6 Key takeaways from HR Tech Europe 2015

Those that think the pace of change we are experiencing now is too hot to handle may want to hold onto their hats as the speed of technological innovation, as popularised by the likes of Kurzweil, continues its relentless exponential growth.

The implications for business and the HR functions that are the custodians of their organisations talent are considerable. This was one of the overriding themes awaiting the 1,400 delegates as they gathered in London last week for the world’s fastest growing (as well as in my opinion the best curated and choreographed) HR event – HR Tech Europe.

As usual the organisers spoilt us with 11 differently themed parallel events and a plethora of outstanding speakers both within and beyond the world of HR, so picking out a handful of key takeaways is difficult, but here goes:

1. The network always wins = HR needs to enable (not block) the network

Peter Hinssen got the conference off to a tumultuous start with the Orwellian titled ‘The Network Always Wins’, which essentially challenged organisations – and critically the HR functions at their fulcrums - to move away from the 20th Century mindset of control, rigidity and silos. How can HR play a role in fuelling networks and enabling their respective organisations to stay ahead of the pack? Firstly, by allowing information to flow freely and unencumbered throughout the business and secondly, by taking a hammer to bureaucracy and sending the dreaded organisation chart the way of the dodo. Those that fail to grasp the mettle may not survive – see also ‘Never mind the bureaucracy, here’s Punk Rock organisational structures…’.

To help enable the flow of networks within the business, HR needs to lead the charge to abolish that outdated 20th Century concept - the organisation chart

2. Collaborate or die

Ex-acolyte of Bill Clinton and self-proclaimed expert on the collaborative economy, Rachel Botsman adopted a similar revolutionary zeal to Hinssen for her conferencing closing keynote on the ‘Future of Work’ in the collaborative economy. Botsman made a persuasive case that companies like Airbnb, Lyft, Wonolo, RecruitLoop, TaskRabbit and my personal favourite DogVacay are changing the way people use their time, skills and talents. The success of organisations like these is a huge threat to the old economy with whole industries (including the recruitment industry) set to disintegrate before our eyes in the next ten years. Employment legislation (particularly in Europe) will also come under pressure, but will this mean dismantling frameworks designed to protect employees? Or will it remove the red tape that holds organisations back and stymies competitiveness? That's a debate that's set to roll and roll.

Will the likes of Wonolo, TaskRabbit and RecruitLoop mean the end of the recruitment industry as we know it?

Are we sleepwalking into a dystopian future where we're run by geeks in California? - asks HR Tech Europe MC Euan Semple

3. It’s time to stop just talking about HR Analytics and start actually doing it…

100% of CXO believe they need HR data to make strategic decisions but only 19% have used HR data in the last year - CEB

Volker Jacobs of CEB unveiled research that found whilst 100% of CXO believe they need HR data to make strategic decisions, only 19% have used HR data in the last year. Perhaps this is a contributory factor in why only 20% of HR transformations meet their targets? Certainly, the same CEB study concluded that the use of analytics led to 12% better talent outcomes (see below). The conference saw compelling presentations from the likes of LEGO Group and Google on how analytics underpins their people strategies. But the highlight of the two days from an HR analytics perspective was provided by Andrew Marritt of Organization View who did a live demonstration of analytics using open source software including a predictive modelling session using data from the Titanic – not the first time nor I fear the last that the HR function has been compared to the infamously doomed White Star liner.

Volker Jacobs of CEB illustrated how harnessing analytics leads to 12% better talent outcomes

4. Sometimes, great People Analytics can take time

It’s always fascinating to hear what the likes of Google are up to and Aimee O’Malley was on hand to talk about the tech giant’s gDNA initiative – something that certainly can’t be accused of lacking ambition. For the uninitiated, gDNA (see also HBR article here) is a 100 year project designed to improve understanding of productivity, engagement, how to cultivate leaders, how happiness impacts work and how work impacts happiness. The study is only three years old, but initial findings include that only 31% of Googlers are able to break free of the burden of blurring the balance between work and life – less than one in three maybe, but probably still a much better ratio than most companies I could mention.

5. But, do CEOs even care about HR?

Not according to Nick Holley of Henley Management College – or at least that’s the quote that was mistakenly attributed to him after last year’s conference in Amsterdam. Holley sought to nip the ensuing kerfuffle in the bud by explaining that what he meant was that CEOs were not interested in the traditional role of HR e.g. ensuring people are paid and receive their annual performance appraisal. But woe betide any budding HR leader that seeks to be ‘strategic’ before getting the basics right. Holley went on to reveal what CEOs DO want from their HR leaders (see Figure below), which interestingly valued integrity and courage above everything else.

Professor Nick Holley unveiled research from Henley Business School that found CEOs value integrity and courage from their HR leaders above everything else

6.There’s some really cool HR vendors

The conference floor a large of number of HR vendors displaying their wares and along with industry giants such as Workday, Oracle and IBM there were a number of companies I'd like to finish off my round-up by highlighting:

• OrgVue - Rated by many including Gartner and I can see why, OrgVue enables faster better insights to consolidate and visualise data from multiple sources and is an invaluable tool to enable HR analytics, organisation design and strategic workforce planning.
• PageUp - A next-gen platform unifying recruiting, learning, performance and succession, and one that enables organisations to manage permanent and contingent recruitment.
• HireVue - The digital interview platform with fully integrated predictive recruiting analytics
• Source-Code - Where the supply of skilled Tech professionals from Eastern Europe meets the demand for those skills from organisations in Western Europe.

See you on the Champs-élysées for HR Tech World Congress on 27-28th October for what promises to be some event.

About the Author

As well as being part of the HR Tech Europe Blog Squad, David is a Director at Cielo (formerly known as Pinstripe & Ochre House), the world’s leading provider of global talent acquisition and management solutions. David has helped a number of organisations design talent acquisition programmes that drive effectiveness, growth and competitive advantage. He also speaks and writes on some of the key tenets driving the seismic change in the future of work. Connect with David by LinkedIn and Twitter or contact him at [email protected] and take Cielo's Talent Activation Assessment here.

You may also want to read some of David's other articles:

• Robots vs Humans - where is the Future of Work headed?
• HR Analytics - The New Goldrush?
• The 20 best HR Analytics articles of 2014
• 10 Predictions for HR & Recruiting in 2015 - Part 1 and Part 2
• Cost Per Hire: "It's the wrong recruiting metric, Gromit..."
• Never mind the bureaucracy, here's Punk Rock org structures...
• Vive la Révolution: Key Takeaways from HR Tech Europe 2014
• The Who's Who of HR Analytics Influencers - Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4
• Is HR ready for the Big Data & Analytics revolution?
• Part 1 and Part 2 of our fictional HR Director's journey into the world of HR Analytics

Keywords: Human Resources, HR, Talent Management, HR Tech, HR Tech Europe, HR Analytics, Strategic Workforce Planning. HR Transformation, Talent, Big Data, Recruiting, Talent Acquisition, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Future of Work