Digital Publications

T H E W O R D 3 F O R C E S F O R C H A N G E he world we're working in is changing rapidly. At a time when the only certainty appears to be uncertainty, the challenge for HR to stay ahead of the pack from a talent acquisition and retention perspective is considerable. In our last e Word report, these concerns were already being noted, with respondents beginning to restructure their organisations to respond to ever-changing digital advancements. Concerns then were being raised about the impact this could have upon brands and their ability to attract and retain talent. This, our second report, carries on where our last global survey left off. It reveals that HR's priority for finding and keeping talent is once again the top challenge (for 73 per cent of respondents). But – in a change of direction – if the 2018 findings were all about preparing for digital, the most recent results reveal the extent to which HRDs have reservations about it at a practical level in real-life recruitment and talent development scenarios. It finds that while there is support overall for the benefit technology brings (particularly in optimising the recruitment process and managing remote workers – the top two benefits identified), there is real worry about the ethics of artificial intelligence in recruitment, as well as concerns about data security, that more than a third of people this research surveyed admitted their company still had no plans to implement a formal HR technology strategy, perhaps because of the concerns already raised. HRDs clearly need to have better information, advice, and confidence about the way they take their technology-led HR strategies forward. With the help of our research we have delved deeply into all the key areas respondents have raised, with the aim of doing just this. We hope you find this report useful, informative, and an asset in terms of inf luencing what your next HR technology steps are. Don't be held back by fear of going forward. While HR departments see the benefits of technology, they still need to plot a way ahead compliance, and even the level of digital maturity of the HR function itself. Even amongst firms that said they had an HR technology strategy (still only 37 per cent of firms surveyed), our data shows HR technology is only being used to limited levels. Some say there is lack of stakeholder buy-in for it. Others point to a lack of knowledge about how to best use it and uncertainty around the benefits it might provide. But even more worry it creates completely new problems they need to consider and which they are currently unprepared for. This includes threat at a cybersecurity level (67 per cent are deterred by this alone); bias in recruitment (from nearly a quarter of respondents); and lack of knowledge about how to safeguard their monitoring of remote employees. So is HR currently congregated in some form of "holding-pen" – waiting for solutions and advice about the best way forward? All the signs point to this being the case. A massive 97 per cent of total respondents agree that HR technology will help to transform their HR function, as well as enhance their understanding about how employees work – but they just need to venture out. In short, the mental buy-in is there, but what they're arguably being held back by is the capacity to move forward. It was telling F O R E W O R D T 63% of total respondents say their company does not have a formal HR technology strategy 57% Of those, say their company still has no plans to implement a formal HR technology strategy H O W F A R D ATA A N A LY T I C S W I L L E N H A N C E U N D E R S TA N D I N G O F H O W E M P L OY E E S W O R K Completely transform 11% No difference 3% Big difference 58% Little difference 28%

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