Why Your Executive Team Should Care About Contingent Workforce Technology
The challenge facing any department seeking to engage automation software solutions to drive process improvements and efficiency is the same regardless of the function(s) to be automated. The requesting department intrinsically understands the value of the software/solution, but stakeholders elsewhere in the organization (whose signatures are likely required to implement any new solution) are not often as enthusiastic. The proposed solution doesn’t necessarily have any impact on their core duties. Knowing how to articulate the value proposition of contingent workforce management software to the executive team is key to getting their buy-in. Here’s what you need to know.
Consider this: a finance or IT exec doesn’t care if the VMS tool HR wants will improve sourcing cycle time for filling job openings. The CFO sees only the cost of the solution. The CEO questions the relevance of any activity that does not have either a top line or bottom line impact. Yet, there is a persuasive business case to be made to each of these non-HR stakeholders that will transform them from obstacles to champions.
There is a Trend for a Reason
Not only are more companies investing in technology solutions in general, but HR in particular is increasingly adopting technology. While many companies already have a VMS tool implemented, HR departments are looking toward Big Data mining solutions to slice and dice the data collected by VMS tools in search of improvements for spend management and worker productivity. The talent tracking and other performance metrics captured in the VMS are the fuel that powers serious analytics programs.
A recent study produced by Bersin (Deloitte) revealed 67% of companies were seeking to purchase new talent management software solutions in the near term. This underscores the value potentially perceived by the community in these technologies. Business2Community.com recently published the importance of these technologies perfectly saying,
“Those organizations that invest in analytics tools, business intelligence modules, and analytical teams outperform their peers. What today’s HR technology brings to the table is a heightened ability to predict and forecast: how many workers will be needed in the coming months, what skills will be required, what job categories will be needed, how much should those positions be paid, how quickly can they be onboarded and screened, which suppliers perform the best in specific programs, and so forth.”
The CEO should be persuaded not necessarily by the fact that his competitors are using these tools, but that they are capturing significant competitive and operational advantage by leveraging Big Data analytics tools.
The CFO should be persuaded not simply by the falling cost of entry to analytics solutions. He or she should also be exposed to the quick ROI these technologies deliver by improving talent tracking and performance. Beyond the tactical savings to be gained, there is significant cost avoidance associated with attrition and retraining to say nothing of the benefits gained by hiring the best candidates who operate with the highest levels of productivity. Through the prism of total cost of ownership, the next generation of HR technologies are a no-brainer for the bean counters.
In sum, it is a fact that every industry is being revolutionized by the application of analytics technologies across nearly every functional aspect of business. With labor at the center of every successful concern, it is only logical that investment in this regard is money well-spent.
