In the January/February issue of HR Magazine, Josh Bersin with Deloitte, makes nine predictions of “what’s in store for HR in 2015.” This is part nine of a series of nine articles looking at each of these predictions.

Mr. Bersin’s article on professional development concentrates on HR. His suggestions are

• Reduce the number of HR generalists and replace them with HR business partners
• Change the focus from “centers of expertise” to “networks of expertise”
• Concentrate hiring and training on the new competencies of high impact HR teams

The article goes on to briefly discuss how HR needs to become more of a business partner. The way to achieve this is to become “bold, innovative, and forward-thinking.” Where have we heard THAT tune before? At any rate, Mr. Bersin was not suggesting that development be restricted to HR. In order for development to be effective, it must be embedded in an organization’s DNA. Trends or predictions, affect the entire organization, not just one department.      

The American Management Association has 10 predictions of its own about development.

Managing time is a constant challenge for my coaching clients, and yes for me too! We all know better. We all know that if we manage our time well, we’ll accomplish more, reduce stress, and still have time for things we enjoy the most. Procrastination is one of the biggest concerns and often seems the most difficult to conquer. Yes, I know, we want to put that off until later as well.

A tool to help us conquer this defeating habit is understanding what causes us to procrastinate. First we’ll look at the causes of procrastination and then ways to tame this shrew.

The Cause

•  Failure to set priorities – If you don’t know where to begin – you won’t. Further, not setting priorities leaves the door open to making everything a priority. This confuses the brain and leads to procrastination.

The Cure

•  Each day put together a to-do list. The night before is even better as you can hit the ground running the next morning. Be sure to prioritize the items on your list. When your boss or client piles more items on your already stretched out list, consult with them and let them help you establish what is really important. Everything is not a four alarm fire. In addition, you can break projects into smaller pieces and that helps keep you both focused and motivated.