Observations on the Annual HR Technology® Conference & Expo

On October 8 and 9 2012 I had the privilege of attending one of the largest HR related conferences in North America. This was quite an experience with over 200 vendors displaying their HR Technology wares.

Under the guidance of David Vickrey, Gotham Growth (http://gothamgrowth.com/) I took the opportunity to cruise the booths and meet potential partners offering solutions that align with CompetencyCore^TM.

The trip was worth it. I met many companies interested in our solution and we are pursuing discussions with a number of big names companies in the Talent Management space. In fact, one notable difference between this conference and others I have attended is that vendors, sponsors and analysts are not only welcome, the organizers shine spotlights on them, and give attendees plenty of time to review and examine what is on the market.

One of my observations based on discussions with analysts, vendors as well as consumers is that Competency-based Talent Management (CbTM), while not entirely new, is now coming of age and is being accepted as a standard best practice by a large number of companies. The other thing I learned is that there are few solutions on the market that can support a fully implemented competency framework configured to company needs. One of the best-known analysts in this space, Bersin & Associates, validated that CompetencyCore^TM has something unique to offer. No other solution provides the breadth of competency libraries that cover a range of verticals in the market (e.g., Oil & Gas, ICT, Sales and Marketing, and many more). As such, CompetencyCore^TM offers a one-stop solution to meet your competency needs. And no other company provides a solution that allows organizations to configure the software to reflect their unique Competency Architectures.

Finally, unlike other Talent Management software solutions that treat competencies as a peripheral “add-on”, CompetencyCore^TM allows organizations to recruit, assess, provide feedback, promote, plan and manage careers and succession, all based on a consistent and common language and set of standards, the competencies required for success within the organization. As CompetencyCore^TM, President and CEO, it was most gratifying and exciting to have our company vision and solution validated at such a prestigious event. It seems that we actually have “built a better mouse trap”.