Panel with huge crowd at HR Technology Conference in Chicago. Knowledge Infusion broadcasting live from HR Technology Conference.

Panel results from audience:

1. What are your buying patterns in next year?

25% not sure of plans (creating a plan)

30% buy from existing vendor (ERP,HRMS)

34% buy best of breed and integrate to ERP, HRMS

11% no plans to buy

2. Highest priority of audience in next year to buy or implement

29% Portal and Self Service

29% Recruiting

22% Performance Management

7% Succession Planning

7% Compensation

5% Learning

3. Do you plan to outsource all or part of your HR function (great comment from Bill Kutik...if you know you are about to be oursourced)

2% all of HR

42% some of HR

56% nothing new

4. How many plan to replace their current recruiting system in the next year?

49% Yes

51% No

AMAZING - continues to show dissatisfaction with talent management space

_____

Oracle Fusion, Lawson Ordway, SAP Business by Design, Workday will change the game

Jim Holincheck from Gartner

responds : great possibility that htis is true

a) Service Oriented Architecture

b) Software as a Service also a huge piece of picture (Lawson, SAP, Workday - all adopting Saas) - may be even the more game changing piece of the puzzle

Jason Corsello from Knowledge Infusion

not yet

Fusion - still wondering what this is going to look like

Web 2.0 - emerging technology changes will be huge (Oracle, SAP still have huge opportunity)

Oracle SAP have three things going for them

3 things:

Money, Resources Time

Lisa Rowen from IDC

depends how you change the game

More important to look at systemic part of HR

if these systems can help standardize and transform - yes

if these new systems cant - game isnt changing

Naomi Bloom

5 tests:

1) Did they get object model right? - will cut tie to exising model - means new implementations everybody..

2) Web Services - must use going forward

3) Right Architectural Behaviors - Effective Dates, Self Service

4) Strategic HR have to be there from the ground - too important and hard to add later

5) Must get economics right (TCO) - real cost is cost of service delivery - if products make a sense

Jim adds

More and more clients are spending money on maintenance, support, upgrades - so much money being spent, cant spend on user experience - hearing alot of angst about being on upgrade treadmill - wanting to shift burden to someone else

Jason adds

Enterprises have alot of control; need to take more control on getting vendors to change that 22% maintenance is alot; time

Question : What is single most innovative in the past year

Jim Holincheck

largest vote for Sonar6 - Performance and Succession Planning - radically rethought GUI; second vote would be for McKenna - Motivator product - Sales Incentive Management

Lisa Rowen

nothing really all that new; just realizing that we can dust off some things and put them to use. Had AHA moment - innovation can come in many forms; new tools can still bring innovation without new technologies

Jason Corsello

Outlook PlugIn, not new but need more - Innovation is where we can create engaging interactions within the main users application of choice. Everyone has new UI, what gets lost is why not go to where the users hangout. Go where the users are instead of developing another UI. Focus too much on innovation in technology, needs to happen and process and deployment level; not just the UI level - how do you drive adoption.

____

Naomi - Is a comprehensive, integrated TM suite the only way to become strategic

Technology is not strategic, what organizations need is to think about business strategy and design process/plan to understand business issues. Integration without alot of planning could be nightmare. Software is key, but by no means the whole story

Jason - Is a comprehensive, integrated TM suite the only way to become strategic

Not even close to being there. This is year 3 of a 7 year cycle (or longer).

Lisa - No silver bullet in technology; all about understanding the needs of HR

Tools can help move it along, no one vendor that has it all

Jim - One of concerns, piecemeal adoption is real tough. Need a talent system of record both from personal and job level

Naomi - think about multiple concurrent jobs, many TM platforms dont handle that

________________

Will ERP's catch the suite vendors? Will suite vendors become unnecessary or obsolete?

Jason

Do Oracle and SAP stand a chance, yes - will happen in next year or 3, probably not. They have best opportunity, question is can they grasp that.

Are people buying a suite - answer is definitely yes. People buying 2 up 130% year over year, people buying 3 up 100% year over year

Naomi

One of the reasons for churn in recruiting is churn. 200 talent management suite vendors on the floor. Way too many. Not sustainable. If you are going to be buying multiple modules, capabilities - please take hard look at vendor viability

Lisa