Ray Wang
Principal Analyst and Founder
Constellation Research Inc.
What’s the single most dramatic shift you see happening in the HR tech space today?
Automation through artificial intelligence and machine learning will transform HR tech in ways beyond our imagination. The goal of augmenting humanity will result in more personalized work experiences and a democratized access of decisions available for every individual. Every individual will have their next best actions presented. Every choice will create digital feedback loops that will learn the context and attribution of each action to suggest better actions in the future. This will lead to more precise automation and provide every organization with better insights to make smarter decisions.
In acquiring and implementing new technologies, what’s the one or two most common mistakes HR organizations make?
Most organizations forget the form follows function. Enamoration with one vendor based on brand may often result in a five- to seven-year escalating vendor-lock-in cloud contract instead of investing in the right offering. The other big challenge is when an organization decides that a technology is a commodity and forgets that software works for people and not the other way around.
How can HR leaders best make the business case for HR technology investment?
Regulatory compliance and operational efficiency usually win the CFO over but the gains in employee experience and ability to transform work experiences are what captures the hearts and minds of the organization. Every successful HR leader knows how to find he balance between logic and emotion.
