HR Software Round-up Interviews HRL’s Kristie Evans

Last week, Kristie Evans, CEO of HR Logistics, was asked to share her perspective on the latest acquisitions in the HR tech space – specifically around the integration of social media.

Kyle Lagunas, HR Market Analyst of Software Advice writes:

“In the last two weeks, VC funds have been flowing into the human resources software market, with large investments in SmartRecruiters and iCIMS. This activity comes on the coattails of two significant acquisitions in this sector at the end of 2011: SAP’s whopping $3.4 billion purchase of HR and talent management software bigwig, SuccessFactors (which acquired learning management software provider Plateau last spring), and Salesforce’s acquisition of Rypple, a startup acclaimed for bringing a social component to performance management. Things are clearly heating up in this sector, and investors have taken note.

This activity is pumping new energy into the continued expansion of HR solutions into the Cloud, as well as further integration of social media functionality into HR applications. Accordingly, I expect 2012 will see more large software companies making strategic acquisitions as they fight for the biggest piece of the pie. To that end, this article takes an in-depth look at what SAP and Salesforce stand to gain from their HR acquisitions, how it will impact this dynamic software market, and where other contenders in this space might make moves of their own.”  >>Read full article here>>

So what’s the big deal? As Kristie says in the article, “It’s not a far cry to take customer relationship management principles and apply them to an employment relationship management program.” In fact, there are many elements that are tracked in a CRM program that are tracked or should be in an HRM system.  For example, communications, issue resolution, progress, interactions – and the more critical HR elements – the measurement of all these pieces.

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Let’s consider the areas that can be visibly tracked using a combined HRM / CRM system:

First, consider recruitment – How did the applicant find the job listing (uncover your most valuable recruiting avenue)?  What kinds of communications did a recruiter or company rep have with the applicant?  How frequently did they “touch”?  Is it necessary to “touch” a prospective applicant as often as it is to “touch” a prospective customer?  Can common denominators be identified in successful hires that made them an ideal hire – just like an “ideal customer”?  How is the employee’s professional development aligned to meet their goals and the goals of the company – just like a vendor “positions” their product or services to meet the needs of a customer?

Second, retention – How long does a person stay “active” in the system?  How many times are they recommended or liked and moved to a new position?  How influential are they in the organization though shares or contact requests?  Does it track the progress and success in training development through post-training surveys and application of skills?  What kind of company activities gets the most involvement or interest?  Are employees treated like internal customers or rather an employee number?

Finally, risk mitigation – Looking at key areas (position, recruiting avenue, length of stay) how can you mitigate risks associated with an employee leaving?  Risks that are similar to a customer relationships such as termination, poor performance, or high maintenance?  What kind of activities increase engagement and decrease cost and risk to the company?

You get the point.  Collaboration between social media, CRM and HR is a value-creating opportunity for HR professionals.

Thanks again to Kyle for featuring HR Logistics in your article and for this opportunity to share our perspective.

Let’s connect! Send Kristie a message