Roundup: More Companies Hire D&I Leaders, But Results Are Elusive

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More U.S. companies are hiring chief diversity officers, with members of the S&P 500 bringing on as many as a dozen a month, according to a report by Russell Reynolds Associates. Meanwhile, at least 60 public companies in a broader group have hired their first diversity leaders. “What’s different this time is that the whole world is focused on it,” Tina Shah Paikeday, leader of Russell Reynolds’ diversity and inclusion practice, told Bloomberg. Still, only about 53% of the S&P 500 have CDOs, Bloomberg said. That’s up from 47% in 2018. And chief diversity officers seem to move around frequently, staying with their company for an average of 3.2 years, compared to 5.5. for a CEO. While they were there, they were given relatively paltry budgets—of about $100,000, said Paikeday. That’s changing, however, as more companies give their CDOs a staff and budgets closer to $500,000. “Historically, people talked about the quick wins,” Paikeday said. “When they don’t see the quick wins right away, all of a sudden the chief diversity officer is out the door. Now people are looking for longer-term change.”

This week in #HRTech: More companies hire D&I executives. @ZipRecruiter offers candidates hireability feedback. @SAP launches assignment manager for contractors. And more. #HR Click To Tweet

ZipRecruiter now offers candidates feedback about how strong a match they may be for a job. The guidance is generated using AI algorithms run against data from employer and job seeker interactions in the ZipRecruiter marketplace, the company said. For each job, ZipRecruiter shows job seekers a match score to provide an idea of how likely they are to be received favorably by a hiring manager. The system also recommends ways job seekers can improve their odds of success, such as by updating profiles or resumes with more relevant qualifications.

SAP launched SAP Fieldglass Assignment Management, which helps manage contractors performing ad hoc work under existing supplier agreements. The module simplifies assigning and managing work projects across multiple workers and variable pay rates, SAP said.

DailyPay plans to launch a new module later this year that will facilitate the awarding of bonuses and similar payments to help incentivize employees. REWARD by DailyPay allows managers to make on-the-spot payments for everything from bonuses to special incentives for picking up additional shifts

eLearning Brothers acquired the Game Agency to strengthen its game-based learning offerings. CEO Andrew Scivally said the growth of remote work “demands learning solutions that engage employees and build teams differently than ever before.” Game-based learning is seeing annual growth of almost 30%, the company said, with U.S. sales expected to reach $7.5 Billion by 2025. The companies have collaborated since 2017, jointly serving clients such as Chick-Fil-A, IHS Towers and PayPal.

EdCast updated its talent experience platform on Salesforce AppExchange to provide new ways to upskill, train and learn without leaving Salesforce. New features include easy access to skill-building within Salesforce, enhanced corporate learning leaderboards, badges and sharing, and an integrated search component.

London-based learning company EduMe opened an office in Palo Alto, Calif., “to accelerate their growth.” Last summer, the company completed a $5 million Series A funding round. In addition to North American growth, the company said it plans a range of new features.

Last Week’s Top Stories

‘Asynchronous Communications’ Tools Quietly Move to Forefront

We haven’t seen any research reports yet on the “Outlook for Asynchronous Communications Tools in the HR Function,” but interest from employers and vendors in the idea seems to have steadily increased over the last year. Read more.

HR Outsourcing Market on Rebound as Enterprises ‘Future Proof’ Operations

According to consulting firm the Everest Group, enterprise-level organizations need to ensure their HR functions are focused on speed, agility, resiliency and digital capabilities if they’re to keep up with changes in the workforce and the work environment. Read more.

PayScale, Payfactors Merge to Form Compensation Data Force

Compensation data companies PayScale and Payfactors have decided to stop competing and join forces. Their merger will form a company of 600 employees and some 10,000 customers, including half of the Fortune 500. Read more.

Podcast: UKG Council Drills into Science of Diversity

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