Oakleaf Partnership were delighted to welcome Aaron Alburey (CEO & Founder of LACE Partners) and Kevin Dickens (Global Workforce Insights Lead at Experian) to our offices last Wednesday evening to host the penultimate Oakleaf Partnership Academy of 2017, based on the future of technology within HR.
With over 40 attendees and a combination of both “Emerging Talent” and “Future Leaders” candidates at the event, the Academy community is made up of HR professionals at various points in their career who are looking to progress into senior positions within the HR world.
In what is arguably one of the most relevant topics within HR at present, the panel of speakers were able to shed light on how technology is changing within HR by focusing on two key areas – systems and data. They had some excellent advice and examples to share with the group, and were also able to provide a personal insight into how and why they believe they have been successful in their careers to date.
Key learning points during the evening included:
- Data – It is fascinating to see how the production and usage of date has advanced since 2014, from limited low-quality information that businesses couldn’t really trust to forward thinking high impact reporting & analysis.
Better quality management information is having a significant impact on the broader HR agenda. With businesses now seeking input from HR on wider initiatives, MI underpins most Ops committees i.e. Operations board meetings. Board level HR presentations now rely heavily on this type of information, highlighting that HR is slowly moving to an “insight led” function in businesses that have embraced HR technology and invested well in this space.
Whilst businesses strive to get to a form of “data utopia”, many still lack the basic foundations for success, and there are far too many tools and applications being developed that offer quick fix solutions to data problems, when in reality a hard investment and cleanout process is required.
- HRIS – The HRIS world is growing at pace and diversifying dramatically. Innovation in HR Technology for business is clearly at its highest point. Whilst the large, established Human Resources systems remain prevalent, the SME systems market is incredibly exciting with the emergence of niche applications that are taking human resources and business interaction to a different level.
Alternative HR related systems are on the up and are becoming increasingly sought after as organisations look to manage talent using the latest technology developments. These included Organisational Emotional Resilience to reduce employee conflict in the workplace, or applicant tracking systems looking a Gamified Assessment as a means of removing unconscious bias and testing candidates in a unique environment.
The future is looking both daunting and eye opening at the same time. The emergence of “HR Robots” is here and already being used in at least three high profile organisations. AI is already being trialled for certain HR policies and processes, and technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality are being developed to assist with workplace issues such as mediation and arbitration. The future of people related technology is exciting but the message imparted was that “resilience” was also key to this.
Feedback from the event has so far has been very positive and everyone walked away feeling positive about the direction that HR technology is moving in.
At Oakleaf, we’re passionate about supporting the development and emergence of exceptional talent in the industry and continuing to raise the bar in the profession. The Academy has four modules, each with a key developmental theme. Delegates will get the opportunity to network with talented peers as well as senior HR professionals – expanding their personal network of like-minded, ambitious HR professionals and sharing knowledge, learning and best practice across industry. Click here to find out more about future Academy events
We’re delighted to be able to announce that our next event will be led by Danny Harmer (Head of HR at Metro Bank) and will be held at the Metro Bank offices on the 28th November. Danny has presented at one of our events previously and she never fails to deliver – she will be concluding the 2017 OP Academy and bringing together all four modules, whilst focusing on the importance of commerciality in HR.
For more information, please contact lucybills@oakleafpartnership.com