BOSTON, MA — The International Association for Human Resource Information Management (IHRIM), the world’s leading clearinghouse for the HRIM (Human Resource Information Management) industry, today revealed key insights on the merger & acquisitions activity in the HR technology vendor market, mined from a recent webinar “Natural Order or Chaos in the HR Technology Vendor Market: Should HR Software Clients be Concerned?'” The focus of this webinar was on industry movement in mergers & acquisitions, reasons behind these ventures, various perspectives on these undertakings and potential implications for the market and current customers.
Moderated by Nov Omana, Chairman of the Board for IHRIM, the session featured analysis from Steve Goldberg, Principal Analyst of People Systems for Bersin & Associates; Glenn Davidson, Managing Director of Shared Services & Outsourcing Advisory for KPMG, LLP; and Giovanni Rodriguez, Chief Marketing Officer for BroadVision.
“Answers to critical HR technology considerations are contained in the insights of these industry leaders,” said Mr. Omana. “Their commentary and evaluation are essential in developing best practices that work across multiple HR vendor markets and channels.”
“There are three points that are pretty indicative on how much the market is in a fluid state today,” said Mr. Golderberg. “First, there were 12-15 significant M&A transactions in the last year involving talent management systems providers; second, more than half of the 35-40 talent management solutions providers that we cover have materially enhanced their service offerings in the last year; and lastly, there is clear dominance and momentum in the market now from SaaS offerings, which, consequently, makes it easier to switch vendors. In fact, roughly one third of responded to our customer SaaS survey saying that they are likely to switch vendors on one or more of their talent modules in the next year.”
When asked if this is a pattern we will continue to see, Mr. Davidson commented, “I believe this trend is growing for several reasons. Clients are increasingly looking for a more holistic solution, whether it be in consulting services or technology. From a company standpoint, they may be looking to round out their technology platforms and services, as well as get to a critical mass. Ultimately, because of the economic climate, companies are striving to get to a better position in the market for when the industry bounces back.”
Another topic that was explored in the webinar was what should be considered if you are a client of an acquired vendor. “We’ve been hearing from CIOs that a big priority today is to have frictionless IT,” said Mr. Rodriguez. “What this means is to have a single-user experience that minimizes the friction that we experience when we move from one environment to another. Because of this, HR can truly lead the charge in corporate culture change.”
Lastly, the industry experts were asked to provide expertise on what should be considered as prospects perform due diligence and negotiate contracts when evaluating new HR technology platforms. “Among other things, you have to ask how well does this organization resolve issues,” said Mr. Davidson. Problems always come up — you have to see what kind of record they have in resolving these challenges with their clients.”
“Most people will say that they have happy customers,” added Mr. Goldberg. “Truth is, all vendors have `happy’ and `unhappy’ customers. It’s a pretty fickle market, so it’s important to do your due diligence.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” chimed in Mr. Rodriguez. “Because there is a very big transformation going on in IT departments, it’s really important to pay attention to not just `happy’ customers, but also `influential’ customers.”
For individuals wishing to view the webinar in full and gather more details from the panel members, visit http://bit.ly/IHRIM_April19Webinar.
About the International Association for Human Resource Information Management (IHRIM)
IHRIM is the world’s leading clearinghouse for the HRIM (Human Resource Information Management) industry. Since 1980, IHRIM has been the only membership association for HR technology professionals, advancing the industry by providing unparalleled education and professional development opportunities through its annual conference, educational courses and webinars. IHRIM is a community of experts — a dynamic group of practitioners, vendors, consultants, students, and faculty that continues to grow, not just in numbers, but in its scope of knowledge and information.
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