Professional personas and capabilities of the future people practitioner: A thematic review

Abstract

Orientation: The transformation of the technology-enabled workplace has a significant impact on the future professional roles, services and capabilities of both the human resource professional (HRP) and industrial/organisational psychologist (IOP).Research purpose: The present study aimed to identify the intersecting professional personas and capabilities that speak to both the HRP and IOP as people practitioners of the digital era.Motivation for the study: An integrated 2020s capabilities framework outlining IOP and HRP services-linked personas and capabilities in their conjoint roles as people practitioners seems to be lacking.Research approach/design and method: The study utilised a configurative thematic review analysis methodology to identify convergences among contemporary scholarly and empirical views on the professional personas and capabilities of the 2020s multidisciplinary people practitioner.Main findings: The thematic analysis revealed professional development in terms of four digitally-dexterous capabilities proficiency domains and six professional personas relevant to the technology-enabled working environment.Practical/managerial implications: The proposed integrative conceptual personas and capabilities model may inform the context-relevant professional development of the digital-era people practitioner.Contributions/value-add: The study adds to the research literature on the shifting roles and capabilities of IOPs and HRP as future people practitioners in technology-enabled hybrid and virtualised work environments.