HR Technology is a hotly discussed topic globally. Whether it is the United States or India, or any other significant human resource market, HR Technology is making its presence felt in the industry everywhere. Here are some of the latest trends in HR technology.
The year 2014 is going to be exciting for HR and talent professionals. Data will become the new currency and HR Tech will drive some of the biggest changes in the industry. The 2013 HR Technology conference witnessed 8,000 attendees and preparations are on the for the next HR Tech conference, going to take place in Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas from October 7 to 10. Going by the sheer number of participants in the last one, it is needless to say that the entire human resource industry is being swayed by the changes brought upon by HR Tech. Some of the trends to watch out for are:
Social networks impacting hiring
Paper resumes have become a thing of the past. Recruiters also do not expect the employees to have a traditional word document as their resume as they prefer looking at the social profiles of the candidates to know what about their professional as well as personal achievements. There is LinkedIn, the influential professional social network where employees put their profiles and include all the details such as previously completed projects, assignments and jobs.
Features such as recommendations and endorsements lend credibility to the candidate’s claims. LinkedIn conducted its 3rd Annual Global Recruiting Trends in 19 countries, where 3,000 surveyed talent acquisition leaders highlighted that social professional networks are influencing the quality of hire.
Video interviewing: The latest fad
Technology has seeped its way in every industry and business function and HR couldn’t have left behind. The sheer number of data-mining, talent search and recruiting technologies out there makes it a daunting task for HR managers to choose from. However, video interviewing has emerged as one of the most widely used technology these days. A research conducted in late 2012 which involved more than 500 companies with 20 or more staff, found that 63 percent of respondents said they were conducting interviews by video, a 14 percent increase from the previous year. The percentage of companies conducting interview is going to increase only in future. If you are one of those companies which are still not on the bandwagon for video interviews then you are behind the theoretical curve of progressiveness in HR practice.
Big data is important big time
As we have seen in all significant technological developments, big data and analytics appears to be the most hotly debated topics of HR domain. KPMG has argued in 2013 that people are real numbers and defined the different terms such as HR analytics, talent analytics, big data and strategic workforce analytics as “the synthesis of qualitative and quantitative data and information to bring predictive insight and decision making support to the management of people in organization.”
Big data is the vast amount of information and data and using this information to work in for them should be the focus of the HR. Most HR professionals are not number oriented and this is where big data will help them. Real time analytics enables a continuous assessment of performance and employees can be made aware of their shortcomings in real time so that they can start improving upon them.
Mobile recruiting is here to stay
The world has gone mobile with smartphone revolution becoming a cliché. There are so many more things that a person can do with today’s mobile devices other than making calls and writing text messages. Applying to jobs, reaching out to employers and catching up with the latest employment trends is just one of the few things that people use mobile phones for, and the people who use it for the same represent a new market for recruiters. In 2013, there was increasing use of mobile technology by the HR world, and that’s why that year was also known as “ the year of mobile platform”. The trend has continued in the present as organizations are focusing on developing career websites which are mobile optimized and appeal to the mobile segment of employees.
Gamification is the surprising element
We have been hearing and reading about the use of gamificaton in HR and talent management from at least a couple of years. The Gamification in HR 2014 Summit that will be held 14-16 May 2014, Paris, France will further discuss the future of this innovative technological tool. Gamification, as the name suggest, can bring out people’s natural desires to compete with each other, win and gain recognition which can help the HR professional in better judgment of a personality. Through gamification, the companies are simulating working environment and create selection techniques that chooses the best talent.
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