A roundup of important HR and HR tech news in the second half of March 2021.
Calling the second half of March the launch pad for HR tech will not be any exaggeration as several companies revealed their offerings to make daily tasks easier. Not only this, the last 15 days witnessed a huge influx of investment and well thought out acquisition and partnerships by many organizations.
Table of Contents
HR Tech Partnerships & Acquisitions
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- Allison Rutledge-Parisi joins Justworks as senior vice president of people
- SparkPost hires Michelle Byrd as chief people officer
- ManTech gets a new chief human resources officer
- Cristi Tobelmann joins DaySmart software as vice president HR
- Nielsen appoints Sandra Sims-Williams as chief diversity officer
HR Tech Partnerships & Acquisitions
Circa, Greenhouse Software enter a formal partnership
Circa has recently enteredOpens a new window into a formal partnership with hiring software company Greenhouse. From now on, Circa can use Greenhouse developer resources and open network to seamlessly promote customers’ open roles to their diverse network of job boards. Jobs will soon be automatically mirrored into their Circa account within 24 – 48 hours and posted to Circa’s extensive network of 15,500 community organizations. Patrick Sheahan, CEO, Circa said, “Working together to enhance our OFCCP and Diversity technology solutions helps companies develop a more diverse and inclusive workforce. Diversity and inclusion are not only proven to drive employee satisfaction but also increase the bottom line for employers.â€
Modern Hire’s integration with SmartRecruiters aims at enhancing hiring
The first science-based hiring platform Modern Hire announcedOpens a new window a new integration with SmartRecruiters. The partnership is expected to provide Modern Hire clients with an automated process for submitting on-demand interviews and assessments seamlessly within SmartRecruiters workflows to make the entire process easier. SmartRecruiters is known for enabling organizations to continuously improve hiring experiences and outcomes with trusted science and technology. Dusty Woodall, Vice President of Technology at Modern Hire noted, “Modern Hire’s growing ecosystem of partnerships and integrations is critical to our mission, as enabling seamless cross-platform productivity for hiring teams across a wide variety of systems and functions is essential to efficient, effective and fair enterprise hiring.â€
Beekeeper acquires Lua to digitize paper-based processes
Beekeeper has acquiredOpens a new window operational workflow platform Lua with the aim to provide a full-stack mobile platform to enable frontline teams to operate more efficiently and effectively. Beekeeper and Lua are now expected to use their combined expertise to digitize manual, paper-based processes so that companies globally are able to save trillion dollars in productivity gains. Hugh O’Flanagan, CEO and Co-Founder of Lua, “Joining Beekeeper is an incredible moment for our team. We have spent the last three years building the best frontline workflow platform in the market that is at the very core of the work these teams do. Today, customers in five continents around the world rely on our system to run their teams and to run their companies, enabling them to become more efficient and effective.â€
Axonify acquires MLevel to revolutionize modern learning
Axonify has recently announcedOpens a new window the acquisition of Atlanta-based MLevel, a data-driven digital learning platform to revolutionize modern learning. The strategic combination is expected to bring both the companies’ collective customers the significant benefits of their complementary capabilities to drive the future of modern learning. Axonify is known for its frontline training that delivers “personalized, bite-sized bursts of learning right in the flow of work†daily for just few minutes. “By joining a company with significant scale, we will create unrivaled access for organizations seeking a continuous approach to empower their employees,†said Jordan Fladell, CEO and Co-Founder at MLevel.
HR Funding News
Lattice raises $60M in Series E round
Lattice has recently announcedOpens a new window that its valuation has increased to $1 billion after bagging a $60 million round, led by Tiger Global. The round also saw participation from existing investors Thrive Capital, Shasta Ventures, Founders Fund, Frontline Ventures, Fuel Capital, Khosla Ventures, and several new angel investors. Following the round, Lattice’s total funding reached $158 million.
Ginger announces $100M Series E financing from Blackstone
The on-demand mental health company GingerOpens a new window has recently raised $100 million in a Series E financing round, led by funds managed by Blackstone Growth. Following the new investment, the company’s total funding surpassed $220 million. Ram Jagannath, Global Head of Healthcare for Blackstone Growth and Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, said, “We’re proud to invest in Ginger, whose mission to expand access to high-quality mental healthcare through innovative technological solutions is only becoming more important. The company’s exceptional team has built a world-class, scalable care model that benefits individuals, employers, and payers – and we’re excited to partner with them moving forward.†The money is expected to be used for expanding access to value-based mental healthcare through additional partnerships with multinational employers and health plans.
Ease raises $41M in Series C financing round
Spectrum Equity pumped in moneyOpens a new window into Ease, a leading HR and benefits software solution for small businesses, insurance brokers, and insurance carriers as part of the latter’s Series C funding round. The round, which raised $41 million, also saw the participation of existing investors Centana Growth Partners, Propel Venture Partners, Freestyle Capital, Compound Ventures and Upside Partnership. In conjunction with the investment, Vic Parker from Spectrum Equity will join Ease’s board of directors. Following the investment, Ease’s total funding is $70 million. The money will be used to enable SMBs to leverage employee data to connect all their systems, as well as hire new talent.
HR Hiring Watch
Allison Rutledge-Parisi joins Justworks as senior vice president of people
Justworks has recently announcedOpens a new window that it has hired Allison Rutledge-Parisi as the Senior Vice President of People, effective immediately. She is expected to oversee all corporate HR functions and support Justworks’ growing team of over 600 employees. Mike Seckler, Chief Operating Officer at Justworks said, “Allison is well known for being an empathetic and thoughtful leader. Her experience leading People and Human Resources teams through periods of change will be invaluable as we navigate our next chapter of growth. Allison’s appointment is a key step towards building a preeminent People team to support our employees and attract top talent.â€
SparkPost hires Michelle Byrd as chief people officer
Michelle Byrd has joinedOpens a new window SparkPost as their Chief People Officer. She will be focussing on leading global people operations and expanding the employee base. Prior to SparkPost, Byrd worked as Chief People Officer at Zaloni, a multi-cloud data management company, and VP of Global Human Resources and Talent at SilverPop, a cloud-based digital marketing provider that offers email marketing and lead management solutions. Rich Harris, CEO at SparkPost said, “The next several years will be transformative for email as new technologies dramatically improve the email user experience and drive marketing effectiveness. We are excited to play an important role in the email ecosystem and we are lucky to attract a seasoned and creative leader like Michelle to help us achieve operational excellence. Michelle has consistently built outstanding teams and cultures in her career and we expect her to do the same here at SparkPost.â€
ManTech gets a new chief human resources officer
ManTech recently announcedOpens a new window the appointment of Julie Anna Barker as Chief Human Resources Officer. She will be responsible for the development, implementation and execution of human resources strategies and will be reporting to Chairman, CEO and President Kevin M. Phillips. He said, “Since joining ManTech in 2019, Julie Anna has done an outstanding job supporting and enabling our employees to become the best at what they do. As an HR leader who has proven her strong capabilities, adaptability and inclusive collaborative management style, she is an excellent fit for the CHRO role at ManTech.â€
Cristi Tobelmann joins DaySmart software as vice president HR
Cristi Tobelmann has joinedOpens a new window DaySmart Software as its Vice President of Human Resources. She will be taking care of the talent and HR programs fronts while keeping in mind the company’s aggressive expansion plans. She will also be working on establishing the company’s long-term plans for a return to the office and incorporating a hybrid workforce model. Tobelmann said, “I am thrilled to be joining such a fast-growing, employee-focused company. Pat and the team are passionate about helping their employees succeed and fostering a dependable work environment for all. I am honored to have the opportunity to continue to drive this momentum.â€
Nielsen appoints Sandra Sims-Williams as chief diversity officer
Nielsen has recently appointedOpens a new window Sandra Sims-Williams, who joined the company in January 2020 as its Chief Diversity Officer. She will be taking over from CEO David Kenny, who held the CDO title since February 2019. She is expected to continue leading Nielsen’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) team with the aim to develop a more inclusive culture for the company and increase diverse representation. “I am thrilled to lead the next step in Nielsen’s DE&I journey. To our people we are an employer of choice, to our clients and community we are a trusted and valued partner purposefully focused on DE&I,†she said.
HR Tech Product Launches
Paycor launches new career management solution
Human Capital Management company Paycor has recently launchedOpens a new window Paycor Career Management with the aim to help them drive employee engagement, remove the complexity from succession planning, and improve overall business outcomes. It is also expected to give employees support and opportunities for their career development resulting in increased employee efficacy, increased perception of value, and ultimately reducing turnover. Ryan Bergstrom, Chief Product Officer at Paycor said, “With Paycor Career Management, we enable front line leaders to be more effective by allowing them to invite their employees to take an active role in the development and activation of their career development plans.â€
BambooHR introduces new learning management system
BambooHR has come upOpens a new window with a new learning management system called BambooHR Learning to give customers an easy way to learn about how to get the most out of the product’s functionality. It is a new self-paced, on-demand, look into a customer’s BambooHR account capabilities, which will give the customers ability to choose learning plans and courses on every product offered through a real-life simulation of BambooHR. They will also have access to the full dashboard.
DailyPay to launch new rewards solution
DailyPay is all set to launchOpens a new window REWARD by DailyPay – an innovative new solution to empower managers and human resources professionals to recognize employees for doing a good job. Keeping employees engaged and motivated is a top priority for managers, REWARD by DailyPay gives the leadership the ability to incentivize their staff instantly and effortlessly with on-the-spot payments. This included everything – from bonuses for exemplary work to special incentives for doing extra work. Konstantin Getmanchuk, Senior Vice President, Product at DailyPay said, “REWARD exemplifies our commitment to continually innovating our gold standard product with new functions that speak to the needs of our valued partners and unlocking the endless possibilities of pay.â€
Salary.com offers pay equity reporting toolkit
Salary.com has recently launchedOpens a new window the CompAnalyst Pay Equity Reporting Toolkit to allow a deeper dive into identifying differences in pay based on gender, race, age, or any basis of comparison that a company finds important. The toolkit provides tools needed to assess where pay discrepancies exist as well as give companies valuable insights into why such gaps exist, and the corrective actions they can take. David Cross, senior compensation consultant at Salary.com said, “This renewed focus is proving beneficial to both employers and employees, as paying equitably helps companies acquire and retain the best talent, build employee engagement, increase innovation, and improve business performance. By using our Pay Equity Reporting Toolkit alongside JobArchitect and CompAnalyst Survey Data, organizations have a solid foundation on which they can build a sound workforce plan and get pay right,†he added.
HR Surveys
Microsoft report reveals 7 hybrid work trends
Microsoft Corp’s first annual Work Trend Index revealed seven hybrid work trends every business leader needs to know as the global workforce enters a new era of work. Titled “The Next Great Disruption is Hybrid Work – Are We Ready?Opens a new window â€, the report urges business leaders to resist the urge to see hybrid work as business as usual. While discussing the new trends, the report stated that the flexible workforce is here to stay and asks leaders to be in touch with their employees. Not only this, it also points out that high productivity is masking an exhausted workforce and Gen Zers need to be re-energized.
52% of employees will look for a new job in 2021, reveals new study
A new report conducted by Achievers revealedOpens a new window that more than half of North American employees surveyed plan to look for a new job in 2021. The 4th annual Employee Engagement & Retention Report, commissioned by the Achievers Workforce Institute, revealed that workplace stressors – likely exacerbated by the pandemic – is the main reason employees are looking for a job change. Also, one in four employees named work-life balance as the reason they are considering a new job.
Gender pay gap could widen in near future, predicts PayScale
PayScale’s annual State of the Gender Pay Gap Report has predictedOpens a new window that the gender pay gap decreased by one cent since last year. However, the gender pay gap could widen beyond previous levels when women return to the workforce after being unemployed during the pandemic. Shelly Holt, chief people officer at PayScale said, “Most companies do not have the formal compensation structures or resources to measure internal pay gaps, so they are likely to make assumptions, but there are technology and services available today that makes data-driven pay equity achievable for every organization. Imagine the impact on talent acquisition, retention and engagement when a company’s compensation strategy is transparent and there are clear reasons for pay differences like management responsibilities, skills, location, and years of experience.†As a solution, companies should invest in Pay equity – the future of strategic compensation management that can be measured by modern compensation technology.
Glassdoor survey reveals women are less likely to ask for more money in next 12 months
A new survey from Glassdoor showedOpens a new window that employed women are 19% less likely to ask for more money in the coming months than men. According to the survey, 48% of employed women and 59% of employed men plan to ask for a pay raise, bonus and/or cost-of-living increase in the next 12 months. Glassdoor Chief Economist Dr. Andrew Chamberlain said, “A year into the pandemic, we’re only beginning to understand the full implications of the last year on the workplace and pay. What is clear is that the work to ensure women are equally seeking out opportunities to advance and increase their pay at the same rate as their male counterparts is not only important for womens’ individual careers, but to ensure we don’t lose ground on closing the pay gap.â€