7 Tech Forces Changing HR

Here’s why technology has changed how talent management works.

By Chris Riback

Within many companies, Human Resources may not have been the first corporate division to jump into the IT pool, but it’s deep in the water now. Why the change? What happened to bring HR into the Tech fold?

Computer Weekly provides a terrific write-up to describe how technology is now changing the way talent management works. It outlines the seven forces that are “introducing significant changes to the way companies manage their talent:

• Social
• Mobile
• Analytics
• Cloud-based technologies
• Shift in how tech is used
• Simpler design
• Integration

The piece explains that “their combined, cumulative effect has had a profound impact on the contribution talent management can make to business performance.”

Here’s why:

• Social: “Social technology is allowing employees and managers to connect and share information in real time. This is making HR more of a conversation and less of a process, helping employees get better, tailored support, and feel more important to their company.”
• Mobile: “Mobile technologies are enabling HR processes and conversations to take place in real time, wherever they are needed.”
• Analytics: “There is probably more data in HR than in any other area of business, particularly when the social conversations between employees are factored in. Business leaders want to interpret this data to understand the impacts their investments in talent management are providing.”
• Cloud: “Most companies have stopped locating employee data outside the organization so talent management is being provided in the cloud. This is providing easier implementation and upgrading, reducing costs and helping organizations keep up with changes in the business and the technology arena.
• Shift in how tech is used: Or what the piece calls the “shift in the balance of HR technology from functionality to paying much more attention to usability. Businesses are realizing that it makes no sense to have the latest great technology if nobody uses it.”
• Simpler design: “Supported by the move to social and mobile, systems are being redesigned to make them simpler and more intuitive. This change is making talent management processes more effective and is helping HR become more professional and responsive.”
• Integration: “Employers are increasingly interested in supporting usability by having a more consistent feel across their talent management applications.”

Regardless of where an HR group may be in the technology pool, there is little doubt they better know how to swim.

This article was first published on TheWeek.com’s Business Made Simple section. “Biz Simple” is sponsored by Xerox.