Ernst & Young (EY) is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. Maintaining their reputation as a leading worldwide professional services organization requires having, “The Right People with the Right Skills in the Right Place at the Right Time serving the Right Clients.” The emphasis, therefore, is on ongoing, rapid development of talent along multiple competencies. This requires a combination of several methods and programmes that can be appropriately tailored and customized to address every individual's unique development needs, which in turn are mapped to the business requirements. Diverse operational locations necessitate that Ernst & Young's people strategy is driven consistently across the organization through a well-defined, standardized framework. Ernst & Young's culture and values are the key drivers of this uniform understanding of the people strategy and its implementation. The company uses the acronym “IDEA” to execute the people strategy through various organizational practices designed with the objective to Include, Develop, Engage and Attract a talented workforce. The most critical practices that Ernst & Young leverages as its competitive advantage are those which focus on employee growth through its talent development framework. This framework not only focuses on individual development but also on creating a unique career experience for every employee and in the development of leaders within the organization. You have been recently recruited as the Head of HR for Ernst & Young. Base on the current environmental factors you have been requested to submit a report to the Board on HR trends for the next 5 years and how to respond.

(a) State minimum of 6 HR trends and a maximum of 10 trends.

(b) Critically evaluate the impact on Ernst & Young and propose proactive strategies in responding to the same.