How HR Technology is Fueling Productivity and Driving Results

The Pandemic’s Impact on HR Trends

The pandemic has accelerated trends that continue to transform how organizations acquire, develop, motivate, reward, serve, and manage talent. Technology has emerged as an essential tool in responding to uncertainty and creating a more people-centric and adaptive organization. HR technology, in shaping employee experience and driving business productivity, is therefore an increasingly critical component of a successful HR strategy.

Enhancing Employee Experience with HCM Applications

Creators of human capital management (HCM) applications are increasingly focused on improving the experiences of all - candidates, workers, learners, managers, and executives. They recognize that most employees spend relatively little time using these applications. Many applications now feature conversational user interfaces or leverage insights from behavioral science to engage users, influence behaviors, and contribute to improvements in organizational culture. Continuous learning, listening, feedback, and performance management are becoming necessary to support hybrid and agile ways of working. HR technology shapes employee experience and impacts business productivity.

Tailoring HR Technology to Organizational Needs

However, amid the continual hype around technology trends, HR leaders must understand their own needs and capabilities as they plan to integrate new technologies within HR processes and existing applications. To truly improve the employee experience, it is essential to resist one-size-fits-all solutions and instead deploy flexible, human-centric, fit-to-purpose HR processes and tools that meet the diverse needs of the clients and their workforce.

Core Functional Pillars of HCM Applications

The core functional pillars of HCM applications include:

• Core HR: Traditional HR organizational and employee data management, employment life cycle processes, transactional employee and manager self-service benefits, and payroll administration.
• Talent Management: Recruiting, onboarding, performance management, compensation allocation, career and succession planning, learning and development, and workforce planning.
• Workforce Management: Time capture, absence management, scheduling, task and activity tracking, budgeting, and forecasting.
• Integrated HR Service Management: Content delivery via a portal and knowledge management capabilities for employees and managers, which may include case management (ticketing/routing), business process management tools, and digital document management.

Drivers of Innovation in HR Technology

While innovation has always enhanced how the HCM technology evolves, the spike in technological innovations in HR Tech market in the recent past is driven primarily by:

• Technological advances, including artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and virtual reality.
• Increased focus on skills management, as existing HR applications do not support or meet current business requirements.
• Wider macro and social developments surrounding the nature and evolution of work practices and policies, such as the increasing importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion, automation, remote working, and the growth of the gig economy.
• Customer demand and extension requests, with functional gaps often being filled through an ecosystem of partners.

Technologies Gaining Renewed Interest

To support and prepare for the prevailing economic uncertainty, the following technologies have attracted renewed interest:

• Internal talent marketplaces
• Ontology-based skills graphs
• Voice of employee
• Learning experience platforms
• Workforce planning and modeling

Conclusion: The Future of HR Technology

In conclusion, HR technology is not just about automating processes or implementing the latest trends. It is about creating a more adaptive, human-centric organization that can thrive in the face of uncertainty. By focusing on flexible, human-centric solutions and leveraging innovative technologies, HR leaders can significantly enhance employee experience and drive business productivity. As we continue to navigate the ever-changing landscape, the strategic integration of HR technology will be crucial in shaping the future of work.

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