What’s Trending in the Workplace?

by SIOP Administrative Office

SIOP Visibility Committee Wants Your Input

SIOP’s Visibility Committee wants to know your opinion about the Top 10 Workplace Trends for 2019. “Voting” in the second round of the survey will end on December 11, 2018.

Amanda Woller, chair of the Media Subcommittee, said, “The Top 10 Workplace Trends survey is a great opportunity for members of the I-O community to share their insights about the anticipated direction of the business world in the new year.”

All SIOP members are asked to suggest topics, based on concerns in organizations and the media, during the first round of the survey. Those results are then compiled into a list for selection of the final 10. That second round survey is now in process and will conclude on December 11.

Release of the first-round survey results in late November prompted some commentary on social media, by members concerned about perpetuating millennial stereotypes. But as Nikki Blacksmith, chair of the Visibility Committee pointed out, “This is about what SIOP members are hearing in terms of where organizations are headed, or what is on leaders’ minds. It’s not about what the current scientific literature reports.” 

“If we see trends that we disagree with, maybe it means we have not done a good enough job communicating to leaders that those practices are ineffective or disseminating the latest research within our own field.  These trends can serve as an indication of where gaps exist in the scientific literature” she concluded.

Woller agreed, saying, “The Top 10 Trends list provides guidance on where I-O Psychology needs to focus in order to continue our impact on making smarter workplaces.” She urged all members to participate in creating the Top 10 Workplace Trends list for 2019 by voting now.

The Top 10 list will be used to shape the topics highlighted throughout the year in media outreach and on the SIOP website. The results will help raise the visibility of I-O psychology across a wide variety of audiences and position SIOP members as valuable resources for organizations affected by the trends.

Don Zhang, who has been coordinating the survey analysis since last year, said results of the first-round survey showed similarities to previous lists. However, there are some new entries. “Some newcomers that made the cut were open science practices in research, organizational neuroscience, and blockchain technology in organizational contexts,” he said. “I think the new trends reflect a growing interest of SIOP members in innovative technology and research trends."

(Photo - Don Zhang, Assistant Professor at Louisiana State University and his student coding team (l-r): Aneeqa Thiele, PhD student; Michael Schlak, Undergraduate RA; Gaurangi Das, Undergraduate RA; and Don Zhang.)

The Top 10 Workplace Trends List was started in late 2013 by Liberty Munson, then chair of the Visibility Committee’s Media Subcommittee. See all the past trends lists on the new Top 10 Workplace Trends page on the SIOP website.