HRE Column: What HR Pros Want to Know About HR Tech
Welcome back from the long, holiday weekend! (At least for the US readers out there).
I'm just easing back into the groove after a BBQ-heavy weekend, so I will take the opportunity this morning, (this is also code for 'I really, really was offline all weekend and did not write anything new'), to share a bit from my latest Inside HR Tech column that runs each month at Human Resource Executive Online, (and remind blog readers that you can subscribe over at HRE to get the monthly Inside HR Tech column delivered fresh to your email inbox).
Here is an excerpt from the piece, "What HR Tech Pros Want to Know":
Recently, I had the opportunity to co-present, along with Trish McFarlane, VP of HR practice and Principal Analyst at Brandon Hall Group, a session titled "What Did That HR Tech Salesperson Say? Demystifying HR Technology Selection and Implementation" at the 2014 SHRM Annual Conference and Exposition in Orlando. Despite the session being scheduled on the last day (and last possible time slot) of the event, we had a sizable and highly engaged audience. I think the combination of SHRM's tendency not to offer much content in the way of HR technology and the increasing importance of the subject to HR professionals everywhere contributed to the great turnout for our "conference ender."
In fact, there were so many great questions asked both during and after the session (Trish and I were both amazed by how many attendees approached us at the end wanting to continue the conversation), I have to think other HR professionals and leaders not able to attend the session might also have some of the very same questions.
So with that in mind, I'd like to share at least a few of the more common and pressing questions we were asked.
What are the best sources of information about HR technology solutions to help me when I'm conducting market and vendor research?
Trish shared some great information from her research about which sources of information HR professionals rely upon when researching HR-technology solutions. The most common sources used by HR professionals are external consultants (55 percent), talking with other HR colleagues (45 percent), and conducting online Internet searches (40 percent). While these are all valid and potentially valuable sources of information, HR pros should also be sure to take advantage of a plethora of additional -- and often freely available -- sources of HR technology information that exist in LinkedIn groups, (such as the HR Technology Conference group), in independent-analyst company reports and vendor profiles, as well as on social media. You'd be surprised how many responses you will get if you post a question about a particular HR-tech solution in a large and active LinkedIn group.
Of course, events such as the HR Technology® Conference offer a great opportunity to compare and contrast many vendors in a short time period...
You can catch the rest of the piece over at HRE Online see what other HR Tech questions the HR pros were asking and sign up for the monthly 'Inside HR Tech' column there as well.
Have a great week!