Originally published on the TalentWise blog October 29, 2015.
—
There’s a shift happening in the landscape of human capital, and the TalentWise team left the HR Technology Conference and Expo feeling it more than ever. Only a few short years ago, HR Tech and other industry events were all abuzz with analytics, big data, analytics, big data. Not to say these hot topics have gone cold, nor do they show any sign of going away—most HR organizations still have plenty of room to catch up when it comes to big data and analytics—but it certainly feels like these themes are scooting over to make room on the buzzword bench for an altogether non-tech concept within our tech space: humanity!
The shift is hard not to notice given this year’s agenda. Alongside the expected techy tracks were themes of service, engagement and socialization in the workplace—all of which HR clearly values and needs, but which rely more on the human element than technology to be completely effective. The industry seems to be saying “it’s great we have these solutions built, so now let’s make sure our people are being people!”
From elegant and packaged small business platforms to changing, adapting enterprise solutions, HR has more technology options than before. With the HR technology industry booming with more innovation and financial backing than we’ve ever seen, it makes sense that service providers can no longer differentiate themselves on their products alone. It’s high time to be a partner, not just a vendor.
Increasing solution options can make the decision tough for an HR team shopping for new tech, while the healthy competition puts more pressure on providers to differentiate themselves in ways beyond product features. Walking the expo floor at HR Tech it was clear that everyone is upping their game to attract business. As long as HR professionals know what to look for, finding a stand-out tech solution that also addresses service and humanity (and how about compliance?) shouldn’t be too daunting.
As the ecosystem of HR technology continues to evolve, organizations will no doubt turn to providers who not only quickly and reliably deploy their solutions, but also play in the space as community builders and operate with a customer-centric focus. It’s important that providers don’t lose sight of solving actual business challenges, which will let HR professionals focus more on addressing the human elements of engagement and socialization in the workplace that technology simply can’t provide.
At TalentWise, we’re totally on board. It’s time providers in our space come full circle and return to humanity, return to simplicity. We’re excited to see how the landscape will continue to change, and looking forward to being a part of the human movement.
Spencer Czapiewski 