HR Technology Spending Forecasted to Rise
While the percentage of companies anticipating a spending increase hit 33 percent, the survey also found that over half of companies are planning to match last year’s HR technology investments while only 16 percent plan to reduce spending. However, some HR professionals are skeptical over the validity of the survey, citing how it relied on staff spending rather than simply technology services.
The survey found that many organizations are looking to change their HR structure over the next several years to improve the efficiency of HR services delivery. Nearly half of respondents claimed that changes will occur over the next year. This is a huge jump from the 26 percent indicating the same changes last year.
Mike DiClaudio, head of Towers Watson’s EMEA HR Service Delivery, said: “In many ways this year’s findings are surprising. Despite the obvious pressure on budgets over the past few years, many companies have decided that investment cannot be postponed any longer as HR departments face pressure to adapt and update the way services are delivered.” He continued, “After the last few years of uncertainty and cost savings, many organizations are realizing that their HR structure need to be refreshed in order to effectively service organizations that have themselves changed significantly over the past few years.”
The top three areas of investment for those organizations planning to up HR tech investments next year included additional functionality from existing vendors, upgrading HRMS systems, and expanding self-service functions.