HR Technology – Invest in Your Future

A survey from the employee management platform Humaans has found that investment in the HR technology stack will become increasingly business critical this year to help the function navigate the current economic climate.

At the same time a survey from specialist HR recruitment consultancy Macmillan Davies has found three quarters (78%) of senior HR specialists view artificial Intelligence (AI) and people metrics as central to a more data-driven future for the HR profession. At the same time, however, there are significant gaps in digital adoption, technology, people analytics and data analysis skills. Both surveys suggest that HR is entering a particularly critical time as far as technology understanding and adoption is concerned.

“Today, HR leaders play a meaningful, strategic role in helping organisations to navigate the downturn, and mitigate the risks and impact it may have on their people.” says Giovanni Luperti, CEO and Co-Founder of Humaans. However, the Humaans survey also found the HR function to be understaffed for this purpose and that much of the tools being used by HR aren’t fit for purpose. “At the end of the day, the success of any company hinges on the success of its people, and a robust HR tech stack is a powerful component to enable that success,” comments Luperti.

Investment push for 2023

According to Humaans’ figures, 76% of HR respondents would like to invest in HR tech in this year. As HR professionals continue to navigate the rapidly evolving world of work, with less budget and smaller teams the need for effective HR technology is greater. More than half (55%) of HR managers stated that they could save more time on HR tasks with the right tools and a robust HR tech stack is seen as a key element in driving business growth.

Macmillan Davies’ HR Insights Report, touches on the use of HR data and the possible future use of AI. Darren Hayman, Managing Director of Macmillan Davies, explains good technology could be key to the function continuing to extend its influence across businesses: “In recent years, the HR function has strengthened and reinforced its importance,” he says. “To be able to continue to make a strategic contribution to the business alongside offering valuable insights, it is clear it’s essential for HR skills and actions to focus on embracing technological developments, with workforce data and analytics especially critical.”

Hayman states their research shows that AI and people metrics are highly important to the future of HR but work needs to be done to support HR professionals develop and improve their technology skills, so that businesses can take full advantage of the understandings possible from people analytics and data analysis. “These can help reduce human bias, improve efficiency, increase predictive data decision-making, drive results, as well as being a tactical and strategic asset to allow more ‘people time’ for HR,” says Hayman.

Tech to secure HR’s value

There is no doubt that HR has already made some positive shifts in the way technology is being used to support and manage the people in their organisations – a benefit realised in part through the impact of the pandemic and growth of hybrid working. However, the function now needs to adapt again to ensure what emerges as ‘business as usual’ still delivers benefits for the organisation and but it now feels as if the function is at another moment of growth and development.

This month The HR World will be looing at HR technology, not least through our dedicated webinar on 18^th April. The discussion will centre on driving value from HR technology and features input from Toni Turunen, Manager, Customer Onboarding at Sympa and Amanda Chinnery, Head of Digital HR, Fujitsu Europe.