HR Think Tank

 

Africa, and South Africa in particular, has a shortage of high-quality think tanks. Especially when it comes to think tanks relating to human capital.

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At the same time the world of work faces extraordinary and complex challenges. Among these are structural unemployment (mainly youth); robotics and the digitisation of work (fourth industrial revolution); income inequality; an aging work force; lack of trust in institutions and their leaders; and outdated and inadequate leadership models.

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Knowledge Resources (KR), in partnership with the Institute for Futures Research (IFR), identified the need for an HR Think Tank that focuses on policy issues pertaining to complex challenges facing the HR fraternity specifically, and the world of work at large.

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Essentially a Think Tank should: "generate and share policy ideas that can change the way the general public and key audiences think about important issues, bring new issues to the front, and provide alternatives for decision makers to consider" (Andrew Seele in What should Think Tanks Do?).

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The HR Think Tank focusses on current and future problems and challenges with regards to human capital. 

Our research emphasis is on big-picture questions around human capital within the context of South African and emerging market countries.

 

Outputs of the HR Think Tank are pertinent to the private sector, government, academia and research institutions, NGOs, HR departments and the world of work at large.

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Research findings and recommendations are distributed to members, policy-makers, other stakeholders, as well as the public at large, through:

 

• Research reports on burning issues relating to human capital

• White papers

• Website and social media presence

• Spotlight papers around identified major themes

• Quarterly update meetings

• Annual events focusing on the primary identified themes as well as identifying new themes for research and discussion

• Liaising with targeted policy-makers

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The following overall goal/vision was formulated at the inaugural HR Think Tank meeting and accepted by the members:

 

THE HR THINK TANK MUST AIM TO HAVE SOUTH AFRICA RANKED AMONG THE TOP 50 COUNTRIES ON THE GLOBAL TALENT COMPETITIVENESS INDEX BY 2024.   

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The five focus areas of the HR Think Tank include:

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1. Education and Development

2. Vocational/ Technical Skills

3. Gender

4. Labour Productivity

5. Business/ Government/ Labour Relationships

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