Employers see the need to invest more in recruiting technology this year, but the different worldviews of HR, HR operations and IT is complicating decisions on how that money will be spent.
A survey by iCIMS found that 70 percent of HR operations and technology leaders plan to spend more on recruiting technology, spurred by nearly unanimous agreement (of 96 percent of respondents) that hiring is a critical component of business success.
Employers need to invest more in recruiting technology this year, but the different worldviews of HR, HR operations and IT complicates decisions on how money will be spent. #HR #HRTech Click To TweetHowever, identifying the right solutions is proving to be increasingly problematic. The survey said 79 percent of employers are having trouble keeping up with the increasing number of new recruiting solutions appearing on the market.
And despite efforts to build closer working relationships between the two functions, HR technology remains the lowest item on IT’s priority list. CIOs are more concerned with security, R&D, accounting and finance, and marketing and sales.
Recruiting Tech Priorities
Even within HR, recruiting stands on a low rung of the ladder. In the grand scheme of things, it ranks seventh on HR’s priority list, cited by 37 percent of respondents as being among the top three concerns. Training and development led the list with 49 percent, followed by payroll, benefits administration, talent management, time management and core HR.
This may be one reason cost is a more forceful driver of purchase decisions than functionality.
The report said both IT and HR operations leaders are most concerned with implementing solutions on-time and on-budget. IT and HR ops, iCIMS points out, aren’t responsible for achieving business outcomes—such as meeting hiring goals. That burden falls on the shoulders of talent acquisition and HR leaders. So, there’s a disconnect in play.
Another disconnect: Many in HR believe IT prefers deploying a single HCM technology solution to manage all workforce-related efforts. In reality, 60 percent of IT executives would rather implement a best-of-breed recruiting solution, regardless of whether it’s included in a wider suite.
If all of this seems messy, it indicates that HR leaders haven’t been successful in communicating their department’s value to other business leaders. Gartner reported that CEOs and other senior executives see CHROs as being the least sophisticated leaders when it comes to technology. That comes even as HR embraces analytics, AI and other advanced technology and claims to think more strategically.
In terms of recruiting technology, iCIMS sums it up this way: “[Talent acquisition] leaders in particular need to do a significantly better job of making their business case for increased support from IT and HR Ops.”
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