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HR Technology Trends for 2014

When so many thought leaders gather in one place, there is sure to be some highly insightful conversations and more importantly, some solid conclusions reached about the current climate of HR.  Industry experts recently gathered in Chicago for the SHRM Annual Conference to discuss HR technology trends, among other topics.  Their conclusions about the top 10 HR technology trends for 2014 give us a clear glimpse into what HR leaders are talking about and will continue to talk about during the coming year.

Here are a couple of those 10 top technology trends that we feel especially close to and why.

HR data is secure in the cloud. When done right, the cloud is just as secure as on-site, on premise software solutions.  Of course it is!  And we’ll even go further to say that in some cases the cloud is more secure than the on-site, on premise solutions that companies currently have.  But not everyone is as willing to except this reality.  Which is why our Pando solutions can be hosted in the cloud or live on-premise behind a firewall.

Virtualization and globalization are transforming the workplace. Remote working arrangements will force employers to be more innovative in how they use collaboration tools.  Decision making is a collaborative process.  How we collaborate with our colleagues is changing and advancing every day.  If the tools we use to collaborate aren’t really built for collaboration, then the decision making process is slow and unwieldy. Pando not only allows for collaboration, but encourages it!  Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter are popular because people are social beings.  We have an innate need to share with others and converse.  Check out this short video to see how Pando encourages collaboration through sharing and conversation.

Cross functional innovation teams will become the norm.  HR needs to collaborate with other departments to see what’s working and apply those best practices to help achieve HR goals.  Correction, HR needs to collaborate with other departments to see what’s working and to help achieve company and business goals. No department within a company can just worry about themselves.  If sales doesn’t care what marketing does, and marketing doesn’t care what HR does and HR doesn’t care what operations does, then what kind of business decisions can really be made? Some think that they can just float along with an analytics tool that allows them to see their HR data and that’s it.  We believe in integrating HR data with sales, marketing, operations and other data so everyone can see the whole picture.

Cloud and business process outsourcing support business goals by reducing infrastructure costs while freeing up HR resources for strategic innovation.  Some people feel productive sitting in front of an excel spreadsheet and spending hours typing in calculations and entering data. But that is not productive.  Productive is making data-based business decisions that move the company forward.  When you have a tool, like Pando, that automatically pulls in the data from disparate systems, you can get real work done.

Mobile tools become even more prevalent. Anywhere, anytime access to information speeds up recruiting, boosts productivity,  and increases efficiencies that benefit not just employees but suppliers  and customers.  And that’s why we make sure all our solutions are available on any mobile platform.  There’s just something so cool about analyzing metrics and data on an iPad. And that’s why we love it!

HR needs to harness and analyze Big Data for business performance results. HR leaders need to do this and do it soon.  But they also have to be careful about rushing in and not fully understanding which metrics they should be using and what data questions they should be asking.  It’s more than just purchasing analytics tools and plugging in.  Companies need partners in ventures like this.  Otherwise, it can turn out to be a complete waste of time.

Global, standardized definitions for HR terminology, metrics, data models, and systems will emerge as technology unites HR professionals worldwide.  We strongly believe in having international standards for HR.  Our work on the ANSI HR Standards committee is devoted to establishing professional HR standards.  To further the adoption, comparison and benchmarking capabilities of the ANSI Cost Per Hire standard we have created a central data-set where companies can submit their demographics and CPH data and compare with other companies.  Check it out here.

When HR leaders can prove how their processes directly affect business outcomes, they’ll get the recognition they deserve and be able to contribute to the important data-based business decisions.

For the full list of the Top 10 HR Technology Trends of 2014, click here.