust through empathy, authentic leadership, and open communication, which help to build an inclusive workplace where every employee feels engaged and satisfied.
Continuous Investment in Skills and Education
It elaborates on the HR professional’s hard work and dedication to upskilling employees and ensuring their career development. Continuous investment in skills and education helps increase employee engagement in the workplace and enhance business productivity.
A History of Human Resources (HR)
Early 1900s
In the early 1900s, the National Cash Register Company in the U.S. established a personnel department for workers to manage numerous strikes and quality control issues. It is marked as an advent of primitive HR management.
1910s-1920s
During the 1910s and 20s, American engineer Frederick W. Taylor spearheaded the scientific management movement. This movement aimed to track and improve workers’ performance for fair productivity. The concept laid a foundation for modern HR practices.
1930s-1950s
World War II brought about a significant transformation in labour unions. The introduction of laws and regulations, such as the National Labor Relations Act, aimed to protect workers’ rights and foster unity among all workers.
As a result, from 1940 onwards, HR specialists took on the responsibility of maintaining regulatory compliance and labour relations, marking a new era in HR management.
1960s-1970s
From the 1960s to the 1970s, a series of laws and compliances were passed for workers. Numerous topics like the Employer-employee relationship, equal opportunities, employee engagement, and fair treatment have been included as HR practices. The term’ Human Resource Specialist’ started to buzz on the market in the late 1960s.
1980s-1990s
The advent of computer usage in the workplace sparked a revolution in HR technology, which has spread worldwide. This led to the introduction of terms like HR information systems (HRIS), which revolutionized the electronic tracking and saving of employee and payroll records, heralding a new era of efficiency and productivity in HR management.
Early 2000s
A digital transformation has taken place, which is reflected in data analytics, data maintenance, and savings. Employees were getting used to handling a balanced relationship with the HRs, leading to more employee engagement initiatives and business productivity.
Recent Era
HR professionals have started to face evolving challenges while handling employee work-life cycles, maintaining and safeguarding data, drafting company policies, or complying with labour law and compliances. Their role has become increasingly complex over time. However, they have embraced these challenges with the introduction of HRMS software and the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) for automation, paving the way for futuristic solutions.
The Value of HR in an Organization
Why are human resource specialists the backbone of every organization? What is HR’s value in a workplace? In this section, we provide a detailed overview of the importance of a human resource team in every workforce.
➔ Talent Acquisition and Retention
HR plays a pivotal role in every organization, dedicated to attracting top talents, implementing effective recruitment strategies, and ensuring a seamless hiring process. Through rigorous candidate assessments, HR aligns potential hires with the organization’s values, culture, and goals, thereby contributing significantly to talent acquisition and retention.
➔ Employee Engagement and Satisfaction
Engaged employees are more productive and committed to their work, leading to performance enhancement and organizational success. HR is solely responsible for creating a positive work environment where employees feel valued, engaged, and satisfied. To achieve this, HR implements a range of initiatives, such as recognition programs to acknowledge employee contributions, wellness initiatives to promote a healthy work-life balance, fun activities to foster team spirit and regular feedback mechanisms to address employee concerns and suggestions.
➔ Learning and Development
HRs have a detailed understanding of the employees who require training and development programs and who don’t. They take care of the employees’ self-growth by arranging different initiatives such as on-the-job training, workshops, seminars, e-learning modules, etc., and foster a culture of continuous learning and professional development, improving job performance and productivity.
➔ Organizational Culture and Brand Reputation
A positive work culture builds trust, respect, collaboration, and a balanced bond between employee and employer, which reflects successful employment branding and a positive reputation in the workplace. HR plays an important role in developing a positive organizational culture and improving values that reflect the company’s brand identity and ethos.
➔ Compliance and Risk Management
HRs are responsible for enacting acts and compliance, such as labour laws and regulations, by minimizing legal risks and liabilities in the organization. From managing payroll and benefits to handling disciplinary actions and workplace investigations, HR ensures that the organization operates within legal and ethical boundaries. By staying abreast of regulatory changes and industry trends, HR proactively addresses compliance issues and mitigates potential risks.
➔ Employee Relations and Conflict Resolution
HR serves as a mediator in resolving conflicts, disputes, and employee grievances fairly and impartially. HR maintains positive employee relations and a harmonious work environment by promoting open communication, active listening, and conflict-resolution techniques. Effective employee relations contribute to higher employee morale, productivity, and job satisfaction.
