The scope of learning management software has changed considerably over recent years as a response to changes in learning strategy (an evolution from compliance and certification goals to increased talent management objectives), organizational structure (from training and learning as siloed departments), and unification among learning management systems and HCM applications.
In fact, learning management is becoming a foundation for HR and talent management software, integrating learning objectives with compensation management, performance management and succession management objectives.
In a conversation with Saba Software’s Emily He and Chris Tratar, done at the recent HR Tech Conference in Chicago, HCM.tv examines the three most influential learning management technology trends of cloud, mobile and social and how they are driving innovation in learning management software, such as combining formal and informal learning for increased retention, and achieving results such as improved user adoption, employee engagement and collaboration.
Also on tap: Learning management software evolution from first generation to second generation learning systems, and how the unification of virtual learning, virtual classrooms, social, mobile and other disruptive technologies are improving business results.
With human capital accounting for nearly 70% of an organization’s cost, optimizing the investment demands constant vigilance. While most organizations do engage in planning around talent development, organizational structure and future workforce needs, the planning is often performed on an ad hoc or as-needed basis—and with limited participation from line-of-business leaders.
The Human Capital Institute recently examined the effects of planning on bottom line results. The findings? Organizations that build a management discipline around both organizational planning and talent planning enjoy higher employee engagement, profitability and strategy alignment. Planning for either without the other produces suboptimal results.
HCI’s findings confirm that organizational planning, or creating and adjusting the organizational structure to meet business goals, enables a new level of organizational agility when done with a methodical process on a regular basis.
With an organizational planning discipline, a firm is better prepared to adapt quickly to changes in the business environment and is better equipped for long-term or strategic workforce planning. This flexibility can provide an outstanding competitive edge, especially when an organization is confronted with reorganizations, restructurings or mergers and acquisitions.
But how do you organize, engage, motivate and develop your people to create a high performance workplace? With the recent Saba acquisition of HumanConcepts, two talent and planning leaders have come together to deliver an unparalleled suite of technology and services to do just that.
To create a high performance workforce, you must have:
Visibility into talent, risks and gaps.
Agility to adapt to changing market conditions and
manage global complexity.
Engagement to ensure peak retention and performance.
Business execution that engages, develops and inspires your employees every day.
The ability to understand the organization, react quickly to changing business trends and take care of your people is what differentiates strong, successful organizations from their competitors. We believe our combined offering will provide clients with best-in-breed workforce planning, talent management and transition management solutions.
In short, establishing people-centric processes help create a high performance workforce.
Katy Colletto, Director, Marketing Programs, HumanConcepts. Katy has been driving product, strategy and thought leadership initiatives with HumanConcepts for the past five years. She engages with customers, partners and industry analysts to track and communicate best practices and trends that help the HR organization achieve success.
Chris Tratar, Senior Director, Product Marketing, Talent Management, Saba Software. Chris has been in the enterprise software industry for more than 15 years, bringing to market several industry leading solutions with Taleo, Vista Technology Group and JD Edwards. He studies the trends in talent management processes and technologies that help organizations build high performance workplaces that drive business results.
Increasingly, today’s employees “workshift.” That means they work from anywhere, anytime. Furthermore, they and their supervisors now demand more control over managing and developing their careers.
These human capital management trends make the IHRIM 2012 HRMS Strategies Conference and Technology Expo, April 30-May 3, Chicago, with more than 58 educational conference and pre-conference sessions, such a marquee event for HR systems learning.
Citrix Senior Director of Global HRIS and Metrics Rich Berger agrees. “There’s no better place to meet leading HRIS providers than IHRIM,” he says. During the conference, Berger will present a compelling case study, “Manage Talent from Anywhere—Mobile and Cloud Come Together for Citrix.” In it, he will detail how Citrix implemented a robust talent management solution, helping a mobile workforce plan and track talent needs 24x7x365 by leveraging mobile devices (such as iPads) and remote access to corporate talent information, recruiting activities and other mobile apps—all from the cloud.
Expect Berger, a long-time user of HumanConcepts workforce visualization solutions, to drop by our booth (#810) during IHRIM. Learn from a master how combining application-driven software with established business processes and a cloud computing platform can transform a workforce while simultaneously delighting employees and managers.
Wonderful news: After 12 years as an independent company, HumanConcepts has been acquired by Saba, based in Redwood Shores, California.
We’re both leaders in helping companies engage, develop and inspire people to transform the way they work and to drive exceptional business results. Combining our strategic organizational planning, talent management, learning, transition management and collaboration expertise will create formidable human capital management synergy.
Our combined organizations will boast more than 2,100 customers. Best of all, joining the Saba family will provide access to their extensive global resources, enabling us to deliver innovative enterprise services to market faster.
Meanwhile, our commitment to our customers and the greater HumanConcepts Community remains clear, unwavering and Priority One. You can expect:
No interruption to current HumanConcepts service, support and development efforts.
Enhanced solutions that drive business agility.
Access to greater industry and technology expertise.
Continued growth of scalable, SaaS-based solution platforms.
Get to know Saba!
They deliver people-centric, cloud-based learning management, talent management, and social enterprise solutions. Their flagship Unified Talent Management Suite includes comprehensive dynamic people profiling, intuitive visual analytics, state-of-the-art talent reviews and calibration, advanced talent pooling and slating, and unification with their industry-leading Enterprise Learning Suite.
Over the coming weeks, we will communicate and detail additional benefits of this acquisition, a great new chapter in the HumanConcepts story. For now, read the official news release here for more reasons why this will transform our industry.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Luis Rivera, President
HumanConcepts, a Saba Company
[Note: This post by HumanConcepts Director of Customer Success Rana Hobbs originally appeared on Cornerstone OnDemand's Talent Management Blog.]
How long does it take your organization to ramp up a new department? Or disperse one for that matter? Is the lag between recognizing a business opportunity and aligning the organization to address it impacting your organization’s success?
Agility means an organization can adjust to changing conditions—economic, political and even social—while maintaining business continuity, taking advantage of opportunities and gracefully conducting initiatives without disruption. To achieve true agility, organizations must have two things: accurate information and process.
Information is only valuable if it’s correct and if it’s strategically important to the organization. Collecting and acting on data related to critical risk areas for your organization is much more effective than gathering data on all potential risks, then attempting to make sense of that information. Also important is the ability to assimilate all data sources—ERP, talent, spreadsheets and internal systems—in one place in order to form complete and accurate insights. A holistic view of the organization allows organizations to spend more time acting on their data via analysis and planning instead of spending time searching for and validating it.
The second part of agility—process—enables organizations to function like a well-oiled machine. With accurate information in hand, key stakeholders are able to plan for the future—whether it may bring the closing of a department, an opening of a new call center, or shortages in critical talent. Having a process in place to plan how your organization would best adapt in light of these events saves time and money, and enables quick reaction to change.
A vital part of this process is organizational planning, a mechanism used to create and maintain an ideal organization. Organizational planning is the process of defining the org structure necessary to execute on business strategy. It might include scenario-planning, viewing budget requirements and adjustments, deciding what roles need to be filled, created or terminated, as well as looking to the future and planning for what roles will be needed a few years down the road, what sector of the business will grow the fastest or what external factors will affect your business today and in the future.
Having a process and being able to plan for organizational change may seem odd at first. How can you plan for changes that are as yet unknown? When you look at the key decisions involved in organizational change—hiring, firing, promoting, moving, growing, etc.— the major obstacle to agility is the mere process of collecting, analyzing, reviewing, approving and distributing a set of changes within an organization’s data set. Once all information is in accessible and process is defined, planning can become a routine management discipline.
In fact, in a recent research study conducted by the Human Capital Institute, strategic planning within organizations has been directly linked to:
Improved employee engagement
Revising business strategy less often
Improved profitability
Ability to take on more business
These results show that strategic planning and agility go hand-in-hand, together a best practice for any organization that wants to stay ahead of the curve.
Note: To learn more about the HCI Research study as well as organizational planning and agility, catch up with HumanConcepts at the Cornerstone OnDemand Talent Leadership Forum roadshow, hitting the road in March for a four-city tour. View the calendar and registration details here.
Our combined organizations will boast more than 2,100 customers. Best of all, joining the Saba family will provide access to their extensive global resources, enabling us to deliver innovative enterprise services to market faster.
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